Jorge Gomez Sanchez left his name on Temple’s record books in his two seasons with the Owls.
He scored 27 goals to tie for fifth in Temple program history and finished ninth all-time with 62 career points. His 14 goals in 2016 tied for seventh-most in Division I.
The senior midfielder and forward received an invitation to last week’s MLS combine in Los Angeles and scored a goal in his first exhibition game but wasn’t selected in the first two rounds of the MLS SuperDraft on Friday. He got drafted Tuesday in the third round with the 51st overall pick by Vancouver Whitecaps FC.
That #JustGotDrafted feeling ?
This guy is @MLS bound.
Congrats, Jorge! ⚽️? pic.twitter.com/A0iRe37ohv
— Temple Owls (@TempleOwls) January 17, 2017
Gomez Sanchez is the first Temple player to be selected in the SuperDraft and third to be drafted into the league since it began in 1997. The last Temple player drafted was Tony Donatelli in the 2006 supplemental draft. Gomez Sanchez is the seventh Owl coach David MacWilliams has helped reach the professional ranks.
“I am very excited to have been selected in the draft,” Gomez Sanchez said in a university release. “This is where I have wanted to be since [MacWilliams] first visited me in Spain. I couldn’t be more proud to represent Temple and Temple soccer in the MLS.”
The Whitecaps finished eighth in the MLS’ Western Conference standings last season. Gomez Sanchez will join former American Athletic Conference rival Jake Nerwinski, a former defender from Connecticut who was the seventh overall pick, on Vancouver’s roster.
Evan Easterling can be reached at evan.easterling@temple.edu or on Twitter @Evan_Easterling. Follow The Temple News on Twitter @TheTempleNews and @TTN_Sports.
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