Utah Royals FC needs goal scorers, and it got three with its three picks in the 2020 National Women’s Soccer League College Draft on Thursday.
With the eighth overall pick, URFC selected midfielder/forward Tziarra King from NC State, with the 12th pick (third of the second round) it chose midfielder/outside back Kate Del Fava from Illinois State and with the 31st pick (fourth of the fourth round) it took forward Cyera Hintzen from Texas.
Until this month, URFC did not own picks in either of the first two rounds of the draft. Earlier this week, it acquired the eighth pick from the Chicago Red Stars in exchange for allocation money and made King its first-ever first-round selection.
A few mock drafts had paired URFC and King, who scored 48 goals and tallied 19 assists in her collegiate career.
Last week, URFC acquired the 12th pick as part of a trade that sent forward Katie Stengel to the Houston Dash, and with that 12th pick it took a player in Del Fava who, despite not being listed as a forward, scored 17 goals as a senior in 2019, which was good for 10th in the country.
Finally with the 31st pick, URFC chose Hintzen, who scored 17 goals for the Longhorns in her collegiate career.
URFC’s draft efforts were spearheaded by general manager Stephanie Lee and interim head coach Scott Parkinson, who assumed that role following the departure of Laura Harvey to the United States Soccer Federation.
Numerous players who competed locally on the collegiate level applied for the draft, but none were among the 36 selections. BYU’s Elise Flake was widely thought to be a likely early selection but she opted to not register for the draft.