Union ship McInerney to Montreal for local product Wegner

Chester, Pa.  – The Philadelphia Union have acquired forward Andrew Wenger from Montreal Impact in exchange for Jack McInerney. 

Wenger, a former member of the Union’s PDL affiliate Reading United and a Lancaster, Pa. native, spent the previous two years in Montreal after being selected first overall in the 2012 MLS SuperDraft.

“Andrew is a young and talented attacking player who we think is a good fit with our style of play,” Union team manager John Hackworth said. “Jack was an important member of our squad over the past four years, but the reality is our team has evolved and this deal puts our team in a better overall position long-term. Andrew is a Pennsylvania native that we are familiar with from his time as a youth and Reading United player and he will be a great addition to our team as both a person and a player going forward.”

Wenger, 23, spent three years at Duke University before being selected with the first overall pick of the 2012 MLS SuperDraft by Montreal. 

In his rookie season with the Impact, Wenger recorded 823 minutes at forward and notched four goals. He scored his first MLS goal on April 7, 2012, a game winner in the 81^st minute of a 2-1 victory against Toronto FC at Olympic Stadium. In 2013, he appeared in 24 MLS matches and also saw time in the CONCACAF Champions League, where he scored one goal in three starts. Since being drafted, the Pennsylvania native has scored six MLS goals and added three assists for Montreal.

At Duke, Wenger earned numerous accolades as a Blue Devil, including the 2011 Missouri Athletic Club’s Hermann Trophy, given to the top college soccer player in the U.S. That year, the six-foot forward led the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) with 17 goals and eight assists (42 points) while earning 2011 ACC Offensive Player of the Year honors. In addition to being named ACC Rookie of the Year in 2009, Wenger also became the second-ever Blue Devil to earn spots on the CoSIDA Academic All-America First Team and both the All-ACC Academic Team & ACC Academic Honor Roll each of his three seasons.

The forward also spent time as a member of the Union’s PDL Developmental Affiliate, Reading United A.C. in 2010, appearing in 13 games.

Wenger was born in Lancaster, Pa., and attended Warwick High School in Lancaster County, where he was named National High School Player of the Year by the National Soccer Coaches Athletic Association (NSCAA).

McInerney had been the Union's No. 1 striker for the last two seasons, with eight goals in 2012 and 12 last year.