Orlando Pride
2025 Orlando Pride Season In Review: McKinley Crone
The Pride’s primary backup showed her potential during her four appearances in between the posts.
Despite an outstanding college career, McKinley Crone went undrafted in the 2023 NWSL Draft, but joined the Pride as a non-roster invitee during the 2023 preseason. The Maitland native continued with the Pride as a training player and was rewarded with a National Team Replacement Player contract on June 27, 2023. The 25-year-old signed a second National Team Replacement Player contract and then was signed for the remainder of the season on Sept. 13, 2023. The Pride signed her to a contract through the 2024 season on March 11, 2024, and then re-signed her to a new deal through the 2026 season on Sept. 6, 2024.
Let’s take a look back at Crone’s third season with the Pride.
Statistical Breakdown
The former Edgewater High School and Florida Kraze Krush goalkeeper served as the primary backup for Anna Moorhouse during the 2025 season, dressing in every game except one Concacaf W Champions Cup match.
During NWSL regular-season play, she appeared in two games, starting one and coming off the bench to replace an injured Moorhouse in the other. She played a total of 129 minutes, allowing one goal and making four saves for a save percentage of 80% and a goals-against average of 0.69. She passed at an 88% completion rate with two accurate long balls among the six she attempted (33.3%). The Pride were trailing Portland 1-0 when she subbed in for Moorhouse and ended up losing that game by the same scoreline, and they tied Bay FC 1-1 in the game when she started and went the full 90, so she ended the NWSL season with a record of 0-0-1 and a plus/minus of zero during her minutes on the field.
Crone’s other two appearances were both starts in the Concacaf W Champions Cup, as she played full matches in the team’s win against Alajuelense of Costa Rica and loss against Club América of Mexico, tallying 180 minutes. In those two games, she allowed two goals on six shots on target, making four saves with a save percentage of 67% and a goals-against average of 1.00. She completed 77% of her passes and ended up with a 1-1-0 record and plus/minus of +1.
Crone dressed but did not play in either of Pride’s two playoff matches or the Challenge Cup.
Best Game
Although she earned her first career shutout in the game against Alajuelense, the Costa Rican side rarely threatened (the Pride had 66% possession and a 37-7 advantage in shots taken), and most of Crone’s touches were on passes back to her as a release valve. I think her best game was her start against Bay FC, as even though she gave up a goal (and was mostly responsible for the goal since it was her errant pass that gave Bay the ball initially), she made up for it with three big saves, including one save early in the game against former Pride player Rachel Hill on a volley that was awarded a post-shot expected goal value of 0.64 (meaning that the analyst watching the game thought that there was a 64% chance that Hill’s shot would be a goal).
In addition, Crone completed 88% of her passes, including a bomb down the middle that she completed all the way down inside of Bay’s defending third of the field. The Pride were unfortunate not to get a second goal and give Crone her first NWSL win, but as it was, she contributed to a draw and played well in her maiden NWSL start.
2025 Final Grade
Crone only played 309 minutes in all competitions, which means she fell 91 minutes shy of the required 400 minutes across all competitions to qualify for a season grade after her first season in Orlando. Therefore, The Mane Land staff has no choice but to give an incomplete grade for the 2025 season.
2026 Outlook
Goalkeeper appears to be the deepest position on the Pride’s roster, with Moorhouse, Kat Asman, Cosette Morché and Crone all under contract through at least the 2026 season. That could change in the off-season, but as of now, the team has four on the roster and will certainly keep at least three and possibly all four next year.
Crone was the primary backup during the 2025 season, but will be pushed hard by Asman — who was loaned to Lexington FC for the second half of the season — and Morché for 2026, as the club saw enough to give them both full contracts and keep four players at a position where only one can ever play at a time. Moorhouse clearly had the starting spot locked down in 2025, but she did not have as strong of a season as she did in 2024, and it is possible that there will be a battle for the starting gloves in 2026.
Moorhouse would appear to have the inside track for the starting role and Crone the inside track as the primary backup, but the performance of all four goalkeepers in training camp will settle that debate once the preseason begins next year. Crone will most likely come out of that competition in the same place as 2025, as the primary backup, but I believe she has a chance — a small one, but still a chance — to unseat Moorhouse and become the starter.