Jan. 6, 2009

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - UC Santa Barbara's record-setting senior forward Chris Pontius has been named an All-American by two separate organizations and in the week before he departs for the Major League Soccer Combine, he has secured a spot in the league's SuperDraft.

Pontius, who scored a team-high 14 goals - tied for sixth-most in UCSB single-season history - and whose 32 points this past season is eighth all-time, was named a Second Team All-American by College Soccer News and a Third Team All-American by the NSCAA.

The Gauchos' lone First-Team All-Big West player, Pontius has also been selected as one of a handful of players by Major League Soccer to agree to a deal guaranteeing that he will play for the league next year. No more than a dozen players agree to these deals.

This also means that Pontius will be on hand for the MLS SuperDraft on Jan. 15 in St. Louis and is an obvious first-round selection. The first round will be televised on ESPN2, channel 35 on Cox Cable in Santa Barbara, 144 on Dish Network and channel 209 on DirecTV.

To read more about the SuperDraft click here.

Currently six former UCSB players play in the MLS - Andy Iro, Ciaran O'Brien, Tino Nunez, Brennan Tennelle, Eric Avila and Kyle Reynish.

UCSB - a nationally recognized university in both academic and athletic excellence - is located on the central coast of California in a picturesque campus and community setting on the Pacific Ocean. Each year over 450 Division 1 Gaucho student-athletes compete for national championships, succeed in the classroom, and give back to the community.