Red Bulls pick 4 players supplemental draft

[Frank Cunha]

DETAILS, DETAILS  Background on supplemental draft choices


DETAILS, DETAILS
Background on supplemental draft choices



OK, you probably have heard that the Red Bulls selected four players in Thursday's MLS supplemental draft.

Just in case you haven't, the Red Bulls picked midfielder Danleigh Borman from the University of Rhode Island (first round, seventh pick), midfielder/forward Michael Palacio (second round, 21st pick) from Stony Brook University, defender John Gilkerson from Winthrop University (third round, 35th pick) and defender Laurent Manuel from Brown University (fourth round, 49th pick).

Danleigh Borman

Borman, who hails from Cape Town, South Africa, was selected to the Atlantic 10 All-Conference second team after finishing the season with one goal and seven assists – good for second on the team. A year before, the 5-9, 160-lb. midfielder earned the A-10 Championship Most Outstanding Player award when he helped the Rams to a 2-0 win over St. Louis University in the championship game. That season, the 2004 A-10 rookie of the year finished with two goals and five assists. Borman accumulated seven goals, 16 assists while playing in 83 games in four seasons with Rhode Island. Borman has been called up to the U-19 South African Men’s National Team.

Michael Lewis

Palacio, who played with Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association ODP, was a three-time selection on the America East first team and was named to the All-Northeast region second team in his junior season. The Long Beach, L.I., product scored four goals and six assists for the Seawolves (9-7-3) last fall. During his junior year, Palacio scored two goals and added four assists and the Stony Brook all-time leader in assists was named the AE midfielder of the year. His best year statistically was in 2005, when he played in 22 games and led Stony Brook with 11 goals and seven assists.

John Gilkerson

Gilkerson, who comes from Winchester, Va., was named to the All-Big South first team in his junior and senior years. In 2006, he was named to the NSCAA All-South Atlantic Region Team. Last year Gilkerson started in all of the Eagles’ 18 regular-season games, collecting one goal and two assists while leading a defense that conceded only 13 goals all season. Gilkerson, who has also played for the Hampton Roads Piranhas (Premier Development League), helped guide a defense that earned a 0.73 goals-against average in 2006, good for 16th in the nation.

Laurent Manuel

A native New Yorker, Manuel joins the Red Bulls after helping Brown to an Ivy League title and a NCAA Division I tournament berth last fall. He played in 13 games, recording two goals and one assist. Brown allowed only 16 goals last year. Manuel, who attended The Browning School prior to enrolling in Brown, performed in 64 games over four seasons. He was also an All-Ivy honorable mention in 2004 and trained with Olympique de Marseilles’ Under-18 team in 2003.