With no more NWSL Draft, the Spirit 2024 rookie class may be the best of all-time.
The Washington Spirit rookie class – including Croix Bethune, Hal Hershfelt, Kate Wiesner, Makenna Morris, Courtney Brown, and Heather Stainbrook – has made a seismic impact this season, immediately stepping into key roles and performing at an elevated level. Each of these rookies has scored this season, contributing 15 of the Spirit’s 50 goals. This is the most goals by a rookie class in the NWSL this season, and the most by a Spirit rookie cohort in team history.
Following the ratification of a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) between the NWSL Players Association and the NWSL, there will no longer be a draft in future seasons. So, we are left to wonder if the Spirit 2024 rookie class is perhaps the best of all time. Below, we dive into some of the highlights of each of these six players that have contributed to this historic success.
CROIX BETHUNE
• Selected with the third overall pick in the 2024 NWSL Draft, Bethune cemented herself as one of the best rookies the NWSL has ever seen. Notably, she tied Tobin Heath’s longstanding NWSL record for assists in a single season (10), doing so in only 17 games. In fact, those 10 assists came in a 12-game span. In May, Bethune recorded three assists in a single game and, at the time, became the fifth player in NWSL history.
• But Bethune didn’t just dish it out. She scored as well. On the season, Bethune tallied five goals, including two all-time classics. One came on March 23 when she buried a second-half stoppage-time winner against Bay FC in the team’s home debut. Later, on June 15, before a sold-out Audi Field crowd, Bethune’s late-game heroics struck again, leading to her famous dice roll celebration.
• The fifth overall selection in the 2024 NWSL Draft, Hershfelt has been a monumental asset for the Sprit in the midfield. It didn’t take long for Hershfelt to make her impact, starting in her first career NWSL match and then scoring a goal in her Audi Field debut – the second match of the season. She became the fifth Spirit player to score in their regular season home debut, joining legendary Spirit company – Ashley Hatch, Diana Matheson, Ashley Sanchez, and Sam Staab.
• Hershfelt backed it up soon after: On April 12, she became the second player in Spirit history to score multiple goals in the first four matches with the club. Like Bethune, Hershfelt was one of four Spirit players to selected by the USWNT to represent the United States at the Olympic Games. There, she served as an alternate but later earned her first cap with the team in a friendly against Iceland on October 24.
• The Spirit’s third first round selection in the 2024 NWSL Draft came at #7 with Kate Wiesner. The former Nittany Lion was injured for a large chunk of 2024. However, when she saw the field, Wiesner has made her mark. Versatility is a strong suit of hers, featuring both at the side back positions and on the wings for the Spirit. She has a fair mix of starts and appearances for the Spirit and logged her first NWSL goal against Utah on June 8. Wiesner was selected to the USWNT pre-Olympics training camp.
— Washington Spirit – x (@WashSpirit) June 9, 2024
MAKENNA MORRIS
• The Spirit selected Germantown, Maryland native Makenna Morris with its fourth and final first round pick. Morris, who was teammates with Hershfelt at Clemson, was similarly sidelined for a large chunk of the season. After slotting back into the team, Morris has been a force to be reckoned with. On July 6, Morris made her first career NWSL start, logged her first career NWSL assist, and scored her first career NWSL goal (at the time, the 3:52 goal was the fastest Spirit goal of the season). Additionally, she became the first player in Spirit history to record a goal, assist, and win a penalty in the same game.
— Washington Spirit – x (@WashSpirit) July 7, 2024
• On October 13, Morris added a first half brace to her resumé. The goals came within seven minutes of each other, and Morris joined Mallory Swanson as the only other rookie to score a brace in Spirit history. Finally, Morris’ three game-winning goals this season makes her one of seven Spirit players to ever reach that number of winning goals in a single season.
•At pick 49, Courtney Brown was the Spirit’s final selection on draft night. Brown became the first Utah Ute to be selected in the NWSL Draft since 2016, when Lindsey Luke was selected by the Seattle Reign. On June 23, Brown added her first career NWSL goal off an assist from fellow rookie Croix Bethune. Brown has been a testament of consistency this season, serving in both the midfield and front line and making appearances in nearly every regular season game.
• Heather Stainbrook was not drafted by the Spirit but signed with the team as an undrafted rookie. She went a substantial portion of the 2024 regular season without seeing the field, but late in the season, the Spirit relied on Stainbrook to not only appear but make key starts. Stainbrook’s presence increased, especially in the absence of Andi Sullivan, and her results were evident. On October 20, she scored her first career NWSL goal, a game-winner against Chicago to keep the Spirit’s #2-seed hopes alive.
North Carolina Courage
