Soccer Beat: Earthquakes register big on talent, fan scales

The Earthquakes are starting to rumble. Ticket orders are pouring in, and so are players.

Northern California's new Major League Soccer franchise found gold in the valley in the form of several potential prospects. Kicking off in Sacramento, a series of open tryouts drew more than 600 players.

From that pool, coach Frank Yallop and general manager John Doyle invited 33 back to an invitation-only combine next week. The Earthquakes have signed 10 current MLS players and have room for up to 28, including developmental slots. The MLS season starts in April.

"If you look at all the states with the most soccer players, adult and youth combined, Northern California would be first – and we're not even a state," said Earthquakes co-owner Lew Wolff, noting Southern California ranks several slots lower. "Not having a professional team here for even a moment was too long."

The tryouts did more than mine talent, Earthquakes executive vice president David Alioto said. The club staked its claim to fans, too.

"The tryout tour was not only a way to find players but to mark our turf," Alioto said. "We went to these cities and took the opportunity to say, 'You're ours.' "

The response was "tremendous," he said. "We thought if we got six people through these tryouts, we'd be happy. They come in all shapes and sizes. We found we have the best feeder system in the world, right here in Northern California."

Meanwhile, the franchise sold out its top tier – about 800 seats – of 2008 season tickets in the first week of sales.

"It's significant," Alioto said. "We did more than $1 million in business in five days. Those were our most expensive seats in the stands. It's a great way to start."

The Earthquakes, who will play most of their home games next season at Santa Clara's Buck Stadium, will cap their season tickets at about 7,500, Alioto added, "so we'll always have plenty of seats for groups."

Added Wolff, "We're delighted. We're working hard. We're now trying to put a competitive team on the field."

College honor roll

Elk Grove's Stephanie Lopez, a senior defender at Portland and member of the U.S. national team, won the first Lowe's Senior CLASS Award for women's soccer. Lopez, who graduates this month with a degree in psychology, was honored for her community service as well as academic and sports excellence. The award was determined by a nationwide vote of media, coaches and fans.

• American River College's Jessica Reed, a sophomore defender from Del Campo High School, was named to the National Soccer Coaches Association of America/adidas Women's Junior College Division III All America first team. Teammate Felicia Novoa, a sophomore midfielder from Kennedy, earned second-team honors. Reed also was named Big 8 Conference Defender of the Year. Coached by Paul Arellanes, ARC (17-4-3) finished this season ranked 11th nationally.

• Fair Oaks' Chris Wright, a 6-foot-5 forward from Jesuit, earned Academic All-America honors at New Mexico. He was named to the first team, announced by the Collegiate Sports Information Directors of America. Wright, a junior majoring in Portuguese with a 3.98 grade-point average, had 12 goals and four assists as the top scorer in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation.

On the women's side, Sacramento's Laura Newbrough, a senior defender at Hardin-Simmons University in Texas, earned second- team Academic All-America honors. The former Oak Ridge star has a 4.0 GPA, majoring in social work.

• Davis' Andrew Bailey, a junior forward who scored 18 goals at Sonoma State, made All-America third team for Division II schools.

About the writer:

• Call The Bee's Debbie Arrington, (916) 326-5514.