MLS Real Salt Lake

Real Salt Lake signs Salt Lake City native MF Adam Acosta

March 31, 2006 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Real Salt Lake News Release


SALT LAKE CITY (Friday, March 31, 2006) - Real Salt Lake General Manager Steve Pastorino and Head Coach John Ellinger today announced the signing of Salt Lake City native MF Adam Acosta to the developmental roster. In addition, RSL announced that it has waived FW Jeff Rowland from the developmental roster. Acosta will be eligible to play in this weekend's season opener against Chivas USA on Sunday, as well as RSL's first Reserve League game of the year on Monday morning.

"Adam's somebody we used last year in our reserve games and he trained with us during our 2005 preseason at the University of Redlands," Ellinger said. "He did very well on his own merit and it is a plus that he is from Salt Lake City. Adam trained with the team throughout the 2005 regular season and made the effort to train hard. He proved in the reserve league that he can score and has worked very hard to get where he is at today."

Acosta was called up for nine games with the RSL Reserves, with three starts, tallying two goals and one assist. He is the first-ever Redlands men's soccer player to earn All-SCIAC First Team accolades each of his four-year career. He ranks second all-time at Redlands with 83 games played and 76 games started while also ranking third with 25 career assists.

"This is a proud day for Adam and RSL," Pastorino said. "He is an example that hard work, dedication and patience pay off. He has truly earned this spot on the roster and we know that he will push our other forwards every day to try and earn a spot in the starting 11.

"At the same time, we wish Jeff Rowland a speedy recovery from his ACL surgery. We retain his rights within MLS and we have made it very clear to him that he will be given every opportunity to earn a roster spot as soon as he is 100%."

Rowland suffered a right knee Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injury earlier this month during preseason training camp in Salt Lake City. The Albuquerque, New Mexico native had his ACL surgically grafted by RSL Team Physician and Orthopedic Surgeon, Andrew Cooper, at the Comprehensive Orthopedic Specialists in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Rowland was a first round (Second Overall) selection in the 2006 MLS Supplemental Draft on January 26. The Albuquerque, New Mexico native left the University of New Mexico as the most decorated player in school history and is the only two-time All-American in school history. He went from a non-recruited walk-on to a Hermann Trophy Finalist during his four years at New Mexico. In addition to being a great athlete, he excelled as a student with a 3.76 grade point average in Marketing.

REAL ELITE TRAINING PROGRAM: The Real Elite Training Program is a progressive summer training program for boys and girls ages 8-16 with previous playing experience and a strong desire to reach their maximum potential. There are a total of 18 sessions, three days a week, and two and a half hours per day. The benefits of the program include: exposure to the highest level of training; specializing in technique, tactic, fitness and teamwork; training from RSL soccer players and coaches; and two training shirts and ticket voucher to a select game. For more information, contact Teresa Nelson by phone at (801) 924-8565, by email at tnelson@RealSaltLake.com or by logging onto http://real.saltlake.mlsnet.com/MLS/rsl/player_development/.

MLS CAMPS: The Official Camp and Clinic of Major League Soccer is NOW the Official Camp & Clinic of Real Salt Lake! NEW for 2006, Fantasy Camp and focused Team Training experiences. To find out more about all of RSL's Youth Development Programs, call Scott Reynolds at (801) 924-8575 or by email at SReynolds@RealSaltLake.com. To partner with RSL to host MLS Camps in your community, call us today.

SINGLE-GAME TICKETS FOR ENTIRE SCHEDULE ON SALE: RSL single-game tickets for the entire 2006 season schedule are officially on sale at the University of Utah Ticket Office, located at the Stadium's south end. Previously single-game tickets were put on sale only for the RSL home opener against the New York Red Bulls on Saturday, April 15 at 7:00 p.m. RSL single-game tickets prices for the 2006 season are $16 for north goal, $20 for corner flag, $27 for premier east and $32 for VIP west. The KFC Colonel's Corner $12 ticket in Sections E40 and E41, can now be purchased at 35 KFC restaurants in Utah. Tickets can be purchased by visiting the Utah Ticket Office at 451 South 1400 East, by logging onto www.RealSaltLake.com or by contacting the Real Salt Lake Ticket Office at (866) 9-SOCCER.

