COMMERCE CITY — Roger Espinoza already loved soccer when his family emigrated to the United States from Honduras when he was 12. His love of the Rapids came almost as naturally.
Espinoza, who attended South and Regis high schools during his stellar prep career, went to Rapids games and trained with the team before starring at Yavapai College (Prescott, Ariz.) and Ohio State, where he scored a goal in the Buckeyes’ 2-1 loss to Wake Forest in December’s national championship match.
Espinoza, 21, became a first-round draft pick of the Kansas City Wizards and is racing to recover from a foot injury as the Wizards host the Rapids on Saturday.
If declared fit, the former first-team Big Ten Conference midfielder could factor in as a substitute, which means he’ll play alongside Kansas City’s marquee offseason acquisition, Argentine international Claudio Lopez.
“Kids now are going to grow up watching this league and it’s going to make it a lot better,” Espinoza said. “I’m a pro now, and I grew up watching this league.”
While Espinoza could benefit from facing the team that passed on him in the draft, Rapids left back Jose Burciaga Jr. should be the most motivated. Burciaga was traded to the Rapids in January for a 2009 second-round draft pick after seven seasons in Kansas City.
“I still wish them nothing but the best,” Burciaga said, “but when they play us, I’m not wishing them nothing but the best.”
Road warriors?
The Rapids
have not won more than three
games on the road in a season
since going 5-9 in 2000. Colorado
hasn’t won at Kansas City
since 2002.
The Rapids’ reserve team,
however, went unbeaten last
season in winning its second
straight championship. So
what gives?
“I think it’s mentality,” said
defender Stephen Keel,who anchored
the reserve team for
two seasons before starting in
the Rapids’ 4-0 season-opening
victory Saturday over Los Angeles.
“We didn’t let (opponents)
impose their will on us. At the
very first minute, we let them
know we were coming there,
andwe weren’t coming there to
get pounded. We were going to
take our game to them.”
Footnotes.
Rapids coach
Fernando Clavijo said it will be
tough to alter his starting lineup
after Saturday’s emphatic
victory; however, players returning
to health – Herculez
Gomez, Pablo Mastroeni and
Dan Gargan – could change
that. Saturday’s start time
was moved up to 3 p.m. so local
fans won’t miss the Kansas vs.
North Carolina men’s basketball
game. The league announced
West Ham United,
the historic east London club
of the English Premier League,
will play against the MLS team
in the All-Star Game on July 24
in Toronto.
