Lights goalkeeper Alexander Rando makes impact in 1st season

Lights goalkeeper Alexander Rando is becoming a staple betwixt the sticks successful his archetypal play with the United Soccer League club.

Rando has 2 shutouts, including 1-0 implicit the Tacoma Defiance the past clip the Lights played astatine home.

“It was a large testament to my backline,” Rando said of his three-save game. “I deliberation guys similar CC Uche and Mohamed Traore some had truly large games. It was conscionable large to get that shutout.”

Rando spent clip collegiately astatine Stanford and Virginia. He ne'er played for Stanford during his 1 twelvemonth with the programme successful 2019, past transferred to Virginia and appeared successful 10 games during the coronavirus-interrupted 2020 season.

Rando, 20, is signed to the Lights afloat clip and won’t beryllium returning to Virginia. He saw the accidental arsenic a accidental to larn from immoderate of the champion portion helium gets prime nonrecreational minutes.

“It’s a bully playing accidental and large coaching opportunity,” Rando said. “To beryllium coached by Steve Cherundolo, he’s evidently 1 of the astir well-known U.S shot players of each time. That was decidedly a large impact.”

Cherundolo said the determination to motion Rando was an casual one.

“We had seen (Alex) connected video and liked what we saw,” helium said. “We got him successful to bid for a fewer days, and helium confirmed everything we saw connected video and a level beyond.”

The Lights announced the signing of Rando connected May 22, and helium was successful the starting lineup that nighttime astatine the Phoenix Rising Football Club. The Lights mislaid 5-1, arsenic Phoenix acceptable USL records with a full of 41 shots and 20 connected target.

Rando made 15 saves, a league grounds for a debut.

“It was my archetypal pro game, but the biggest happening for maine is to conscionable person fun,” helium said. “I get to bash this for a living, this is my job, and there’s nary request to beryllium nervous. I saw aft the crippled that I broke the record, but I didn’t deliberation thing of it due to the fact that I was beauteous disappointed successful the result.”

The aforesaid time Rando signed, histrion Rainn Wilson, known for his relation arsenic Dwight Schrute connected “The Office,” tweeted that Rando is the “next large keeper successful U.S soccer.”

The tweet near a batch of radical confused, but the 2 cognize each different well. Rando’s dada is simply a signifier manager successful New York and worked with Wilson successful the 1990s erstwhile helium was a signifier actor.

Rando has appeared successful six games and ranks successful the apical 5 successful the USL successful saves with 36. He missed 5 games erstwhile the Lights started Tomas Romero, who was connected indebtedness from the Los Angeles Football Club.

Romero has started the past 4 games for LAFC, paving the mode for Rando to get prime playing time. He said having Romero astir was beneficial to his development.

“I’ve known Tomas for a while,” Rando said. “He’s a large goalkeeper, idiosyncratic I look up to and idiosyncratic I similar competing with.”

Contact Review-Journal newsman Aidan Subira astatine asubira@reviewjournal.com.