MADISON, Wis. – For the first time in school history, a Wisconsin student-athlete was selected as the No 1 overall pick in their respective sport's professional league.
 
Wisconsin women's soccer standout Rose Lavelle was selected as the No. 1 overall pick by the Boston Breakers in the 2017 National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) Draft on Thursday.
 
Lavelle joins Cara Walls and Michele Dalton as Badgers in the NWSL, which was created in 2012.
 
"We are very excited for Rose to be drafted No. 1 in the NWSL," head coach Paula Wilkins said. "It is a huge credit to the work and dedication that she put forth to earn this great honor for herself. We are proud of everything she accomplished at Wisconsin, but now we are excited to see her succeed at the professional level in Boston.
 
"I am personally so happy for Rose and wish her all the best in Boston.  She will always be a Badger."
 
Arguably the most heralded player in program history, Lavelle became the program's first three-time All-American after another stellar season in 2016. In her senior campaign, she led the team in points (16), goals (6), shots (74), shots on goal (31) and game-winning goals (2). Additionally, she ranked second on the team with four assists on the season.
 
The Cincinnati, Ohio, native saw action in all 22 games in 2016, averaging 3.36 shots and 0.73 points per game.
 
Lavelle garnered a number of other awards this season, including being named to the MAC Hermann Trophy Watch list and being ranked as the No. 1 preseason player of the year by TopDrawerSoccer.
 
Most notably, she was named Big Ten Midfielder of the Year for the second-consecutive season, becoming the first student-athlete to earn the honor in back-to-back years since its debut in 2011.
 Lavelle concluded her collegiate career as a four-time first-team All-Big Ten selection.

 For her efforts off the field of play in the classroom and community, Lavelle was named to the Senior CLASS Award second team.