Worries of a fire ignited quickly Friday evening at the Anaheim Convention Center when fog machines steamed the neon-lit war room of the 2024 National Women’s Soccer League Draft. But as soon as the draftees stepped off the red carpet and into professional careers, their drip extinguished the safety concerns enveloping the ballroom.

In the first signature NWSL event of the year at the United Soccer Coaches Convention, Commissioner Jessica Berman announced the selection of two Trojans — senior defender and midfielder Zoe Burns and Georgia graduate midfielder Croix Bethune, who graduated from USC in 2022 after four seasons in cardinal and gold.

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To nobody’s surprise, Bethune was taken off the board fast when the Washington Spirit traded away 2023 NWSL Defender of the Year Finalist Sam Staab in exchange for the No. 3 overall pick.

Over five years, Bethune’s artful ball-handling produced 30 goals and 28 assists in 63 games.

At USC, Bethune was a MAC Hermann Trophy semifinalist in 2022, a two-time Pac-12 Midfielder of the Year (2021, 2022) and the team’s leader in goals and assists (2021, 2022). She also earned First Team All-Pac-12 honors for three straight years (2020-2022) and Second Team All-SEC in 2023.

Although Bethune — who’s torn her ACL three times in one knee — struggled with injuries early this season, the Georgia native led the Bulldogs to their first-ever conference championship and capped off her collegiate career as the SEC Tournament MVP.

To open the third round, Burns was selected No. 29 overall to the Utah Royals — one of this upcoming season’s expansion teams.

As a four-year starter and captain, Burns recorded 5,112 minutes, 6 goals and 10 assists. Her explosiveness, versatility and contagious energy helped guide the Trojans to 44 total wins, 32 shutouts and four Top-3 Pac-12 finishes during her career at USC. Burns has also merited two caps on the Canada Women’s National Team.

Burns will be the first Trojan to reunite with USC legend and 2022 USC assistant coach Amy Rodriguez, who assumed the Utah Royals’ head coaching role in April. She’s expected to help replicate the Trojan culture in Salt Lake City, much like Rodriguez’s Victory Gold Dunks mirrored the Royals’ team colors Friday.

More than 200 players declared for this year’s draft. After 14 teams made picks across four rounds, only 56 players heard their names called — seven of which will be joining Burns and Rodriguez in Utah, including the No. 1 overall pick UNC redshirt sophomore midfielder and forward Ally Sentnor.

At the end of college, top players must grapple with a difficult decision between declaring for the NWSL Draft or seeking professional opportunities in Europe. Considering the rapid folding of former American women’s soccer leagues — Women’s Professional Soccer and the Women’s United Soccer Association — the stability of the NWSL has been heavily questioned since its inception in 2014.

The USWNT’s disappointing first-round exit in the 2023 World Cup didn’t help. The NWSL’s player development and style were placed under fire after the rosters in the tournament final — England vs. Spain — featured zero NWSL players, whereas just one player for the USWNT did not compete in the NWSL.

Regardless of public scrutiny, the NWSL has added five teams in the last four seasons and experienced an 83% year-on-year viewership increase on its primary streaming platform Paramount+. Many North American players are committed to staying at home and believe the potentiality of the NWSL for their image and athletic development is worth the investment of their careers.

In an interview with “Attacking Third,” Bethune elaborated on her determination to enter the draft.

“It was a tough decision at first, but I felt like staying in the [United States] and being a part of the NWSL and upbuilding what they had started would just be amazing,” Bethune said. “I wanted to be a part of this and help continue to grow.”

By virtue of Friday’s selections, Burns and Bethune join the esteemed company of 15 other Projans who’ve been drafted to the NWSL. Successful counterparts include USWNT starter (2022, No. 4 overall pick) Savannah DeMelo, 2023 Rookie of the Year contender (2023, No. 7 overall pick) Penelope Hocking, and Houston Dash defender (Round 2, 2019 No. 12 overall pick) Ally Prisock.