ORLANDO, Fla. (March 11, 2017) – Orlando Pride will begin its second National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) season on Monday morning, welcoming 29 players to head coach Tom Sermanni’s second preseason camp.
The Pride will host its first training session of the 2017 NWSL season on Monday morning at Seminole Soccer Complex.
“It’s been a long offseason and I know our staff and the players are itching to get back onto the field,” Sermanni said. “We’re very happy with the roster we’ve built during our first full offseason and I’m excited to get to work and see how this group performs in the coming year.”
The Pride return 16 contract players from their inaugural 2016 season, including the rights to forward Alex Morgan, who is spending the first half of the season with French side Olympique Lyonnais.
The duo of USWNT goalkeeper Ashlyn Harris and Aubrey Bledsoe will defend the woodwork behind Steph Catley, Monica and newly acquired defenders Ali Krieger and Alanna Kennedy, among others, on the backline.
2016 Golden Boot winner Kristen Edmonds highlights the Pride’s midfield, while versatile forwards Jasmyne Spencer, Sarah Hagen and Christina Burkenroad roam the attacking third.
Krieger and Kennedy were two of the Pride’s biggest acquisitions, headlining an offseason haul including forward Chioma Ubogagu, 2017 NWSL College Draft picks Danica Evans and Nickolette Driesse and Brazilian defender Camila via discovery. The Pride also secured the rights to rookie Rachel Hill from Portland.
Joining the Pride later in preseason are Catley and Kennedy, who represented Australia in the 2017 Algarve Cup. Hill, who is still in classes at the University of Connecticut, will also join the team at a later date.
Media members interested in attending Monday’s training session are asked to RSVP with Jackie Maynard (jmaynard@orlandocitysc.com) of Orlando Pride Communications. Additional details for the first week of training will be posted via Google Calendar. Instructions on downloading and syncing the training calendar are available by contacting any member of the Communications team.
2017 Orlando Pride Preseason Roster
GOALKEEPERS (4): Aubrey Bledsoe, Ashlyn Harris1, Amanda Kopale3, Hannah Seabert3
DEFENDERS (10): Laura Alleway, McKenzie Berryhill, Steph Catley4, Monica Hickmann Alves, Alanna Kennedy4, Ali Krieger1, Cami Levin, Camila Martins Pereira, Toni Pressley, Lorina White3
MIDFIELDERS (5): Jocelyn Blankenship3, Nickolette Driesse2, Kristen Edmonds, Maddy Evans, Dani Weatherholt
FORWARDS (11): Christina Burkenroad, Danica Evans2, Jamia Fields, Sarah Hagen, Rachel Hill3/4, Alex Morgan1/4, Kim Reynolds3, Carol Rodrigues3/4, Jasmyne Spencer, Tabitha Tindell3, Chioma Ubogagu
1 - Federation player
2 - 2017 NWSL College Draft Pick
3 - Trialist
4 - Not in camp
