"It's always a hard question when I'm asked about my role models. "There are so many great players out there," he says.
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He continues to be inspired by the player who ignited his drive. DeLaGarza, Omar Gonzalez, Patrick Mullins, Graham Zusi, Robbie Rogers and Taylor Twellman.Ĭirosvki is confident Bender is capable of contributing to MLS newcomer FC Charlotte: “Ben brings all the attributes necessary to succeed at the MLS level and fans in Charlotte will fall in love with his creativity, flair and love for soccer."īender aims to prove he can boost a midfield that Charlotte FC began building before the draft by signing players from abroad. Fourteen Maryland alum were on MLS rosters last season, and former Terrapins in the pros present and past include Zack Steffen, A.J. 1 in the MLS draft, after Leo Cullen (1998, Miami Fusion) and Maurice Edu (2007, Toronto FC) and aims to follow the path of the many who found pro success after playing for Cirovski. I went on a visit to Maryland, and then committed shortly after that."īender is the third Maryland Terrapin to go No. I scored in every game down there and things just went well, and went my way. "Those were probably the best string of games that I put together for my Baltimore Armour team. "I think the first time they saw me play was in the Sarasota winter showcase," he said. He credits his performance at a Florida showcase tournament for paving his path to the Maryland Terrapins. But whereas 2019 pick Frankie Amaya played for the USA in U-20 World Cup qualifying ahead of the draft, Bender had never been called up by a U.S.
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1 in the MLS SuperDraft in the last decade. "It was pretty special because it was a really good balance of spending time with my friends and playing in the most competitive place to play in the U.S." said Bender, who was 2019-20 Gatorade Maryland Boys Soccer Player of the Year during his senior year at Calvert Hall.īender, an all-around midfielder who leaves Maryland after two seasons (29 games, 9 goals, 5 assists), is only the second U.S.
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Development Academy, which expected players to forego high school soccer but made exceptions for those who "receive financial aid or were accepted into a private high school based on their participation." He played for the Baltimore Armour under coach Mike Lookingland but was able to play four years of high school ball thanks to a waiver from the U.S. "Playing with kids who were much more athletic than me was pretty cool," he said.Īt U-14, Bender spent a season with Philadelphia Union's academy and attended the YSC Academy before returning home and enrolling at his brothers' alma mater, Calvert Hall College High School in Towson, Maryland, where he was coached by Rich Zinkand. The benefits of competing against older players continued during Bender's youth soccer, when he often played two years up. The elder, Jacob Bender, was the 2016 Division III Player of the Year for his feats at Messiah College - where Josh Bender also starred and won the national title the following year - and played for the USL's Charlotte Independence in 2017. His brothers are five and six years older. "And as long as I remember, I played soccer in the backyard with my brothers, chasing them and trying to compete with them."
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"My dad's a really competitive guy, he loves sports, he played soccer in high school, and soccer was always his favorite," Bender said. The soccer journey began naturally for Bender. Now I'm just extremely grateful for the journey and I'm excited for the future." "I told myself I'm gonna put my head down, work hard and see where this takes me. "I realized then that it was a possibility because I know that Maryland has sent so many players to MLS," Bender said. His dream started to feel like an attainable quest when Coach Sasho Cirovski invited him to become part his University of Maryland program. "That was my first real aspiration of playing professionally," said Bender, a couple hours after expansion club Charlotte FC made the Baltimore native the No.
BACKYARD SOCCER MLS EDITION PRO PLAYERS TV
He was 6 years old watching a 22-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo on TV playing for Manchester United.
BACKYARD SOCCER MLS EDITION PRO PLAYERS PROFESSIONAL
The 20-year-old Ben Bender can pretty much pinpoint when his dream of playing professional soccer started.