Toronto FC announced Thursday that the club selected defender Nick Hagglund in the First Round (10th Overall) and Daniel Lovitz in the Second Round (24th Overall) in the 2014 MLS SuperDraft.
RELATED: Nick Hagglund's BIO | Daniel Lovitz's BIO | Kene Eze's BIO
Prior to selecting Hagglund, the club made a trade with the Philadelphia Union. Toronto FC acquired the 10th overall pick from Philadelphia in exchange for the 15th overall selection and allocation money.
“We are very excited to add both Nick and Daniel to Toronto FC,” said Toronto FC General Manager Tim Bezbatchenko. “Nick has a great physical presence and he was rated highly by a number of teams, so we felt we needed to make a deal to move up to ensure he’d still be on the board. Daniel is a player that has a tremendous amount of speed with the ability to get behind defenders and serve the ball. Both players were on our radar and we are pleased with how the draft unfolded.”
Hagglund, 21, spent the last four seasons at Xavier University. He made 81 appearances, starting in 80, while scoring four goals and adding 11 assists. Hagglund was named Big East Defensive Player of the Year for 2013, along with First Team All-Big East honours. During his collegiate career he has also earned A-10 Defensive Player honours, and was named to the Atlantic 10 All-Conference First Team. In his freshman campaign he was named to Atlantic 10 All-Rookie Team and Atlantic 10 All-Tournament Team.
Lovitz, 22, spent four seasons at Elon University, making 80 appearances, scoring nine goals and added 16 assists. This past season Lovitz was named the Southern Conference Player of the Year after leading the Phoenix to a third straight conference tournament title and NCAA Tournament berth.
NICK HAGGLUND
Position: Defender
Height: 6’1
Weight: 193
Birthdate: September 14, 1992
Birth Place: Cincinnati, Ohio
Hometown: Cincinnati, Ohio
Nationality: American
Last Club: Xavier University
How Acquired: Selected in the 1st Round (10th Overall) in the 2014 MLS SuperDraft
DANIEL LOVITZ
Position: Midfielder
Height: 5’10
Weight: 170
Birthdate: August 27, 1991
Birth Place: Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania
Hometown: Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania
Nationality: American
Last Club: Elon University
How Acquired: Selected in the 2nd Round (24th Overall) in the 2014 MLS SuperDraft
KENE EZE
Position: Forward
Height: 6’2
Weight: 175
Birthdate: January 21, 1992
Hometown: Sayerville, New Jersey
Nationality: American
Last Club: Rutgers University
How Acquired: Selected in the 4th Round (60th Overall) in the 2014 MLS SuperDraft
