Well, that happened. National Women’s Soccer League rosters froze at 5 p.m. ET, and unless a deal quietly came in under the wire without being announced, there were no trades to speak of and only two signings.
7:38 PM— And there’s the late announcement: Portland Thorns FC make the biggest move of the day by signing defender Tina Ellertson, a former U.S. national teamer. Portland also placed midfielder Nikki Washington on the disabled list for the remainder of the season.
Thorns FC had originally selected Ellertson in the first round (8th overall) of the NWSL Supplemental Draft, though Ellertson tweeted in February that she would not be playing professional soccer this year.
4:16 PM— FC Kansas City have signed forward Jaime French for the remainder of the season. The 23-year old has trained with the team as an amateur player and was called up in June when several U.S. and Canadian players were unavailable. French made one appearance, logging 11 minute off the bench in a June 13 victory over the Red Stars.
Last month French was profiled by Sam McCowell in the Kansas City Star for sticking with soccer after losing her husband in a car accident during pre-season.
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8:31 AM— The Washington Spirit have added defender Marisa Abegg, who will be available for selection for tonight’s game against the Western New York Flash. Abegg has been added under the NWSL roster relief rules.
Abegg has been around the block having logged time with the Gulf Coast Texans of WPSL and DC United Women, as well as FC Gold Pride and the Washington Freedom during the WPS days. Abegg is also a vet of the U.S. national youth system with the U20s and U23s, and played at Stanford for her college career and was a semifinalist for the MAC Herman trophy.