PURCHASE THE NEW 2006 RSL "HIGH-FIVE" PACK: RSL latest ticket plan option, the "High-Five" pack, is now on sale. Fans can now purchase a premium level seat on the East side of Rice-Eccles stadium for five of the 2006 season games plus receive one RSL T-shirt and a full 3x5 ft. RSL Flag with the package ($30 value) for $125. The "High-Five" pack includes our Home Opener against the New York Red Bulls on Saturday, April 15, and the ESPN2 broadcast games against the Los Angeles Galaxy on Saturday, April 29 and Rocky Mountain rivals Colorado Rapids on Saturday, May 27, and RSL's two Fireworks Spectaculars against Chivas USA on Tuesday, July 4 (Independence Day) and FC Dallas on Saturday, July 22 (Pioneer Day). You can purchase the "High-Five" pack by visiting the RSL Ticket Office at 515 South 700 East, #2R, SLC, UT 84102, by logging onto www.RealSaltLake.com or by contacting the Real Salt Lake Ticket Office at (866) 9-SOCCER.

2006 RSL SEASON, HALF SEASON AND FLEX TICKET PACKAGES ON SALE: The RSL 2006 season ticket package features 20 games, including all 16 MLS regular season games and four special bonus games. Real Salt Lake's season ticket pricing remains level with the 2005 prices, and consists of Youth (15 and younger) and Adult in five price levels. Prices for the 2006 season ticket packages are $200 adult ($180 youth) for the North Goal, $300 adult ($240 youth) for the Corner Flag, $400 ($320 youth) for East Sideline, $500 ($400 youth) for VIP and $1,000 ($1,000 youth) Club seats.

The 2006 half season plan features 10 games (to be announced once the MLS 2006 schedule is announced), including nine MLS regular-season games and one special bonus game. Real Salt Lake's mini-plan ticket pricing consists of Youth (15 and younger) and Adult in four price levels. Prices for the 2005 mini-plan season ticket packages are $130 adult ($110 youth) for the North Goal, $180 adult ($150) for the Corner Flag, $220 adult ($180 youth) for East Sideline and $300 adult ($230 youth) for VIP seats.

To add more options for fans, RSL is also offering the flex season ticket package, which is comprised of twenty vouchers of the same price category (North Goal, Corner Flag, Premium and VIP) that allows the purchaser to determine which games they would like to see in the regular reason and how many tickets needed for that game. Prices for the 2005 Flex Package are $280 for the North Goal, $340 for the Corner Flag, $440 for the East Sideline and $560 for the VIP seats. Tickets can be redeemed in the following way: one could use all the vouchers and bring 20 people to one game or 4 people could attend five games. Flex vouchers are discounted from the day of game pricing making it an even greater value.

All tickets can be purchased by visiting the RSL Ticket Office at 515 South 700 East, #2R, SLC, UT 84102, by logging onto www.RealSaltLake.com or by contacting the Real Salt Lake Ticket Office at (866) 9-SOCCER.

ACCESS REAL: Real fans can now receive up-to-date information on the team by signing up for the RSL Weekly Newsletter on our website at http://real.saltlake.mlsnet.com/MLS/rsl/fans/.

The latest RSL roster follows:

REAL SALT LAKE ROSTER (as of March 31, 2006)

