A total of six Missouri Valley Conference men's soccer standouts were selected in the 2012 Major League Soccer SuperDraft and Supplemental Draft last week in Kansas City. Four were taken in the MLS SuperDraft, all Creighton players, including Ethan Finlay, Andrew Duran, Tyler Polak and Greg Jordan. An additional two players were taken in the MLS Supplemental Draft, including Bradley's Bryan Gaul and Drake's Matt Kuhn.
FOUR CREIGHTON PLAYERS PICKED IN MLS SUPERDRAFT
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Four Creighton men's soccer players were selected in the 2012 Major League Soccer SuperDraft held Thursday in Kansas City. Creighton tied Louisville with the most players taken this year, while the Bluejays tied their school record with four picks in the SuperDraft. Ethan Finlay and Andrew Duran were selected in the first round by Columbus and Seattle, respectively, while New England took Tyler Polak and Philadelphia picked Greg Jordan in the second round. Creighton remains the only college program in the nation to have at least one player drafted into MLS since the league's inception.
ETHAN FINLAY
Finlay became the first Bluejay taken in the first round since 2001 when the Columbus Crew selected him 10th overall. Duran joined Finlay as first-round picks when the Seattle Sounders grabbed him with the 15th overall selection. Polak was the third pick of the second round, going 22nd overall to the New England Revolution. Jordan went to the Philadelphia Union with the 32nd overall pick.
Finlay finished as the runner up for the 2011 MAC Hermann Trophy, annually awarded to the top NCAA Division I men's soccer player. A two-time Missouri Valley Conference player of the year, he is one of only three players in Creighton history to earn NSCAA All-America honors twice in a career, as he was named a first-team NSCAA All-American this season. He led Creighton and the MVC, ranking 12th in the NCAA with 34 points and 13th in the nation with 14 goals in 2011. The Marshfield, Wis., native finished his career ranked fifth in school history and seventh in league history with 43 career goals, while he finished sixth in CU and 10th in MVC history with 103 career points.
ANDREW DURAN
Duran, the 2011 MVC Defensive Player of the Year, was Creighton's started left center back in all 24 matches last season. The Mokena, Ill., native helped guide the toughest defense in NCAA history, as the Bluejays posted 19 shutouts and set an NCAA record with a 0.20 goals against average. Duran was named a second-team NSCAA All-American for his play in 2011, as the Jays allowed only five goals all year and teams managed only 2.8 shots on goal per game against CU's stout defense.
GREG JORDAN
Jordan, a two-time first-team all-MVC midfielder, was named a second-team NSCAA All-American in 2011 and was twice named an all-region performer. Jordan proved his versatility throughout his career, serving as a shutdown defender in the middle, but also showing his offensive ability by finishing with three goals and three assists for the Bluejays in 2011. In his career Jordan started 60 of the 62 matches in which he played, including the final 44 matches
TYLER POLAK
Polak, a first-team all-MVC defender, was honored on the NSCAA All-Region First-Team for his play at left outside back in 2011. Not only did the Bluejay defense set school, league and NCAA records and lead the NCAA in shutout percentage and goals against average, but they did so with flair, allowing only 2.8 shots on goal per game. Polak, who signed a Generation adidas contract and left Creighton following his sophomore year, joins Ross Paule (1997) as the only two Bluejays to leave early and get selected in the MLS SuperDraft.
Finlay and Duran join Johnny Torres (5th overall - 1998), Richard Mulrooney (3rd overall - 1999) and Brian Mullan (9th overall - 2001) as the only first-round SuperDraft selections in school history. The Bluejays also had four players taken in a much larger version of the SuperDraft in 2000, as David Wright (25th), Steve Bernal (34th), Tom Zawislan (50th) and Angel Rivillo (70th) were taken that season. The 2012 MLS SuperDraft consisted of only two rounds and 38 selections.
Creighton is the only soccer program in the nation to have at least one player drafted (supplemental draft included) into MLS since the league began in 1996. With four players taken this year, 29 Bluejays have been drafted by MLS.
LA GALAXY SELECTS BRADLEY'S BRYAN GAUL
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Former Bradley star Bryan Gaul was selected by the 2011 MLS Cup champion Los Angeles Galaxy in the first round of the Major League Soccer Supplemental Draft Tuesday afternoon.
A three-time All-Missouri Valley Conference pick, who led Bradley to consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances for the first time in program history, Gaul was the 19th overall selection in Tuesday's MLS Supplemental Draft. The versatile, 6-foot-5 left-footer began his college career in the Bradley midfield, moved to left back during his sophomore season, then switched to the top of the Braves attack midway through his junior season in 2010.
Despite the midseason switch to forward, Gaul shared the Missouri Valley Conference scoring lead during the 2010 regular-season with 12 goals and 28 points. A preseason Hermann Trophy candidate, he added 11 goals and 26 points as a senior in 2011, tying for second in The Valley in both goals and points, and was the consensus national player of the week Aug. 31 after leading the Braves to season-opening wins at Butler and IPFW. He ended his career fifth in program history with 75 points, tied for fourth with 31 goals and second with 15 career game-winning goals.
Gaul becomes the eighth player to be drafted by a Major League Soccer club, the fourth by the Los Angeles Galaxy. Four Braves have gone on to play in MLS: Bryan Namoff (DC United), Gavin Glinton (LA Galaxy/Dallas Burn/San Jose Earthquakes), Tim Regan (NY/NJ MetroStars/Chivas USA/New York Red Bulls) and Luke Kreamalmeyer (Real Salt Lake). The Galaxy previously selected Glinton in 2002, Hamid Mehreioskouei in 2003 and Chris Dunsheath in 2006. A fourth-round selection by Colorado in the 2010 MLS SuperDraft, Chris Cutshaw was Bradley's most-recent draft pick.
KUHN SELECTED BY D.C. UNITED IN MLS SUPPLEMENTAL DRAFT
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Former Drake men's soccer standout Matt Kuhn was selected by D.C. United in the fourth round of the Major League Soccer (MLS) Supplemental Draft on Tuesday (Jan. 17).
Kuhn is the fourth Bulldog under 14th-year head Sean Holmes to be drafted by an MLS team joining Matt Nickell who was selected by the DC United in 2004, while Corey Farabi and Chris Hamburger were both drafted by the Kansas City Wizards in 2005.
"I was following the draft live on my computer and the picks were slowly dwindling down so I was getting a little nervous," Kuhn commented. "When I saw my name I got super excited and I've been overflowed with congratulatory texts and calls in the hours since. It is a little overwhelming, but I'm excited for the opportunity to continue my playing career."
Kuhn left immediately for Washington, D.C., where he will join the United in their training camp starting on Wednesday (Jan. 18).
"I'm thrilled for Matt and this opportunity," said Holmes. "He's an incredibly bright, talented student-athlete and I think the combination of his skills and left-footed skills will serve him well."