Charlotte 49ers’ Kyle Parker taken in 2nd round by Columbus in Major League Soccer draft
Charlotte 49ers senior forward Kyle Parker was selected by the Columbus (Ohio) Crew in the second round with the 31st overall pick in Thursday’s Major League Soccer Superdraft.
Parker is the first 49ers player drafted to the MLS since Giuseppe Gentile was taken by the Chicago Fire in the 2014 MLS Waiver Draft, and the highest selection since Donnie Smith was selected 21st overall in 2013 by New England.
Following are others from Carolinas schools who were drafted in the first two rounds:
▪ Wake Forest freshman midfielder Jack Harrison was the No. 1 pick, taken by Chicago and then traded to New York City FC.
▪ North Carolina midfielder Omar Holness was the fifth pick, chosen by Real Salt Lake.
▪ Clemson goalkeeper Andrew Tarbell was taken No. 8 by San Jose.
▪ North Carolina defender Jordan McCrary was taken by New England with the 10th selection.
▪ Chicago took North Carolina defender Jonathan Campbell with the 12th overall selection.
▪ Clemson defender Kyle Fisher was taken by Montreal with the 14th pick.
▪ New England took Wake Forest forward Michael Gamble was the 30th pick of the second round.
Parker, who played high school soccer at Marvin Ridge, followed Gamble with the next pick in the second round. Parker led the 49ers to two NCAA tournaments, a Conference USA tournament championship and a regular-season title during his career.
Her made second-team All-America after his senior season, when he was Conference USA Offensive Most Valuable Player and winner of the Golden Boot Award, given to the top scorer in league games. Parker had seven goals in conference play and 12 for the season, leading the league in both and in points with 27.
Parker ended his career fourth all-time at Charlotte with 81 shots on-goal, tied for fourth in goals (34), seventh in points and shots attempted (83) (173), and tied for 11th in game-winning goals (7). He had five during his senior season.
This story was originally published January 15, 2016 at 12:36 PM with the headline "Charlotte 49ers’ Kyle Parker taken in 2nd round by Columbus in Major League Soccer draft."