Eric Avila

Personal information
Full name	Eric Humberto Avila
Date of birth	24 November 1987 (1987-11-24) (age 21)
Place of birth	San Diego, California, United States
Height	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Playing position	Midfielder
Club information
Current club	FC Dallas
Number	12
Youth career
2001–2003	La Costa Canyon Mavericks
2003–2005	Edison Academy
2005–2007	UC Santa Barbara Gauchos
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
2006	San Fernando Valley Quakes	3	(0)
2007	Ventura County Fusion	10	(1)
2008–	FC Dallas	32	(1)
National team‡
2003–2005	United States U-17	20
2006–2007	United States U-20	10
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 29 October, 2009. † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 3 October, 2009

Eric Avila (born 24 November 1987, in San Diego, California) is an American soccer midfielder who currently plays for FC Dallas in Major League Soccer.

Contents 1 Career 1.1 Pre-UC Santa Barbara 1.2 At UC Santa Barbara 1.3 Professional 1.4 International 2 See also 3 References 4 External links

[edit] Career

[edit] Pre-UC Santa Barbara

Avila played club soccer in San Diego for the La Jolla Nomads, the same club as US National Team players Frankie Hejduk and Steve Cherundolo. With the Nomads, he helped the team to a U.S. Club Soccer National Championship, Disney Showcase tournament championship, and Coast Premier League regular season title.

He also attended La Costa Canyon High School in Carlsbad, California before entering the US U-17 Residency Program in Bradenton, Florida. Avila led La Costa Canyon to the Avocado League title and a CIF Division I Finals berth as a sophomore. During the season, he was named the Avocado League MVP. Eric Avila was also a member of Chivas USA's U-19 club before he enrolled at UC Santa Barbara.^[1]

[edit] At UC Santa Barbara

Avila was recruited to attend the University of California, Santa Barbara by head coach Tim Vom Steeg. Upon his signing, he was regarded as UC Santa Barbara's highest level recruit to date. His first season with the UCSB Gauchos men's soccer team was in 2005. He immediately made an impact with the team, starting in 21 games while scoring 3 goals and assisting on 5 more for 11 points.^[2] For his efforts, Avila was named to the College Soccer News All-Freshman First Team as well as being the Big West Conference Freshman of the Year.

2006 was a huge year for Avila with him starting 25 games. He scored 8 goals and had 5 assists for 21 points, the highest on the team.^[3] He outscored eventual professionals in Bryan Byrne, Tyler Rosenlund, Andy Iro, and Tino Nuñez. Avila led the Gauchos to the 2006 Division I Men's College Cup in St. Louis, Missouri where they won the Division I National Championship over Southern California rivals UCLA Bruins. It marked the Gauchos' first ever NCAA Championship in soccer, with Avila scoring the game winning goal. He was awarded a spot on the All-College Cup Team in addition to a spot on the NSCAA/adidas Second Team as well as the College Soccer News Third Team and All-Far West First Team.

In 2007, Avila appeared in 20 games, starting 18 of them. He scored 4 more goals and added 8 more assists for 16 points on the season.^[4] His career totals amount to 66 games (64 starts), 15 goals, 18 assists, and 48 points. He was a Hermann Trophy candidate for the season and was named to the NSCAA/adidas All-Far West Second Team.

During his college years, Avila also played in the USL Premier Development League for the San Fernando Valley Quakes and Ventura County Fusion.

Avila decided to forgo his senior season as professional clubs started to show interest. Avila decided to sign a Generation Adidas contract and he was subsequently drafted in the 2nd Round (19th Overall) by FC Dallas in the 2008 MLS SuperDraft.

[edit] Professional

Avila made his MLS debut for FC Dallas as an 85th minute substitute against the Houston Dynamo in a 1-1 tie on 26 June 2008.^[5] He earned his first MLS career assist on a header by Abe Thompson during stoppage time helping FC Dallas to a 1-1 tie against the Kansas City Wizards on July 4, 2008.^[6] and scored his first senior goal on June 20, 2009, in a game against Columbus Crew.^[7]

In December 2008, Eric traveled to England with fellow FC Dallas teamates Bruno Guarda, Josh Lambo, and Anthony Wallace along with other Generation Adidas players for friendlies against the reserve squads of Chelsea, Reading, and Aston Villa.

[edit] International

Avila entered the US U-17 Residency Program in Bradenton, Florida in Fall of 2003.^[8] He made his first appearance with US U-17's at the age of 15 against England. He went on to earn 9 international caps with the U-17's, appearing in 15 total matches. The total was the highest of the 1987 boys class. His last appearance came in Spring of 2005.^[8]

He helped lead the U.S. to the finals of the Ballymena International Tournament held in Northern Ireland, which he regards as one of his most memorable moments in sports. He also participated in the Mondial Minimes Montaigu Vendee Tournament held in France. In addition to tournaments, he played in a number of matches against Major League Soccer teams, including Los Angeles Galaxy, Chicago Fire, and Columbus Crew, while scoring the game-tying goal in a friendly against the San Jose Earthquakes.

In 2006, Avila participated in U-20 camps, but never had an appearance with the team. In 2007, he was called up to a U-23 camp, but again did not appear.

[edit] See also

• List of current MLS players

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• MLS player profile
• UC Santa Barbara player profile

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