The 2016 MLS SuperDraft has come to a close and a total of 10 California players were selected in this year's draft following the six natives who were
The 2016 MLS SuperDraft has come to a close and a total of 10 California players were selected in this year’s draft following the six natives who were selected in the third and fourth rounds on Tuesday.
Last week, four natives were selected in the first and second rounds. Stanford and Los Angeles native Brandon Vincent was the highest California selected when he was picked by the Chicago Fire as the fourth overall pick.
On Tuesday, the first native off the boards was Irvine forward T.J. Casner (LA Galaxy Academy, Pateadores). The Clemson product was selected 47th overall by the Houston Dynamo. Casner scored a team-high 10 goals this year and led his team to the NCAA College Cup championship match. The next native selected was James Moberg (Windsor) by the Vancouver Whitecaps as the 50th pick. Moberg scored 10 goals and notched 21 assists in his four-year career for the Washington Huskies. Last August, Moberg participated in the U.S. U-23 College ID camp.
UCLA defender Javan Torre (UCLA) was selected 56th by the Colorado Rapids. Torre, the lone Bruin selected in this year’s draft appeared in 56 matches for UCLA in four years. He also appeared in two matches at the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup for the U.S.
Murrieta native Wade Hamilton is traveling north as he was selected 61st overall by the Portland Timbers. Hamilton recorded 18 clean sheets in 73 appearances for Cal Poly and was on the U.S. roster at the 2011 U-17 World Cup.
Tyler Thompson (Sacramento/Stanford) is staying close to home as he was selected by the San Jose Earthquakes as the 69th pick and San Diego native Trevor Morley was the final pick of the draft. He was selected 81st overall by the Portland Timbers.
Full List
4th – Chicago Fire – Brandon Vincent (Valencia), Stanford
27th – Seattle Sounders – Tony Alfaro (Santa Barbara), Cal State University Dominguez Hills
34th – Montreal Impact – Eric Verso (Los Angeles), Stanford
39th – Montreal Impact – Keegan Smith (Temecula), University of San Diego
47th – Houston Dynamo – T.J. Casner (Irvine/LA Galaxy Academy/Pateadores), Clemson
50th – Vancouver Whitecaps – James Moberg (Windsor/Santa Rosa Atletico Club), Washington
56th – Colorado Rapids – Javan Torre (Santa Monica/Pateadores), UCLA
61st – Portland Timbers – Wade Hamilton (Murrieta), Cal Poly
69th – San Jose Earthquakes – Tyler Thompson (Sacramento), Stanford
81st – Portland Timbers – Trevor Morley (San Diego), CSU Northridge
