Bermuda defender Logan Alexander was officially unveiled as a Baltimore Blast player at a press conference in Maryland yesterday.

Alexander penned his first professional contract this week after impressing the defending champions during a lengthy trial on the recommendation of Blast's assistant coach, David Bascome.

The 23-year-old, a homegrown product of Premier Division side North Village, is one of five new players to join the National Indoor Soccer League (NISL) outfit.

Bascome, also the Island Soccer League (ISL) commissioner, said: "Logan's pre-season tryouts went really well, he worked very hard and most importantly his attitude along with his talent as a defender was a key factor in him being offered a contract.

"He will be closely watched throughout this season.

"We are expecting him to continue to develop and hope that he continues to pick up the game as the season progresses.

"As Logan is now living out his dream of being a professional and looks to gain all knowledge and experience to leave a mark behind.

"He knows that it is now in his hands and what he does from this point will shape his career."

Joining Alexander at the Blast are forward Lucio Gonzaga, who won a championship with the club in 2008, attacker Rod Dyachenko and defender Michael Dello-Russo who played Major League Soccer with FC Dallas.

Forwards Max Ferdinand and Adriano Dos Santos will also take to the pitch on November 13 to open the season at 1st Mariner Arena against the Rockford Rampage.

Gonzaga, who spent the 2008-09 season with the New Jersey Ironmen (XSL), was a member of Baltimore's 2008 championship team.

During the 2008 play-off run he was the only Blast player to score a goal in each of the team's five post-season games.

Dyachenko played 27 games for the Minnesota Thunder (USL-D1) this summer, scoring two goals. Prior to joining the Thunder he spent three seasons with MLS side DC United.

Ferdinand, a member of the NPSL's FC Reading Revolution, was a finalist in the Sueño MLS 2009, the nationally-televised player search.

Dos Santos, who came to Baltimore from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, previously played in the USL-D1 for Miami FC Blues.

Dello-Russo, a local product from Wilde Lake High School in Columbia, spent four seasons with MLS's FC Dallas.

He played collegiate soccer at the University of Maryland and was the captain of the 2005 NCAA Championship Maryland Terrapins.

National team player, Alexander, beat off competition from around 30 other trialists to win a contract, including his compatriots Coolridge Durham, Angelo Simmons, Dennis Russell and Aquino Grant.