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MLS Draft 2015: How Did Orlando City Grade Out?

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Orlando City SC has its first MLS SuperDraft in the books, completing yet another historic event in a year of historic events.

So, how did they do?

Overall, I’d have to give this draft an ‘A’ grade, with the caveat that we obviously have no idea how these players will develop. The club addressed three areas of need by selecting a striker, a center back and a wing player. Further, the players selected could have gone higher, with the exception of the No. 1 pick.

Here’s how the draft went:

The Lions kicked off the 2015 MLS SuperDraft by taking the player many considered the best in the entire draft pool, Cyle Larin. We told you a bit about him earlier, but the upshot is that the club has a potential future star at striker, which is never a bad thing in a sport where scoring the most goals is paramount to winning.

“I’d like to thank Phil Rawlins, Paul McDonough, Coach Adrian Heath, and the entire Orlando City organization for picking me first,” said Larin. “I really appreciate it, and I can’t wait to come in and work really hard.”

“Cyle ticks a lot of the boxes that you look for in a modern day striker,” said Head Coach Adrian Heath. “He has good size, he’s very athletic, and he can score a variety of goals. He has a little bit of everything, and ultimately it came down to the fact that goal-scorers are a hot commodity.”

There were likely many opportunities to trade down and collect additional picks, future picks, allocation cash, current MLS players, or all of the above. In the end, Orlando City’s front office decided that none of the offers were worth as much as what Larin could potentially become.

Orlando City continued its strong inaugural MLS SuperDraft by taking North Carolina defender Conor Donovan, a standout Generation Adidas prospect at center back.

He’s the second youngest player in the draft pool, coming out of college after his freshman season, and is currently playing for the U-20 USMNT in Jamaica in the CONCACAF Championships, where he is teammates with Lions right back Tyler Turner.

Donovan made 15 appearances for North Carolina State in his freshman season, scoring one goal and adding an assist. A Fuquay-Varina, NC, native, the 6-foot-2, 176-pound Donovan trained with both the U.S. U-18 and U-20 youth national teams, scoring three international goals in more than 30 caps.

He is no stranger to Florida, having attended the U-17 USMNT Residency Program in Bradenton.

The Lions will be able to bring Donovan along slowly, develop his game, and get him to bulk up a little. As a center back, he fills an area of need, even though he probably won’t be able to contribute immediately. You can never have enough good center backs, so this was a solid selection.

Just three picks later, City chose diminutive (5-foot-7, 130 pounds) winger Akeil Barrett from the University of Tulsa. The Kingston, Jamaica native played his freshman year at the University of Akron before transferring to Tulsa.

Barrett scored 22 collegiate goals and earned honors such as Conference USA All-Tournament Team (2012), NSCAA All-Midwest Region Third Team (2013), All-Conference USA Second Team (2013) and American Athletic Conference First Team (2014).

Orlando City may be an expansion team, but the Lions seemed to handle their first ever MLS SuperDraft like a well-established club.

They took the guy many believe to be the best player in the draft in forward Cyle Larin with the No. 1 pick, which makes sense. They added a defender many thought would go in the first round in center back Conor Donovan, a very young Generation Adidas prospect with tremendous upside. Orlando City finished the day by taking Jamaican winger Akeil Barrett.

The team addressed three areas of need and we feel they made good choices. Without knowing how these three players will develop, I don’t see how they could get anything but an A.

Here’s how the SuperDraft unfolded:

Round 1

Pick #

MLS team

Player

POS.

School

1

Orlando City SC

Cyle Larin

F

Connecticut

2

New York City FC

Khiry Shelton

F

Oregon State

3

Montreal Impact

Romario Williams

F

Central Florida

4

San Jose Earthquakes

Fatai Alashe

MF

Michigan State

5

Portland Timbers

Nick Besler

MF

Notre Dame

6

Toronto FC

Alex Bono

GK

Syracuse

7

Chicago Fire

Matt Polster

D

Southern Illinois

8

Houston Dynamo

Zach Steinberger

MF

Butler

9

Toronto FC

Clement Simonen

D

North Carolina State

10

Sporting Kansas City

Connor Hallisey

MF

California

11

Toronto FC

Skylar Thomas

D

Syracuse

12

Sporting Kansas City

Saad Abdul-Salaam

D

Akron

13

Vancouver Whitecaps FC

Tim Parker

D

St. John’s

14

Colorado Rapids

Axel Sjoberg

D

Marquette

15

FC Dallas

Otis Earle

D

California-Riverside

16

Seattle Sounders FC

Cristian Roldan

MF

Washington

17

D.C. United

Miguel Aguilar

F

San Francisco

18

New York Red Bulls

Leo Stolz

MF

UCLA

19

Columbus Crew SC

Sergio Campbell

D

Connecticut

20

Sporting Kansas City

Amadou Dia

MF

Clemson

21

Los Angeles Galaxy

Ignacio Maganto

F

Iona

Round 2

Pick #

MLS team

Player

POS.

