ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — New Mexico men’s soccer players Justin Davis and Euan Holden were both drafted in the Major League Soccer SuperDraft held in Philadelphia, Pa. on Thursday. Davis was picked 32nd overall by Real Salt Lake in the second round, while Holden was picked 62nd overall by the Houston Dynamo in the fourth round. Davis and Holden became the sixth and seventh Lobos all-time to be taken in the SuperDraft and the first and second since Andrew Boyens in 2007. Follow the MLS SuperDraft by Clicking Here!
“I want to say thanks to Real Salt Lake for having confidence in me and drafting me,” said Davis. “I also want to thank my coaches and teammates here at UNM for a great four years. I’m very much looking forward to playing at the professional level.”
Davis completed his four-year career last fall and was a two-time All-Mountain Pacific Sports Federation first-team selection. He was selected to the All-Far West Region squad twice in his Lobo career, and earned two Academic All-MPSF nods. Davis finished his UNM career ranked ninth all-time in points with 58, tied for eighth in goals with 20 and tied for seventh in assists with 18. The Litchfield Park, Ariz., native was fourth all-time in shots with 184.
“We are extremely proud of Justin,” said Fishbein. “This is what Justin has been working towards during his career and it’s great to see hard work pay off. The goal of our program is to give guys opportunities at the next level. Lobo soccer is about working together as a team and accomplishing our goals.”
Holden completed his two-year career at New Mexico last fall and was named to the Academic All-MPSF team this season. He had 24 starts in 28 games played at UNM over two years, had one career goal and two assists as a defender, and helped the Lobos attain an impressive goals-allowed-average of 0.92 as a team in 2009. Holden joined the Lobos as a junior transfer from UCONN in May of 2008 after playing two seasons for the Huskies. With UCONN, he saw action in 36 games and scored two goals from the midfield.
“I’m really excited for Euan as well,” said Fishbein. “He’s dealt with a lot of adversity throughout his college career and things really came together for him in his senior year. He has the potential to have a great playing career, in either America or Europe. He has a Scottish passport, which affords him a lot of opportunities that many American players don’t have.”
Holden is presently trying out for a number of professional soccer teams in Denmark and was unavailable for comment today. Holden’s brother, Stuart, is also currently a member of the MLS Houston Dynamo.
“Our goal is to produce excellent students first and athletes second,” said Lobo head coach Jeremy Fishbein. “Both of these guys were very good students as well, and they had their priorities straight. This is another indication of the team and the program that we have.”
Davis will be available for interviews at 11:45 a.m. Friday, January 14 in the Rudy Davalos Center. Davis will address the media following the women’s basketball press conference.