MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER
River Hill grad Pines agrees to deal
Defender, who helped lead Terps to NCAA title, to sign contract with D.C. United
Donovan Pines, the defensive anchor of Maryland’s NCAA championship campaign this past season, has reached an agreement in principle with D.C. United on a homegrown contract, multiple people familiar with the negotiations said Friday night.
Pines, 20, left school with a year of eligibility remaining to engage in negotiations with United while also leaving open the possibility of signing overseas. Talks accelerated this week, culminating with a pact that is likely to become official in a few days.
The 6-foot-5 center back, from Clarksville and River Hill High School, is a graduate of United’s youth academy, a status that tied him to the MLS organization and exempted him from last Friday’s draft in Chicago.
United officials acknowledged they’ve made an offer to Pines but declined to say whether they were making progress. Pines’s representatives also did not want to comment.
Pines — a second-team all-American who started 22 of 23 matches as a junior and scored in the College Cup semifinal against Indiana — is expected to report to training camp next week. He seems likely to begin his career with Loudoun United, D.C.'s new second-division team, but given his tremendous potential and United’s dearth of central defenders, he could work himself into contention for minutes in MLS sometime this season.
Pines will become United’s fifth offseason acquisition, joining goalkeepers Chris Seitz and Earl Edwards Jr., Argentine midfielder Lucas Rodriguez and homegrown attacker Antonio Bustamante (Springfield, Va.; William & Mary).
United is on the brink of signing Argentine defender Leonardo Jara, and drafted the rights to three college players: defender Akeem Ward (Creighton) and attackers Leandro “Geo” Alves (Vermont) and Shinya Kadono (California).
The club remains in the market for a striker to back up Wayne Rooney and an experienced center back to compete with Frederic Brillant for a starting role alongside Steve Birnbaum. Beyond the trade and international markets, United is expected to invite several trialists to training camp in Clearwater, Fla., over the next several weeks.
Pines is the fifth Maryland player this month to receive a pro opportunity: Goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair and defender Chase Gasper were drafted in the first round by Minnesota and defender Andrew Samuels (Houston) and midfielder Amar Sejdic (Montreal) went in the second round. Maryland had the most players drafted in the four-round exercise.
Players will report to the team in Washington on Monday and will train in the nation’s capital until Saturday. The team departs for Florida the following day and will train in Clearwater until Feb. 7.
United will play their first preseason exhibition match of the year against United Soccer League side Bethlehem Steel FC on Feb. 2 at Joe D. Sports Complex.
The Black-and-Red will end their first training camp with an exhibition match against MLS expansion side FC Cincinnati on Feb. 7 at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla.
United travel back to Clearwater for their second preseason training camp that runs from Feb. 13-Feb. 24 and will compete in the Rowdies Suncoast Invitational for the fourth year in a row.
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