Aedan Stanley advances the ball up the left touchline for Saint Louis FC against Toronto FC II on June 2, 2017
No formal announcement yet but Aedan has updated his Instagram and Twitter account bios to reflect that he is a Portland Timber 2 player, returning him to the USL Championship for 2010 after featuring regularly for Saint Louis FC in 2018 before he began his college career with the Duke Blue Devils. He’ll join Jake Leeker, who returns for his second season in 2020 as the Timbers2 exercised his option year. Aedan Stanley Signs With Portland Timbers 2
Timbers 2 haven’t posted a news items yet but as you can see from the photo of Aedan in his T2 jersey, it is likely from the February 26 media day. They also ‘liked’ my post below 🙂
MT @TimbersFC2: Is that… the sun peeking out?#t2fc @LeekerTheKeeper
He has a new, familiar, teammate
pic.twitter.com/CXb4H1Gsnp pic.twitter.com/StuNre3MVo— soccerSTL (@SoccerSTL) February 27, 2020
While Aedan was able to play for Saint Louis FC in 2018 prior to enrolling at Duke, he played under an Academy contract that maintained his amateur status. My understanding is that once a player enrolls in college, that is no longer an option. I’ve reached out to Aedan to ask about his contract and how it impacts his time at Duke but have not heard back. UPDATE Mar 2: I confirmed Aedan is now a professional and his college career has come to an end. He does have plans to return to Duke to complete his degree in the future.
Looking at Aedan’s Duke Blue Devils career, a check of his bio page offers the following:
2019: started all 17 games he played in (of 18 games played) as the team fell in the first round of the ACC tournament. He was one of the few underclassmen invited to participate in the MLS College Showcase in December. The Showcase is a three-day event that gives technical staffs from every MLS club an opportunity to scout the top collegiate prospects in the nation, including players with remaining NCAA eligibility, which included Aedan at the time.
2018: Started all 20 games at center back as a rookie … Led all field players with 1,921 minutes played … Went the distance in 19 of the 20 games … Anchored the defense to seven shutouts overall … All-ACC Freshman Team choice … Rated as the No. 10 rookie by Top Drawer Soccer … All-ACC Academic Team … ACC Academic Honor Roll.
Before Duke: A member of St. Louis FC Academy and in the men’s youth national team pools … Recently called up to the U.S. U20 national team camp and Summit camp … Was one of 12 defenders called in for the Summit Camp run by Tab Ramos … Has 14 youth national team call ups overall … Has started all eight games in the fall portion of the 2017-18 academy schedule … Started all 20 games he played during the 2015-16 campaign and netted two goals as a defender … Team went 12-10-3 … A part of the U.S. U18 Men’s National Team that competed at the Lisbon International Tournament … One of 21 players selected this past October for U.S. U18 International Training Camp in Spain … A starter for the U.S. U18 squad that captured the 2016 Václav Ježek Tournament in August of 2016. Aedan Stanley Signs With Portland Timbers 2
Personal: Son of Brad and John Stanley … Has one brother, Dylan … Born December 13, 1999.
Leeker, 24, enters his second season with T2 after leading the team with 17 appearances (17 starts) and tallying 63 saves and posting one shutout in 2019. Leeker played his first professional season with Real Monarchs SLC in 2018, logging six shutouts in 17 starts. A native of St. Louis, Mo., Leeker played collegiate soccer at the University of Memphis (2014-17), where he appeared in 47 matches and posted 10 clean sheets.
