Sky Blue FC makes trade, acquires Mallory Pugh of U.S. women's national team

Sky Blue FC has been rebuilding for years. This season, the National Women's Soccer League team has a new coach, new general manager, a new home, and now a new U.S. women's national team star joining Delran native Carli Lloyd.

On Thursday, Sky Blue added striker Mallory Pugh via a trade with Washington, as well as four new players in the NWSL College Draft.

A USWNT mainstay since the U-14 level, Pugh has 12 goals and 12 assists in 56 appearances with the senior team. She scored 10 goals in 40 Spirit games since signing in May 2017.

Now 21, Pugh is the youngest NWSL player to score a goal, as well as the youngest American to score in the Olympics.

The pick is in

After ranking last in the nine-team league in goals scored last season, Sky Blue chose South Florida striker Evelyne Viens with the fifth pick.

Sky Blue held the No. 2 and 3 picks in the first round, but traded down just before the draft began on Thursday morning. The team acquired the fourth and fifth picks from Chicago, as well as allocation money.

Sky Blue then dealt the No. 4, 13 and 17 picks — one in the first round and two in the second — to Washington for Pugh. Sky Blue had also added midfielders McCall Zerboni and Midge Purce in trades and re-signed co-captain Sarah Killion in the week leading up to the draft.

Viens set USF and American Athletic Conference records with 25 goals this fall. Tied for the NCAA goal-scoring record in 2018, Viens finished her career with 73 goals and 23 assists in 77 games, setting USF and AAC records for shots (360), goals and points. She also set AAC records with 2.19 points per game, 0.95 goals per game and 4.68 shots per game.

Viens holds the first, second and third-place spots on USF's single-season goals list. She also holds the single-season school records for points, shots, and game-winning goals, as well as the AAC records for points per game (2.65) and goals per game (1.25).

"I was just so happy to go to New Jersey and get closer to home and have a chance to play in this amazing league," said Viens, who was raised in French-speaking Quebec and learned English in college.

"I'm going to bring good speed, and creating chances to score and score goals. That will be my goal this year, to help this team win games."

► Sky Blue selected Penn State defender Kaleigh Riehl in the second round, No. 11 overall. She finished her career as the NCAA Division I all-time leader in minutes played with 8,847 minutes played, surpassing USWNT and Utah defender Becky Sauerbrunn. With Riehl on the back line, Penn State won its first NCAA women's soccer title in 2015, and the Big Ten Tournament in 2015, 2017, and 2019.

A redshirt senior with a 3.91 GPA in kinesiology, Riehl was a two-time first-team United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-America. She spent her redshirt season with the United States under-20 national team at the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup, starting all six matches.

► The first goalkeeper selected, Virginia Tech senior Mandy McGlynn, is heading to Sky Blue at No. 20. Sitting in the front row in the Baltimore Convention Center ballroom, McGlynn had to wait until the second pick of the third round.

Sky Blue has Canadian national team veteran Kailen Sheridan on the roster, who had a 1.32 goals-against average and three shutouts last season, as well as Megan Hinz and Didi Haracic.

This fall, McGlynn stopped 76 shots for an 83.5 save percentage, which was the second-best single-season mark. Her 0.772 goals allowed average and 10 shutouts were also second, and her 12 wins were third all-time.

McGlynn posted a school-record 32 shutouts and a 0.99 career GAA. Her 41 wins, 7,014 minutes played and 79.4 save percentage were second in VaTech history, and her 297 saves were third.

"I wasn't expecting it at all," said McGlynn, who grew up in Jacksonville, Florida.

"I wanted to hear my name so bad. Once I heard it, I was like, 'Woah, it's my time.' ... It's going to be surreal. This is everything a soccer player dreams of when they're a little girl, the fact that it's all happening today and it all starts in March. I'm excited to get out there."

► Sky Blue stayed close to home with its final selection: Rutgers center back Chantelle Swaby. Swaby helped the Scarlet Knights post six Big Ten shutouts, while adding two assists. She played for Jamaica in the Women's World Cup last summer.

Swaby joins Rutgers products Lloyd, Kenie Wright (Lenape/Mount Laurel), Madison Tiernan (Eastern/Voorhees) and Erica Skroski (Abesgami/Galloway) on the Sky Blue roster.

► Sophia Smith, a 19-year-old Stanford striker who left college early, was the No. 1 overall pick. The third straight top choice from Stanford, Smith is the first teenager selected in the NWSL draft.

"This was the best time for me to take the next chapter of my life and my career," Smith said. "There's no better time than now. I went for it and followed my heart."

Jersey girls grown up

Tziarra King, a recent North Carolina State graduate from Sicklerville, went to Utah with the eighth pick.

The first NCSU player ever selected by the NWSL, King wrapped up her career with 88 starts, 48 goals and 115 points, and ranks third all-time in the Wolfpack record books in all three categories. She finished in the top three in the ACC and top 35 in the NCAA this season in goals (13) and points (32) en route to becoming the second four-time All-ACC selection in the history of the program behind former USWNT defender Thori Staples Bryan (1992-95).

King, who led New Jersey with 51 goals and 14 assists as a Winslow Twp. senior, hopes to play forward in Utah. She still holds the all-time scoring record — both boys and girls —with 105 career goals and 36 assists.

"Childhood me is going crazy inside right now. I'm so excited," said King, who had a 4.0 GPA in nutrition science.

"Honestly, there's no words to describe it. I'm so excited to be playing with and against the best players in the world. I just can't wait to get started."

► Yael Averbuch of Montclair, the co-executive director of the NWSL Players Association, announced picks No. 13 through 18 in the second round. In 2009, Averbuch was drafted by Sky Blue in Women's Professional Soccer — a precursor to the NWSL — and played for multiple teams both in the United States and internationally until retiring in 2018.

"This is a moment of celebration for these players," Averbuch said. "This is the culmination of a body of work based on goals they've just achieved. It's such a special moment. As a player, what I soon realized is, this is a beginning. Now is when it starts."

Jane Havsy is a sports reporter for DailyRecord.com. For full access to live scores, breaking news and analysis, subscribe today.

Email: JHavsy@gannettnj.com Twitter: @dailyrecordspts