Two players with ties to the Philadelphia area selected in NWSL draft

It took until the final round of the draft, but two players with ties to the Philadelphia area ended up being selected in the NWSL draft in Chicago on Thursday.

Sky Blue FC goalkeeper Kaylan Marckese out of the University of Florida with their first pick in the fourth round (28th overall) and one pick later chose Mount Laurel, N.J. native Kenie Wright, a defender from Rutgers University.

Wright made 88 appearances for Rutgers over four seasons and finished with a pair of goals and 13 assists. She was named Second Team All-Big Ten and won the Sportsmanship Award as a senior. Prior to college, she won a state championship at Lenape High School in 2011 and a national championship with Players Development Academy in 2015.

Marckese, a St. Petersburg, Florida native, made 78 appearances for the Gators over her four seasons in Gainesville, registering a program record 29 shutouts. She was the only goalkeeper selected out of the 36 picks in the draft. All told, Sky Blue FC made eight picks on the day.

A full list of the picks is available at SB Nation.