Few athletes get the opportunity to be play in the pros, let alone play for their hometown team.

Keegan Rosenberry has taken that opportunity and took off in a full sprint with it, making his impact with the Union fairly quickly.

However, that might not have happened had Rosenberry not played soccer as a youth. He credits his development, success and technical abilities to the skills he learned when he was younger.

“I think for me, it had a lot to do with my development technically and as I matured as a player,” Rosenberry said. “I attribute a lot of my success to the skills I learned when I was young.”

One of the clubs that the Ronks, Penn., native played for before being drafted by Philadelphia was Reading United AC of the Premier Development League. He played for Reading in 2014 and 2015, helping them to the third and second round of the Open Cup, respectively.

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Last month, Rosenberry was one of the players chosen by fans for Reading United’s all-time Best XI.

That success with the club team has parlayed over into MLS.

The defender has played a full 90 minutes in every regular season game he’s been a part of with the Union and finished as the runner-up in the Rookie of the Year in 2016. Rosenberry also made the 2016 MLS All-Star Game as a rookie.