Pair of locals top picks

Newport Coast resident Camille Levin and UC Irvine All-American CoCo Goodson were selected fourth and 12th, respectively, in the Women’s Professional Soccer draft Friday in Kansas City, Mo.

Levin, who helped lead Stanford to its first NCAA championship as a senior in 2011, was taken in the first round by Sky Blue FC, based in New Jersey. A first-team All-American as a senior, she played three positions for the Cardinal (25-0-1). She had an assist in the 1-0 NCAA final triumph over Duke and collected four goals and seven assists in 2011.

Considered the Cardinal’s best tackler, she had 12 goals and 22 assists in her college career. She attended Tarbut V’Torah in Irvine.

Goodson, a first-team All-American as a junior, earned second-team All-American laurels in 2011 and was taken in the second round by the Philadelphia Independence.

A two-time Big West Conference Defender of the Year after transferring before her junior season from Texas, Goodson was dominant on the back line. She was also a productive offensive player on set pieces, where her booming shot and strong ability to win balls in the air made Goodson an integral part of back-to-back conference regular-season champions and the program’s first two NCAA Tournament appearances.

Goodson had nine goals on 16 shots on goal with five game-winners as a junior, when UCI went 19-3-2, including 8-0 in the Big West. UCI reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.

As a senior, she had three goals and five assists on 12 shots on goal. UCI finished 14-4-3, 6-1-1 in conference in 2011.

“We are all so very proud of CoCo,” UC Irvine Coach Scott Juniper said in a statement after the draft. “She has taken a big step in her career today and knowing the competitor that she is, Philly has made a very smart decision. The path of a professional soccer player is a tough one and CoCo will need all of her focus, determination and resilience to make her mark. But having worked with her every day for two years, I know she has what it takes.”

The five-team league, for which 23 players were drafted in four rounds, will hold preseason camps in March. The league begins its fourth season in April.

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Twitter: @BarryFaulkner5