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Orlando Pride rookie defenders offer newfound depth and promise to backline

Goal-scorers Alex Morgan and Sydney Leroux earned the spotlight in the Orlando Pride’s unbeaten start to the regular season.

But rookie defenders Courtney Petersen and Phoebe McClernon quickly have become one of the keys to the team’s early success as the top-ranked team in the NWSL.

The Pride allowed only four goals in five games with the first-year duo making up the left half of the team’s backline. Both players already assisted a goal apiece this season, providing the balance between attack and defense that the Pride desperately chased in previous seasons.

“I’m hopeful to see them one day playing for the U.