This week, 55 college seniors from around the country will compete for a shot at the pros during the Adidas MLS 2015 Player Combine in Fort Lauderdale Jan. 9-13. Two former players from the Downtown Las Vegas Soccer Club (DLVSC) will perform and then await the outcome during the 2015 MLS SuperDraft, set for Jan. 15 in Philadelphia. The seniors were selected by a committee consisting of NCAA Division I coaches from every conference as well as MLS representatives.
Matt Polster, 21, a center back/center mid and 2011 graduate from Palo Verde High School, and Christian Volesky, 22, a forward and 2011 graduate from Foothill High School, are seniors at Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville and will play three games in five days during the combine in order to vie for a spot on a professional team.
“I feel if I have a good three games and put in a good performance, I’ll have a good chance,” said Polster, who started with the DLVSC at age 10. He also said his coaches helped to prepare him for this journey and taught him how to understand all the aspects of the game as well as play it. One of those coaches was Liam Connors, assistant coach at UNLV, who coached Polster for the DLVSC.
Volesky came to DLVSC at age 17 because he wanted to be in the position he is today, and he knew the coaching staff could help him reach his goals. “They helped us all the way through,” he said. “They guided us very well.”