What The Heart Wants

Laying Down Roots

A/N: A number of names and faces you'll recognize in the above clip.

The USSF Board of Directors held an emergency meeting this morning to discuss the job status of President Sunil Gulati. Based on a number of factors, including the protracted contract negotiations with the Women's National Team and the Men's National Team's failure to qualify for the 2018 World Cup, the board, by a vote of 13-2, decided to sever ties with the Columbia University professor, with a press conference coming on Monday morning to make that announcement. Dan Flynn, Secretary General, has been endowed with Gulati's powers until such time as a new president has been selected.

Ali and Carm headed to the offices of the Philadelphia Hearts together for a couple of hours of advance work ahead of their trip with Erica to Penn State for tonight's game against Purdue. While on the road to Happy Valley, the three of them discuss possibilities for the expansion draft in fourteen days.

Carm: Erica, we're set on the first two picks, correct? Ali is on board and we're going to take Steph Labbe with the next choice.

Erica: Yes, that's what we will be doing. Ali, I am thankful that you were willing to hook on with us early so we could have your insight and league experience as part of our scouting and player acquisition process.

Ali: I'm really looking forward to having my own team, one where I feel a bit of ownership in the process and results.

Erica: Where do you think we should go after Vancouver's second and third picks?

Carm: If they do what I'm expecting, which is stay on the Canadian train and take D'Angelo with one pick and a player they can flip back for another one, we should have a pretty open board. Question is which team will that player-to-flip come from. I know they are looking at Desiree Scott as the player they'd like to have to hold down everything in front of their goalkeeper and behind the offensive talent they are able to put on the field. If she's their player, that would take KC off the board, leaving Houston, Sky Blue, Chicago, Boston, and Seattle players available for selection.

Ali: We'll have a defender/d-mid and a goalkeeper by this point. Most years you can find capable forwards in the college draft and there are several unprotected ones that we can grab later on. If we're building from the back and the plan is to not seek out a 10 but a box-to-box middie to play in front of me, we should look at picking up some flank players with those two selections. Kristie Mewis is available, and Carm and I know she is looking for a change of scenery and a fresh start after the three trades she was in this past season.

Erica: Isn't she a fairly strong one-on-one player who likes to take on players and create her own shot?

Ali: That's what Washington and Houston were having her do this year, but in reality she is a MUCH better crosser of the ball and utilizes her speed out wide better than running through the traffic of the center of the park.

Carm: Ali's right. Her mentality of play isn't to be the engine of the midfield like Ali can be from deep, or Sinc was doing for Portland later in the season.

Erica: So you're both sold on Mewis for one of the selections? Fine. What about the other one?

Carm: The three of us will be great in connecting this team to the Pennsylvania roots of women's soccer because of playing and coaching at Penn State, but we don't yet have a player that ties us specifically to Philadelphia. Here is where we can make a splash and block Vancouver from possibly taking someone like Arin Gilliland or Alyssa Mautz with their fourth or fifth selection. Jen Hoy is from Sellersville, less than 40 miles north of Philly. She's serviceable up top or on the right flank and would bring a good locker room presence.

Erica: Princeton grad, right?

Carm: Yes, like my friend D-Math.

Erica: Think that's a good one. Fifth and sixth?

Carm: Fifth we can't really plan out since we'll be stuck with whoever is available from the one team that has yet to lose a player. Sixth, we're able to pick anyone from any team and I like the idea of picking someone that we can turn back to their former club for more parts.

Erica: I think we can do that later on, since then you're just trying to build up as big a cache as possible.

Ali: What do you think about Katie Naughton from the Red Stars? Center back, more agile than myself, quicker, and someone that were we to pair her with a mental defender, the Sauerbrunn type, would make for an effective pair.

Erica: Pretty solid idea, Ali. I think we're throwing darts at a wall beyond this point, so it'll be more wait-and-see for how we fill out the rest of the selections.

Carm is reading through her iPad and came across the USSF release concerning today's meeting.

Carm: Press conference at Soccer House Monday at 10am concerning today's emergency meeting of the USSF Board of Directors.

Ali: Do you think they're going to finally pull the trigger on Gulati?

Carm: Could be. Could also be the announcement of a new men's national team coach.

Ali: Any players from Penn State or Purdue that we should be eyeing for the January draft?

Carm: Purdue's players of note for us are Vanessa Korolas, Maddy Williams, and Gabby Lamere.

Erica: My eyes are on Elizabeth Ball, Frannie Crouse, and Brittany Basinger. I think all three of them are capable of playing in NWSL and I'd like to be able to draft at least one of them if possible. Another connection to the roots and I've already worked with these players for three years, so the learning curve for them won't be much.

Carm: We can't get all of them, of course, and since we have the first pick in the draft, we can use that position to pick up other picks later on.

Erica: You thinking we take someone at 1 and then dangle them in front of a team that desperately wants her?

Ali: Chicago raked Boston over the coals a couple of years ago by taking Steph McCaffrey at 5 and then traded her to them for a bunch of picks, knowing that she had played in their Academy during her summers off from Boston College and the Breakers were hoping she'd be there for them at 9.

Erica: So something like that could pan out really well, I see.

Carm: Take this as an example. For argument's sake, Jessie Fleming decides not to play her final two years at UCLA and comes out early. We're sitting at 1 and can take her, but know that Washington would like to get her to pair with Mallory Pugh. We take her, then cut a deal with the Spirit for a couple of their players and a pick.

Ali: We'd get closer to a viable first XI and a full roster by doing that than by selecting a player we want with the top spot.

The Hearts coaches and captain arrived at Jeffrey Field and took places in the stands. Erica was immediately recognized by most of the parents, resulting in her needing to get down to field level so she could greet all of them. She beckoned Ali and Carm down so she could introduce them. Before heading back to the locker room for last-minute instructions, her former players and assistant coaches stopped and greeted their former coach.

Penn State defeated Purdue, 4-1, with Nittany Lion goals coming from Frannie Crouse (2), Kristin Schnurr, and Elizabeth Ball. Maddy Williams picked up the lone Boilermaker tally. After some post-game commiserating, Erica, Carm, and Ali got back on the road for Philadelphia, returning close to 1am. Carm and Ali went back to her apartment, where the calling of slumber overtook them both fairly quickly.