Six former UCSB soccer stars were on opening-day rosters for Major League Soccer clubs, three were in starting lineups and one scored a game-winning goal in action over the weekend.
Defender Andy Iro headed in a free kick from Columbus teammate Guillermo Barros Schelotto’s in the 29th minute to help the Crew to a 2-0 win over Toronto FC on Saturday.
Iro started and played the entire match for Columbus as did forward Chris Pontius for DC United in a 2-0 loss to Kansas City and goalkeeper Dan Kennedy for Chivas USA in a 1-0 defeat against the Colorado Rapids on Friday night.
Eric Avila, a midfielder for FC Dallas came on as a substitute in the 69th minute of a 1-1 draw with the Houston Dynamo.
Former Gauchos who didn’t see action in MLS openers were midfielder Ciaran O’Brien of Colorado and goalkeeper Kyle Reynish of defending league champion Real Salt Lake.
Two ex-UCSB standout forwards are currently playing professionally in Europe. Rob Friend has scored three goals for Borussia Monchengladbach in Germany’s Bundesliga, while Thiago Martins is preparing for his fourth season with Bodo Glimit of Norway.
Defender Tony Lochhead is a member of New Zealand’s national team that will be playing in this summer’s World Cup in South Africa. He just completed his club season with Wellington in the Australian A-League.
