Jan

Bunbury drafted by Kansas City Wizards

By Mark Remme
Faribault Daily News

Former Shattuck-St. Mary’s boys soccer standout Teal Bunbury was drafted fourth overall by the Kansas City Wizards during Thursday’s Major League Soccer SuperDraft held in Philadelphia. Bunbury will join a Wizards team that his father, Alex, competed for during the 1999 and 2000 seasons at the end of his 15-year professional career. Kansas City finished last season with an 8-13-9 record, good for sixth place in the Eastern standings.After graduating in 2007 from SSM, Bunbury played two seasons for the University of Akron. He became a nationally known forward with the Zips and led the nation with 17 goals last season while helping Akron achieve a 23-1-1 record and a trip to the national championship match against Virginia.

“I feel so blessed and honored by the Kansas City organization for giving me this opportunity,” Bunbury told the Zips official Web site. “Going to Kansas City makes it a little more special because my Dad played there and it’s something that’s never happened before. There will be high expectations to live up to, but I’m looking forward to that challenge.”

Bunbury became the first son of a former MLS player to join the league, and it also is the first time a father and son played for the same MLS franchise.

Last Friday, Bunbury won the Hermann Trophy, given to the nation’s top NCAA Division I player. He, along with teammates Blair Gavin and Ben Zemanski, all signed Generation adidas contracts and left school early to pursue a professional career. Gavin was drafted 10th overall by Chivas USA (Carson, Calif.), while Zemanski went in the third round (47th overall) to Chivas