Alston, Ring Selected in 2009 Major League Soccer SuperDraft

The San Jose Earthquakes selected midfielder Brad Ring with the second pick of the second round and the 17th overall selection.

Alston, Ring Selected in 2009 Major League Soccer SuperDraft

1/15/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer

Jan. 15, 2009

ST. LOUIS, Mo. - Indiana University's Kevin Alston was the 10th overall pick of the New England Revolution and Brad Ring was the 17th overall pick of the San Jose Earthquakes at today's Major League Soccer SuperDraft held at the St. Louis Convention Center in St. Louis, Mo.

Alston and Ring become the 29th and 30th Indiana players selected in the MLS Draft since the league's inception in 1996. The Hoosiers' last draft selections came in 2007 when John Michael Hayden was the 13th overall pick of the Houston Dynamo, and Josh Tudela went 20th overall to the Los Angeles Galaxy.

All-American Nick Garcia remains the highest-ever IU player selected as the second overall pick in 2000.

Alston is coming off his most successful season in a Hoosier uniform, starting all 24 matches and recording three goals and one assist. Alston scored Indiana's first goal of the year in a 2-1 win over Duke in the adidas/IU Credit Union Classic and got the scoring started in a 3-1 win over then-No. 9 Notre Dame on Oct. 16. His third goal of the season came in a 2-0 victory over No. 23 Saint Louis in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Big Ten coaches rewarded Alston's play with a unanimous selection to the All-Big Ten first team. He was also named to the All-Great Lakes Region second team. As a defender he was part of 10 Indiana shutouts this season, including eight against ranked opponents.

"It is incredible; it is hard to describe this feeling," Alston said in an interview with the Revolution's Brad Feldman. "It is once in a lifetime and it feels good right now.

"(New England) looks like a team that is always on the up and up. It looks like a good group of guys. I had a good conversation with Taylor (Twellman, Revolution forward) last night and it seems they have the right mind set."

"Kevin is another in the line of exceptional payers from Indiana to play in the MLS," said Indiana head coach Mike Freitag. "There is now one very happy coach in the league and a lot of unhappy opposing forwards. Kevin is an exceptional player with outstanding speed, quickness and toughness."

He becomes the ninth Indiana player to be taken in the first round of the MLS draft, joining Hayden (Houston, 2007), Danny O'Rourke (Houston, 2005), Drew Moor (FC Dallas, 2005), Pat Noonan (New England, 2003), Garcia (Kansas City, 2000), Aleksy Korol (FC Dallas, 2000), Lazo Alavanja (FC Dallas, 1999), and Chris Klein (Kansas City, 1998).

He is the third IU player to be taken by the Revolution as the team drafted forward Pat Noonan with the ninth overall pick in 2003 and goalkeeper Scott Coufal with the 12th pick in 1997. Noonan shared the league scoring title in 2004 and played in three-straight MLS Cup title games for New England from 2005-07.

As a junior coming out of school, Alston joins the league as a Generation Adidas signee. Generation adidas is a joint venture between Major League Soccer and U.S. Soccer aimed at raising the level of young soccer talent in the United States. The program, which was called Project-40 until 2005, encourages early entry (without college graduation) of American players into the MLS.

Generation adidas players do not count against the MLS senior roster. Entering the program automatically classifies a player as a professional and thus, disqualifies them from playing college soccer. As a result, Generation adidas players are also guaranteed scholarships to continue their college education.

Ring was the second pick in the second round and the 17th overall selection when the San Jose Earthquakes called his name. Despite missing six games due to injury, Ring started all 17 matches played with one goal and one assist on 51 shots, earning first team All-Big Ten accolades. His lone goal this season came in a 3-0 win over No. 14 Michigan in the third round of the NCAA Tournament. The defensive midfielder play a key role in seven of the Hoosiers' shutouts this season, including six against ranked opponents. Ring was a National Soccer Coaches Association of America/adidas third-team All-America selection, his second-straight All-America honor. He was also a first-team All-Great Lakes Region pick for the second time in as many seasons, as well as an Academic All-Big Ten selection.

"I am excited about going out there, the nice weather is definitely a plus," Ring said. "San Jose is a talented team and have a history of being a top-notch organization. I am excited to get out there and prove myself to my teammates and the coaching staff."

"Brad is in the mold of IU great Danny O'Rourke," Freitag said. "He is a great ball winner with two good feet and can unleash an explosive shot."

Ring joins former Hoosiers Garcia and Ned Grabavoy on the Earthquakes roster.

Indiana ended the 2008 season with a 14-7-3 record and advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament. Indiana's record included a mark of 7-2-2 against opponents ranked in the adidas/NSCAA Top 25 and an appearance in the Big Ten Tournament title game for the fourth straight season.

INDIANA'S MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER DRAFT HISTORY

Chicago Fire

Yuri Lavrinenko, 2000 (3rd round, 32nd pick)

Ryan Mack, 2003 (3rd round, 25th pick)

Brian Plotkin, 2006 (2nd round, 20th pick)

Colorado Rapids

Joel Shanker, 1996 (16th round, 152nd pick)

Jacob Peterson, 2005 (2nd round, 21st pick)

Columbus Crew

Mike Clark, 1996 (4th round, 31st pick)

Brandon Ward, 1996 (6th round, 51st pick)

Todd Yeagley, 1996 (8th round, 71st pick)