FRISCO, Texas – FC Dallas used the final two of its five picks in today’s MLS Supplemental Draft on local products from Southern Methodist University, goalkeeper Craig Hill and midfielder Kekoa Osorio. The Dallas side also selected defender Alexis Pradie and midfielders Paul Ogunyemi and Brayan Martinez with its three first round Supplemental Draft selections.
READ: Wave of players taken in final draft ahead of
the 2011 season
“Hill trained with us several times during the 2010 season,” FC Dallas
Technical Director Barry Gorman said. “Our coaching staff is very familiar with
him. We liked his attitude and his work ethic. As for Kekoa Osario, he is a
quality player with whom coach Hyndman is very familiar.
“Overall, we
were very pleased with our selections in today’s draft,” Gorman added. “The
players we were interested in were available and there was no need to go to our
number two selections.”
Selected 15th overall, Pradie started 15 matches
for Embry-Riddle in his second year. His two-year career with the Eagles saw
Pradie start 35 games, score nine goals and add one assist. A native of
Marseilles, France, Pradie anchored a defense that totaled six shutouts and a
1.34 goals against average in 2010. Pradie netted game-winning goals against
Johnson & Wales (Oct. 23) and Warner (Nov. 6) and received honorable mention
All-America recognition for his efforts during the 2010 season. He also earned
first team All-Conference and Daktronics-NAIA All-America Scholar Athlete
recognition in 2010.
Taken with the 17th overall selection, Ogunyemi
most recently represented the Portland Timbers U-23 team in the USL Premier
Development League. The midfielder started all 20 matches, including playoffs
for the Timbers, who went 20-0-0 en route to winning the PDL North American
Championship. Ogunyemi logged 1,589 minutes scoring four goals and seven
assists.
Selected 18th overall, Martinez posted a team-high six
goals and two assists in 16 games for Seton Hall. The preseason All-Big East
selection had his best performance of the year against Pittsburgh on Oct. 2,
when he netted goals in the 21st and 66th minutes. Martinez ranked ninth in the
BIG EAST, with nine points and four goals in conference play. Born in Uruguay,
the native of West Orange, N.J. was named 2006-07 Gatorade National Boys Soccer
Player of the Year. He won the USL Super-20 League North American Championship
as part of Player Development Academy in 2007.
“Martinez comes out of a
program that plays good soccer,” Gorman said. “We saw him once during his
college season and again at the MLS Combine. Both times we really liked what he
was doing.”
The first of consecutive SMU selections by FC Dallas, Osorio
was taken with the 35th overall selection. Born in Honolulu, Hawaii, he played
73 career matches for SMU, scoring two goals and adding six assists. Osorio
played in all 20 matches for a 16-2-2 SMU team in 2010. In the NCAA tournament,
the Mustangs defeated Creighton and William & Mary before falling to North
Carolina, 4-3 in the quarterfinals.
The starting goalkeeper for SMU,
Hill was selected with the 53rd overall selection in the MLS Supplemental Draft.
Hill played in 56 matches for SMU during his collegiate career. He finished with
a career Goals Against Average of 1.12 and recorded 14 shutouts.
As the
reigning Western Conference Champions, FC Dallas earned its first trip to the
MLS Cup in 2010 following a record-setting year that saw the club set MLS marks
for its 19-game unbeaten streak and its 12-game road unbeaten streak. The Dallas
side also tied the MLS mark for fewest losses in an MLS season with four, while
the defense allowed the fewest goals against in club history with only 28
through 30 games. FC Dallas opens the 2011 campaign on its home field at Pizza
Hut Park on March 19 against Brimstone Cup rival Chicago Fire.
For more
information, or to purchase tickets, call 469.365.4625 or e-mail
customerservice@fcdallas.net.