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Entering his fifth season, Gaddis emerges as a leader under rebuilt defense

Related Topics: Ray Gaddis, 2012 MLS SuperDraft

When Ray Gaddis was selected in the second round of 2012 MLS SuperDraft, it’s fair to say the expectations weren’t the highest for the West Virginia product to make immediate contributions.

After all, the year prior the Union had allowed just 36 goals during the course of the season – second best in MLS, only behind eventual champ L.A. Galaxy – and later round success stories were hard to find in the history of the league.

But the typically overlooked 5-foot-9 fullback wound up starting 17 games that year. Fast forward a few years and Gaddis has already amassed 109 career starts, fourth most in Union history, including a stretch of 54 consecutive starts that spread out over three seasons.