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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Former BYU women’s soccer star Ashley Hatch had a season to remember.
The 2017 National Women’s Soccer League rookie of the year was the No. 2 overall pick in the 2017 NWSL college draft and scored seven goals over 24 appearances with the North Carolina Courage.
Now she’s on the move.
Hatch was traded to the Washington Spirit with teammate and fellow U.S. international Taylor Smith in exchange for U.S. standout striker Crystal Dunn, the clubs announced jointly Tuesday afternoon.
“Ashley had tremendous success in her rookie season, and it is rare that any player achieves what she did in their first season in the NWSL,” Spirit coach Jim Gabarra said in a club statement. “Her natural ability to score goals is something all teams search for. Taylor and Ashley are not only top players, but they are both quality people, and we are elated to have them join our club.”
We can't thank you two enough. Wishing you the absolute best ❤️@ash_hatch33@taylornsmith11_pic.twitter.com/TyR60Vowvg
— NC Courage (@TheNCCourage) January 16, 2018
The 22-year-old Hatch, who grew up in Gilbert, Arizona, scored 47 goals in 75 games at BYU, becoming one of the top-10 scorers in the history of the program. She made her U.S. women’s national team debut at 21 in a friendly against Switzerland at Rio Tinto Stadium in October 2016.
After her standout season with North Carolina, the striker went on loan to Melbourne City FC in Australia’s W-League. She scored two goals in 10 matches (all starts) of her 835-minute loan spell.
Dunn, who played college soccer at North Carolina, was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2014 NWSL college draft and went on to become the youngest player to win the league’s golden boot award with 15 goals in 2015.
