Letters of Intent: Several members of the D.C. United Academy have decided where they will play college soccer. Last week, D.C. United Academy players, along with the top players around the country, signed their letters of intent promising their services to some of the top schools across the United States.
Players who have signed letters of intent: William Bioh (James Madison University), Shane Cooke (University of Virginia), Peabo Doue (West Virginia University), Marcus Douglas (University of Virginia), Chris Hegngi (Ohio State University), Alex Herrera (George Mason University), Sean Murnane (University of Virginia), Chris Perez (College of William & Mary), Travis Pittman (West Virginia University), Daniel Rice (University of Dayton), and Ethan White (University of Maryland).
College commitments: Other players who have made college commitments are Isaac Taylor, heading to Boston College, and Paul Torres - US Soccer Development Academy Starting XI selection – will play for National champion University of Maryland – while several other players wait to finalize their college commitments in the coming weeks.
“We are thrilled to be able to help our players further their education and their soccer careers at some of the top schools in the country,” said United’s Director of Youth Development John Maessner. “We look forward to keeping a close eye on all of our players, looking for them to continue their development during their collegiate careers, stay connected with our club thru our U18 and U20 teams and hopefully have players who will be able to help the first team’s success.”
Start of Season: D.C. United officially restart their 2009 Development Academy season this weekend on February 14 and 15 at the Maryland Soccerplex. The U16s will face FC Westchester at 1 p.m. with the U18s following at 3 p.m. United’s youth teams will then face Met Oval on Sunday, with the U16s playing at 11 a.m. and the U18s at 1 p.m. The season continues the following weekend with a trip to Pennsylvania to take on FC Delco and a PA Classics side.
“We look forward to the restart of the season, and the challenges of this very tough Academy league,” said U18 Head Coach Judah Cooks. “Our players are very excited to test themselves against the best teams in the country. As a staff we look forward to gauging our progress over the last few months and working this spring and summer to help our players develop.”
Summer Camps: The Youth Academy recently released its schedule for the series of summer camps in 2009. The summer program offers a variety of training opportunities tailored to provide a fun and rewarding experience, while encouraging players to develop their full potential. The 12-camp schedule includes locations in Virginia, Maryland and D.C. For more information or to register, please visit the D.C. United Academy page at www.dcunited.com or call 202-587-5468.
Broadcasting and P.A. Request: When speaking of the organization, please refer to the team as either “D.C. United” or “United,” but not “the D.C. United” or “the United.” We appreciate your cooperation.
Doug Hicks,
dhicks@dcunited.com
, (202) 587-5448,
Boris Flores,
bflores@dcunited.com
, (202) 587-5452,
Kyle Sheldon,
ksheldon@dcunited.com
, (202) 587-5450 or
Cristina Cruz,
ccruz@dcunited.com
, (202) 587-5440
