OLYMPICS: NOT A HAPPY VICTORINE GALAXY MIDFIELDER LEFT OFF OLYMPIC TEAM; VAGENAS, CALIFF NAMED.Byline: Fred J. Robledo Staff Writer Sasha Victorine's reward for making key contributions during Olympic qualification: He was left off the squad. Galaxy teammates Peter Vagenas Peter Vagenas (born Panayiotis Alexiou Vagenas on February 6, 1978 in Pasadena, California), is an American soccer defensive midfielder, who currently plays for the Los Angeles Galaxy of Major League Soccer. and Danny Califf were named to the 18-man roster, however. ``It came down to a numbers game,'' said assistant Olympic coach John Ellinger, speaking for coach Clive Charles on a conference call Tuesday. ``Sasha has been with the team for a while and has played well, but with the addition of over-age players, some guys were going to be left out.'' Charles told Victorine he would be an alternate. ``I'm disappointed I'm not directly going,'' Victorine said. ``I knew my chances had been narrowed when there was talk of bringing in (an over-age) defensive midfielder.'' That player turned out to be Chicago midfielder Chris Armas, who, along with Jeff Agoos (D.C. United) and Frankie Hejduk (Bayer Leverkusen), were the three allowable over-23 players named to the team. Vagenas, from St. Francis High and UCLA UCLA University of California at Los Angeles UCLA University Center for Learning Assistance (Illinois State University) UCLA University of Carrollton, TX and Lower Addison, TX , is having a fine regular season with the Galaxy, earning a starting spot after Danny Pena went down with season-ending knee surgery. Two weeks ago, Vagenas injured his ankle in a U.S. Open Cup match against the San Diego Flash The San Diego Flash was a professional men's soccer team, based in San Diego, California, that played in the A-League between 1998 and 2001. The team was formerly the Colorado Foxes. . It turned out to be a mild sprain sprain, stretching or wrenching of the ligaments and tendons of a joint, often with rupture of the tissues but without dislocation. Sprains occur most commonly at the ankle, knee, or wrist joints, causing pain, swelling, and difficulty in moving the involved joint. and a huge relief for Vagenas, who calls the Olympics a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. ``I'm glad it's over and we can all finally take a deep breath,'' Vagenas said. ``Now we can concentrate on the task at hand, which is our club team, then get ready for the Olympics later on.'' Califf, a likely MLS See multilevel security. rookie of the year Rookie of the Year may refer to:
``It's a huge relief to know for sure,'' Califf said. ``If they had brought in a center back, I would have been the one not going. We've been champing at the bit waiting, but now I'm just honored to be going.'' Vagenas and Califf will miss the final two Galaxy regular-season games and at least the first round of the MLS playoffs to join the Olympic team. The U.S team includes Brian Dunseth of the New England Revolution The New England Revolution, nicknamed the Revs, is a professional soccer club based in Foxborough, Massachusetts, that participates in Major League Soccer. Even though the club is based in Foxborough, the club represents all of New England. , in the defense with Chad McCarty (Tampa Bay), Evan Whitfield (Chicago Fire) and Ramiro Corrales (New York/New Jersey). Joining Armas, Hejduk and Vagenas in the midfield are Joey DiGiamarino (Colorado), John O'Brien (Ajax Amsterdam) and Ben Olsen (D.C. United). The strikers are Josh Wolff (Chicago), Casey Conor (University of Portland The University of Portland (UP) is a private Catholic university located in Portland, Oregon. It is specifically affiliated with the Congregation of Holy Cross and is the sister school of the University of Notre Dame. Founded in 1901, UP has a student body of about 3,200 students. ), Landon Donovan (Bayer Leverkusen) and Chris Albright (D.C. United). Colorado's Adin Brown likely will start in goal, with Columbus' Matt Napoleon and New York/New Jersey's Tim Howard backing him. |
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