A. J. DeLaGarza

A. J. DeLaGarza
	DeLaGarza with the Galaxy in 2013
Personal information
Full name	Adolph Joseph DeLaGarza
Date of birth	November 4, 1987 (age 36)
Place of birth	Bryans Road, Maryland, United States
Height	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Position(s)	Defender
Team information
Current team	Los Angeles Galaxy
Number	20
Youth career
2005–2008	Maryland Terrapins
Senior career*
Years	Team
2009–	Los Angeles Galaxy
International career‡
2012	United States
2013–	Guam
	*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of November 16, 2013; ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of November 19, 2013

Adolph Joseph DeLaGarza (born November 4, 1987 in Bryans Road, Maryland) is an American-born Guamanian international footballer who currently plays for Los Angeles Galaxy in Major League Soccer.

Career

Youth and college

DeLaGarza was born in Bryans Road, Maryland to a Mexican-Guamanian father and a Native American mother.^[1] At the age of 12, DeLaGarza played for the DC United U-12 at the Danone Cup in France, under coach Dave Sarachan. He also played for Baltimore Casa Mia's Boys, where he won 2 USYSA National Championships. In high school, DeLaGarza played at Henry E. Lackey High School for head coach Gary Lesko in Indian Head, Maryland.

DeLaGarza played college soccer at the University of Maryland, College Park. He was named College Soccer News Second Team All-Freshman after helping Maryland win the National Championship in 2005, and was named to the College Cup All-Tournament Team, was a Second Team All-ACC selection, and was his team's Co-Most Valuable Defensive Player as he helped lead Maryland to the 2008 College Cup championship.

Professional

DeLaGarza was drafted in the second round (19th overall) of the 2009 MLS SuperDraft by Los Angeles Galaxy. He made his professional debut on March 22, 2009, in Galaxy's first game of the 2009 MLS season against D.C. United.^[2] Following Sean Franklin's mid-season hamstring injury, DeLaGarza played many games at the right side of Galaxy's defense, ultimately clocking 1,754 minutes in his rookie season. At October 1, 2012 against Colorado, he went down to a serious injury in the 31st minute to Omar Cummings. In that match they managed to hold off Colorado in a 1-1 draw.

International career

On January 21, 2012, DeLaGarza made his debut for the senior side of the United States (as a starter) in the 1:0 win over Venezuela in a friendly match.

DeLaGarza is still eligible to play for the Guam national team due to the fact that he isn't officially cap tied with the U.S. On August 27, 2013, he made the commitment to play for Guam.^[3]

Honors

Los Angeles Galaxy

MLS Cup (2): 2011, 2012
Major League Soccer Supporter's Shield (2): 2010, 2011
Major League Soccer Western Conference Championship (3): 2009, 2011, 2012

University of Maryland

NCAA Men's Division I Soccer Championship (2): 2005, 2008

References

^ "The MNT Blog". U.S. Soccer. Retrieved October 27, 2012.
^ http://web.mlsnet.com/scoreboard/game.jsp?match=03222009_DCLA ^{[dead link]}
^ Serrano, Adam (August 27, 2013). "LA Galaxy defender A.J. DeLaGarza commits to Guam as he looks to pursue his dream of international soccer". LA Galaxy Insider. Retrieved September 16, 2013.

External links

MLS player profile
A. J. DeLaGarza at National-Football-Teams.com

Template:Persondata

[1] "The MNT Blog". U.S. Soccer. Retrieved October 27, 2012.

[2] ttp://web.mlsnet.com/scoreboard/game.jsp?match=03222009_DCLA ^{[dead link]}

[3] Serrano, Adam (August 27, 2013). "LA Galaxy defender A.J. DeLaGarza commits to Guam as he looks to pursue his dream of international soccer". LA Galaxy Insider. Retrieved September 16, 2013.

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