# Player Pos. Ht. Wt. Birthdate Hometown College Status

28 Adam Acosta FW 6-1 185 08/03/1982 Salt Lake City, UT Redlands

2 Nelson Akwari DF 6-0 193 02/04/1982 Houston, TX UCLA

10 Mehdi Ballouchy MF 5-11 169 04/04/1983 Casablanca, Morocco Santa Clara

20 Nikolas Besagno MF 6-1 181 11/15/1988 Maple Valley, WA -- Gen.adi

4 Paul Broome DF 5-9 150 06/06/1976 Dallas, TX Southern Methodist

11 Chris Brown MF 5-11 177 03/10/1977 Portland, OR Portland

25 Gustavo Cabrera DF 5-11 165 12/13/1979 Guatemala City, Guatemala

74 Jeff Cunningham FW 5-8 172 08/21/1976 Crystal River, FL South Florida

15 Kenny Cutler MF 5-9 164 03/08/1982 Richmond, VA Clemson

16 Willis Forko DF 5-10 168 11/12/1983 Houston, TX Connecticut

1 Scott Garlick GK 6-2 190 05/29/1972 Phoenix, Arizona San Diego

13 Atiba Harris FW 6-3 185 06/09/1985 St. Kitts & Nevis --

21 Christian Jimenez MF 5-9 158 11/03/1986 San Dimas, CA South Florida Gen.adi

14 Ryan Johnson MF 6-1 178 11/26/1984 Boston, MA Oregon State

17 Chris Klein MF 6-1 180 01/04/1976 St. Louis, MO Indiana

6 Cameron Knowles DF 6-3 195 10/11/1982 Auckland, New Zealand Akron

9 Jason Kreis FW 5-8 153 12/29/1972 Omaha, NE Duke

18 Jay Nolly GK 6-3 217 01/02/1982 Littleton, CO Indiana

19 Kevin Novak MF 5-8 152 09/01/1982 Huntington Beach, CA Loyola Marymount

29 Noah Palmer GK 6-3 199 04/21/1983 Williamsburg, VA Maryland

23 Eddie Pope DF 6-1 180 12/24/1973 High Point, NC North Carolina

27 Douglas Sequeira MF 6-1 178 08/23/1977 San Jose, Costa Rica --

3 Carey Talley MF 6-1 181 08/26/1976 Cordova, TN North Carolina

5 Danny Torres DF 5-11 158 10/14/1977 Moravia, Costa Rica --

24 Seth Trembly MF 5-6 155 03/21/1982 Littleton, CO --

22 Jamie Watson FW 5-9 158 04/10/1986 Dallas, TX North Carolina Gen.adi

8 Joey Worthen FM 6-1 185 12/03/1979 Salt Lake City, UT South Carolina

7 Andy Williams MF 5-8 171 09/23/1977 Chicago, IL Rhode Island

REAL SALT LAKE NUMERICAL ROSTER AND PRONUNCIATION GUIDE

# Player Pos. Pronunciation Place of Birth Last Club

1 Scott Garlick GK Phoenix, AZ FC Dallas (MLS)

2 Nelson Akwari DF uh - KWAH - ri Houston, TX Columbus Crew (MLS)

3 Carey Talley MF Cordova, TN FC Dallas (MLS)

4 Paul Broome DF Broom Dallas, TX Los Angeles Galaxy (MLS)

5 Danny Torres DF Moravia, Costa Rica Bodens BK (Swedish Supperettan)

6 Cameron Knowles DF Auckland, New Zealand University of Akron

7 Andy Williams MF Toronto, Canada Chicago Fire (MLS)

8 Joey Worthen MF Salt Lake City, UT Richmond Kickers (USL)

9 Jason Kreis FW KRYSE Omaha, NE Dallas Burn (MLS)

10 Mehdi Ballouchy MF buh - LOO - chee Casablanca, Morocco Santa Clara University

11 Chris Brown MF Portland, OR San Jose Earthquakes (MLS)

13 Atiba Harris FW St. Kitts & Nevis St. Peters (SKNFA Premier Division)

14 Ryan Johnson M/F Kingston, Jamaica Oregon State University

15 Kenny Cutler MF Richmond, VA U.S. U-20 National Team

16 Willis Forko DF Monrovia, Liberia Connecticut

17 Chris Klein MF St. Louis, MO Kansas City Wizards (MLS)

18 Jay Nolly GK NAW - lee Orlando, FL Indiana University

19 Kevin Novak MF Los Angeles, CA Loyola Marymount University

20 Nikolas Besagno MF buh - ZAN - yo Maple Valley, WA U.S. U-20 National Team

21 Christian Jimenez MF HIM-uh-nehz San Dimas, CA Chivas USA (MLS)

22 Jamie Watson FW Dallas, TX Univ. of North Carolina

23 Eddie Pope DF Greensboro, NC MetroStars (MLS)

24 Seth Trembly MF Littleton, CO Colorado Rapids (MLS)

25 Gustavo Cabrera DF Izabal, Guatemala Comunicaciones (Guatemala)

27 Douglas Sequeira MF Suh-KAY-ruh San Jose, Costa Rica Chivas USA (MLS)

28 Adam Acosta FW Salt Lake City, UT Redlands

29 Noah Palmer GK Virginia Beach, VA Maryland

74 Jeff Cunningham FW Montego Bay, Jamaica Colorado Rapids (MLS)

Head Coach: John Ellinger (Bradenton, FL)

Assistant / Goalkeeper Coach: Peter Mellor (Long Boat Key, FL)

Assistant Coach: Brian "BJ" Johnson (Livermore, CA)

Director of Player Development: Brian Kamler (St. Louis, MO)

Head Athletic Trainer: Jacob Joachim (Portland, OR)

Team Administrator: RJ Noto (Pittsfield, MA)

Equipment Manager: Nelvin Wilson (Farmington, NM)

Press Officers: Ronell Hugh (Knightdale, NC) / Trino Martinez (Fallbrook, CA)

- ACOSTA BIO FOLLOWS -

ADAM ACOSTA

FORWARD 6-1 185

Born: 08/02/82 in Salt Lake City, Utah

Hometown: Salt Lake City, Utah

Citizenship: United States

College: University of Redlands

Acquired

RSL: Via signing to the developmental roster on 03/31/06

Biography

How it all came to be...

