Olivia Moultrie is one step closer to signing an NWSL contract.
According to reporting by The Athletic’s Paul Tenorio and Meg Linehan, Moultrie is in the process of solidifying a contract with the Portland Thorns. The club acquired her rights through a trade with OL Reign, who first claimed the 15-year-old through a discovery process on Friday. The Reign received Portland’s third-round draft pick in exchange for Moultrie’s rights.
New from @PaulTenorio and I at @TheAthletic.Olivia Moultrie is close to signing a #NWSL contract after the Thorns acquired her discovery rights from the Reign. https://t.co/E83cKY5wZk— Meg Linehan (@itsmeglinehan) June 6, 2021
New from @PaulTenorio and I at @TheAthletic.Olivia Moultrie is close to signing a #NWSL contract after the Thorns acquired her discovery rights from the Reign. https://t.co/E83cKY5wZk
The move comes after Moultrie won a lawsuit against the league in which she contested the NWSL’s 18-year-old age requirement. The 15-year-old was granted a temporary restraining order, allowing her to sign with a team.
The NWSL rejected the Thorns’ discovery claim for Moultrie in late May on the basis that the league still needed to establish “new child protective policies that will enable the introduction of minors into their team environments.”
Moultrie has been training with the Thorns for two years.