ANAHEIM, Calif. (Jan. 12, 2023) — The North Carolina Courage has acquired midfielder/forward Ashley Sanchez from the Washington Spirit in exchange for the fifth overall pick in the 2024 NWSL Draft, presented by Ally, and $250,000 in allocation money, as announced by the club on Friday.
The U.S. Women’s National Team mainstay joins the Courage after playing her first four professional seasons in the Nation’s Capital. The 24-year-old recently signed a multi-year contract through the 2026 NWSL season.
“We are thrilled to add Ashley to our roster. I have known her since 2015 and she is an incredibly talented player. She has a great understanding of the game, is technically proficient, and – when she’s at her best – plays the game with a free joy that is rare to find. I couldn’t be more excited to work with her again and our staff is ecstatic for the opportunity to help her continue her path as a world-class footballer. We can’t wait to get her integrated with our group and see her impact. I think we are going to see another level of Ashley Sanchez at WakeMed Soccer Park,” said Courage head coach Sean Nahas.
Sanchez has been a consistent contributor for both her club and country over the last four years. She has 25 caps for the United States, including the 2022 Concacaf W Championship and a call-up for last summer’s World Cup, the first of her career. She has three goals and four assists at the senior international level.
Sanchez has 17 goals and eight assists across all competitions with the Spirit since joining the club in 2020. She helped the club to the 2021 NWSL Championship and a runner-up finish in the 2022 NWSL Challenge Cup.
Sanchez played 1,603 minutes across 20 NWSL regular season matches in 2023. She scored five goals, added an assist, and created 20 chances while passing at a 72.5% accuracy. She won 67% of her tackles, won 26 possessions in the attacking third, and made 123 recoveries which – according to Opta – ranked second among attacking players in the league.
Originally from Monrovia, California, Sanchez was drafted by the Spirit with the fourth overall pick in the 2020 NWSL College Draft. Before turning pro, Sanchez played three seasons at UCLA, tallying 23 goals and 42 assists across 69 matches. A three-time First Team All-Pac-12 honoree, Sanchez also set various school records during her tenure with the Bruins, including career assists (42), career NCAA Tournament assists (14), consecutive games with a goal or assist (13), assists as a freshman (12) and single game assists (4) among others.
The Courage acquired the fifth pick, which they used to acquire Sanchez, from the Houston Dash via trade at last year’s draft. The Courage have their four natural picks remaining in the 2024 NWSL Draft, including the 10th overall pick in round one and picks 24, 38, and 52.