Moving from Grants, New Mexico, Adam Acosta started playing soccer in the Salt Lake City AYSO at age five. After many years, seasons, coaches, and teams with AYSO, Acosta moved up to the club level playing with the Bountiful Cougars. He opened his Cougar career at the age of 11 and stayed with that team until he was 17.

While he was playing in Bountiful, he was invited to play with Northern United. He stayed with the local club for two years when he was voted the MVP in the summer of 2000. During his stay with Northern United's U-18 team, Acosta was heavily recruited by the University of Redlands' head coach, Rob Becerra.

Becerra was Acosta's mentor for the four years of his collegiate career. Because of Becerra's mentoring, Acosta was elected the Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Player of the Year and a three-time All-SCIAC First Team selection. When

Acosta was a part of the Bulldogs, they won they were first in their conference and went to the NCAA Soccer Tournament.

As college ended, Acosta wanted to get into the professional soccer scene. The year before he graduated from college in 2005, Acosta was invited to the Real Salt Lake local try-out in Provo, Utah. After talking with General Manager Steve Pastorino and Head Coach John Ellinger, he was invited to play with Real in the pre-season. While finishing school, Acosta played on the Reserve team with RSL. And After a season of hard work and training, Acosta has earned a spot on the Developmental Roster of Real Salt Lake.

Adam Acosta's family is very excited and happy to have their son and brother back home doing what he loves to do. "It's even better that I am in Salt Lake. My family is completely excited for me." Acosta stated. His parents, Skip and Joyce Acosta, and his sisters, Chelsie and Jeramie, live in Utah and love to watch their son and brother play soccer.

Coach Ellinger's Call...

"Adam's somebody we used last year in our reserve games and he trained with us during our 2005 preseason at the University of Redlands. He did very well on his own merit and it is a plus that he is from Salt Lake City. Adam trained with the team throughout the 2005 regular season and made the effort to train hard. He proved in the reserve league that he can score and has worked very hard to get where he is today."

Professional Highlights

2005 Reserves: Acosta played in nine RSL reserve games as a reserve team call-up, with three starts, tallying two goals and one assist.

College Highlights

2004: Served as a team captain for the Bulldogs...Played in 19 games, starting 14 times...Recorded a team-high 10 goals and 21 points despite missing two games to injury...Led Redlands to a fourth-straight conference title and a second round showing in the NCAA Championships...Named Team MVP for the second-straight year...Earned All-SCIAC First Team and the NSCAA All-Far West First Team accolades...2003: Served as a team captain for Redlands...Started in all 21 games... Led the team with 21 goals and 51 points...Also compiled nine assists...Helped the Bulldogs win their third-straight SCIAC crown with a perfect 14-0 conference record...Named MVP by his teammates...Guided Redlands to the second round of the NCAA Championships...Named the SCIAC Player of the Year while also earning a spot on the All-SCIAC First Team... Earned NSCAA All-Far West Region First Team accolades as well as NSCAA All-America Second Team honors...2002: Played for the Bulldogs...Competed in 20 games, starting all of them...Led the Bulldogs to their second-straight SCIAC title...Earned First Team All-SCIAC honors...Led the Bulldogs to the West Regional Championship game...Scored seven goals to rank 4th on team... Added eight assists for the 3rd-best mark on team...Tallied 22 points to finish 4th on the team...2001: Competed for Redlands as a true freshman...Helped the Redlands men's soccer team win its first SCIAC title since 1965...Named to the All-SCIAC First Team...A catalyst on a Bulldog squad that went all the way to the NCAA Division III Championship game...Competed in 23 games, starting 21 of them...Scored a goal and provided the assist on the game-winning goal that sent Redlands to the NCAA Championship game...Finished second on the team with 12 goals, seven assists and 31 points...

Personal

Hobbies: Basketball, Music, and Movies...Major in College: Psychology...Most Memorable moments: Being the runner up in the Division III College Cup my freshman year...Favorite Music: Jay-Z, Jack Johnson...Favorite Movie: Good Will Hunting...Favorite Food: My mom's green chili enchiladas...Favorite Book: It's not About the Bike by Lance Armstrong...Favorite TV Show: Nip/Tuck...Favorite athlete outside of soccer: Michael Jordan...Greatest Accomplishments: High School Male Athlete of the Year, College All-American...Charities/Causes: Make a Wish Foundation.

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