It was a very “back to school” feeling for the Orlando Pride this morning as players reported for their first day of preseason training.

“It’s day one of preseason, so there are some nerves,” Head Coach Seb Hines said Monday morning. “There’s a real excitement going into the year, and you can see already, loud and joyful and they want to do well this year. They want to really set a precedent going into the season and show everyone what they’re capable of doing.”

Following a tumultuous 2022 season, the Pride are coming into the 2023 preseason with renewed energy and the majority of players returning.

The only player to leave Orlando for another team thus far is leading goalscorer Meggie Dougherty Howard, who joined the San Diego Wave.

One of the free agents that decided to return to Orlando was veteran midfielder Erika Tymrak, who signed a new two-year agreement with the club. She said that she decided to return to the club because she believed in Seb’s vision for the future.

“Inevitably, I came back to the Pride because I’m committed to Seb’s plan and his vision,” Tymrak said. “He showed, in a small bit of time last year, what he can really do, and now that we have a full offseason, a full preseason, I was like it’s a no-brainer for me to come back. We have a really good core group, and we’re committed to his vision, and this organization is moving forward on such a positive note that it’s a no-brainer for me and I’m so excited to be back here.”

[Haley Carter named Pride VP of Soccer Operations/General Manager]

The majority of the team was in attendance and fully involved with practice, except for two players that were off to the side. Both Vivianna Villacorta and Leah Pruitt were working with trainers and not participating in drills.

Preseason Roster Invitees

The full preseason roster includes three Non-Roster Invitees: Thais Reiss, Nicole Baxter, and McKinley Crone.

Reiss was a part of the Pride roster last year, singing in June and appearing in five matches. She was released at the end of last season but is with the team for preseason.

Baxter, formerly of Gotham FC, joins the Pride preseason camp after playing nine games up in New Jersey last year. She has been in the league since 2019, though only made her debut during the 2020 Challenge Cup.

Crone is a local product from Maitland, having gone to high school with Pride draftee Kristen Scott at Edgewater High School. She recently finished up a distinguished career at the University of Alabama, having set the NCAA record for goalkeeping minutes in her career with 9,519.77 played.

Who is missing?

As far as the full signed roster goes, only the Pride’s newest forward, Brazilian star Adriana, has not yet reported for camp, as she is still working on securing her visa to play in the US.

Two other players that are free agents for the Pride are defenders Courtney Petersen and Toni Pressley.

Petersen remains out of contract with the Pride, and as of right now, there is no news as to her future.

Pressley, the longest-tenured player for Orlando, was invited to preseason by the Pride but has declined the invitation to participate.

Full Preseason Roster

Key:
INTL: Denotes International Player
NRI: Non-Roster Invitee
NYR: Not Yet Reported
DRAFT: 2023 NWSL Draft Pick

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