School

22

Orlando City SC

Conor Donovan

D

North Carolina State

23

New York City FC

Connor Brandt

MF

San Diego

24

Portland Timbers

Andy Thoma

D

Washington

25

Orlando City SC

Akeil Barrett

MF

Tulsa

26

Colorado Rapids

Joseph Greenspan

D

Navy

27

Real Salt Lake

Boyd Okwuonu

D

North Carolina

28

Chicago Fire

Kingsley Bryce

F

St. Louis

29

Toronto FC

Wesley Charpie

D

South Florida

30

Houston Dynamo

Oumar Ballo

D

UMBC

31

Philadelphia Union

Dzenan Catic

D

Davenport

32

Portland Timbers

Christian Volesky

F

Southern Illinois

33

Seattle Sounders FC

Tyler Miller

GK

Northwestern

34

Portland Timbers

Kharlton Belmar

F

Virginia Commonwealth

35

Columbus Crew SC

Sagi Lev Ari

F

Cal State-Northridge

36

Houston Dynamo

Rob Lovejoy

F

North Carolina

37

Toronto FC

Edwin Rivas

F

Cal State-Northridge

38

Vancouver Whitecaps FC

Kay Banjo

F

UMBC

39

New York Red Bulls

Stefano Bonomo

F

California

40

Seattle Sounders FC

Oneil Fisher

MF

New Mexico

41

Philadelphia Union

Eric Bird

MF

Virginia

42

D.C. United

Dan Metzger

MF

Maryland

Orlando City

Orlando City vs. New York Red Bulls: Three Keys to Victory

What does Orlando City need to do to earn a second victory in a row at home this Saturday?

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City is coming off its first win of the MLS regular season and will look to carry that momentum into Saturday night’s Eastern Conference matchup against the New York Red Bulls. The Lions will have several players back from international duty, making Oscar Pareja’s job a bit easier, although some of them will be on short rest. What does Orlando City need to do to earn all three points against the Red Bulls?

Stop Morgan

Lewis Morgan has been on a tear this season with five goals in five matches. That is more than every Orlando City player combined so far this season. The Red Bulls were held scoreless in two matches, meaning those five goals have come in three matches, with Morgan scoring a hat trick against Inter Miami. I love that he took it to the Herons like that, but I’m going to need him to cool off a bit against the Lions.

If Orlando City is to stop Morgan it will take excellent defending from the Lions’ back line and of course Pedro Gallese, who is returning from international duty. Orlando City also gets Wilder Cartagena and David Brekalo back, meaning more of the first choice lineup will be available to keep a clean sheet. With the match at home, earning a clean sheet is all the more important.

Proper Rest and Preperation

It might seem silly to say, but having more than a few days between matches is conducive to earning points. When Orlando City was participating in the Concacaf Champions Cup, the Lions never had time to properly recover or train with a game plan for the next match. Now, the Lions are able to do so, and the result against Austin FC reflects that.

Pareja is a top level MLS coach. We know that he has a plan for about the first 20 minutes of any match, and then makes adjustments throughout the remainder of the match. Even so, many of those adjustments have been planned out prior to the match. That, paired with a more rested roster, allows the Lions to be the protagonists Pareja wants them to be.

Shots, Shots, Shots

Orlando City was able to create plenty of chances against Austin FC, and will need to do so again against the Red Bulls. The Lions took 22 shots Saturday night, with eight on target, and they put two in the back of the net against Austin. Hopefully, Orlando City can be more efficient going forward, but if you don’t create opportunities, you won’t score.

The Red Bulls have some decent defenders who Orlando City will have to deal with, including fullback John Tolkin and Carlos Coronel at keeper. If the Lions can pass even close to the way they did against Austin, the opportunities will come, and if that is the case, hopefully the goals will come. Orlando City still has a sizable goal deficit, thanks to the early part of the season, that can only be corrected with more goals on the other end.


That is what I will be looking for this Saturday night at Inter&Co Stadium. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 3/28/24

Getting to know Rafael Santos, Orlando Pride prepare for Chicago, Midge Purce out for the season, and more.

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

How’s it going, Mane Landers? I hope the work week has been treating you well as we gear up for another weekend of soccer. March flew by for me and April is shaping up to be a pretty busy month as well. In other news, I’m looking into adopting a cat and gathering the supplies to make that happen. Let’s dive into today’s links!

Getting to Know Rafael Santos

Orlando City left back Rafael Santos was the latest Lion to field questions as part of the club’s video series for fans to learn more about its players. The 26-year-old spoke about the decision process behind joining Orlando and playing outside of Brazil for the first time in his career after five years with Cruzeiro. He’s brought his attack-minded style of play to the team, particularly in terms of providing lethal crossing from the wing. Make sure to check out the full video as Santos also shared photos of his newborn and showcased his skill with a cavaquinho.

Orlando Pride Prepare to Host Chicago

After a pair of draws to start their season, the Orlando Pride will have a chance to claim their first win of the season when they host the Chicago Red Stars tomorrow night at 6 p.m. Head Coach Seb Hines spoke about how the Pride have shown plenty of resilience so far this young season. The team managed to secure a point in last week’s 1-1 draw with Angel City FC despite a patchwork back line due to injuries. That defense will likely have its hands full against Mallory Swanson and a Chicago team that won both of its first two games. Hines spoke about how the Pride are preparing for Chicago and how they will need the home crowd to bring the support tomorrow night.

Sophia Smith Signs Record-Breaking New Deal

American forward Sophia Smith signed a new contract with the Portland Thorns that will make her the highest-paid NWSL player, according to the club. The new deal will last through the 2025 season, with an option for 2026 as well. The 23-year-old was drafted by the Thorns with the first overall pick in the 2020 NWSL Draft and has gone on to score 34 regular-season goals. Smith re-signed with the club in 2022 and was set to become a free agent following this season, but will instead stay in Portland.

Midge Purce Out for NWSL Season

NJ/NY Gotham FC forward Midge Purce will miss the remainder of the NWSL season after tearing her ACL. The 28-year-old will undergo surgery and suffered the injury in her team’s 1-0 victory over the Portland Thorns this past weekend. She’s been with Gotham since 2020 and assisted on both goals in her team’s 2-1 win in the 2023 NWSL Championship. It’s a tough blow for the United States Women’s National Team too, as she will not be representing the U.S. during this summer’s Olympics in France.

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  • Orlando City B’s match against Carolina Core FC on April 14 has been rescheduled.

That’s all I have for you today. I hope you all have a wonderful Thursday and rest of your week!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 3/27/24

Bally Sports will broadcast Orlando Pride matches, Pride players called up, USWNT announces SheBelieves Cup roster, and more.

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Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

Hello, Mane Landers. I hope all is well with you down in Florida. I attended my friend’s wedding this past weekend and have been getting myself back into work mode by covering high school tennis this week. There is plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links.

Bally Sports Will Broadcast Select Orlando Pride Matches

Bally Sports was announced as the new local television partner for the Orlando Pride. There will be 13 select Pride matches broadcast this season across Bally Sports Florida, Bally Sports Sun, and on the Bally Sports app. The partnership will begin this Friday, with the Orlando Soccer Insider show taking place before the kickoff of the Pride’s home match against the Chicago Red Stars at 7 p.m. The show will be broadcast on Bally Sports Florida, and then you can switch to the Bally Sports app to watch Friday’s match. Below are all the select matches that will be broadcast on Bally Sports this season.

Brazilian Orlando Pride Players Called Up

The Orlando Pride’s Marta, Angelina, and Luana were all called up by Brazil for next month’s SheBelieves Cup. Brazil heads into this tournament after a solid showing in the Concacaf W Gold Cup. The format is different for this year’s SheBelieves Cup, as there will only be four matches instead of six. Brazil’s first match of the tournament will be a semifinal on April 6 against Canada in Atlanta.

USWNT Announces Roster for SheBelieves Cup

United States Women’s National Team interim head coach Twila Kilgore announced the 23-player roster for the 2024 SheBelieves Cup matches next month. The USWNT has won this competition four consecutive times since 2020, and is going for a seventh title in 2024. Of those called up, 19 players on this squad were part of the team that won the Concacaf W Gold Cup earlier this month. San Diego Wave forward Jaedyn Shaw, the Concacaf W Gold Cup’s MVP, is back on the roster after she led the USWNT with four goals. The squad also includes familiar names like former Pride forward Alex Morgan, Washington Spirit forward Trinity Rodman, and Olympique Lyon midfielder Lindsey Horan. Mallory Swanson and Catarina Macario return to the squad after being sidelined with injuries. The USWNT will begin its quest to defend its SheBelieves Cup title when it faces Japan on April 6 in Atlanta.

MLS Referees Agree to New CBA

After a lockout that resulted in Major League Soccer starting the season with replacement referees, the Professional Soccer Referees Association voted to ratify a new collective bargaining agreement with the Professional Referee Organization. The new CBA is a seven-year deal that runs through January of 2031. This deal will also include significant pay raises for referees, assistant referees, and video assistant referees. The PRO referees will return to the pitch for this weekend’s MLS matches.

Ukraine, Georgia, and Poland Qualify for Euro 2024

Ukraine has qualified for this summer’s Euros after edging out Iceland 2-1 in its playoff final, with Mykhaylo Mudryk scoring the winning goal in the second half. Georgia eliminated Greece 4-2 on penalties after a 2-2 draw to book a spot in the tournament as well. Georgia qualifies for its first major tournament after coming up short in 2020. Poland also needed penalties to qualify, with goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny making the final save against Daniel James to beat Wales 5-4 on penalties after a scoreless draw.

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That will do it for me today, Mane Landers. Enjoy your Wednesday and I’ll see you next time.

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