Noonan named to MLS All-Star team

Former IU soccer standout and All-American Pat Noonan was selected as a MLS All-Star for the second consecutive season Thursday. Noonan, who plays for the New England Revolution, made the team as reserve forward, as he did in 2004.\nNoonan was one of seven reserve players to make the squad. Of the seven reserves, five were selections made by All-Star head coach Colin Clarke of FC Dallas, one of which was Noonan.\nWith all the success Noonan has had playing with the U.S. this year, he is still honored to play in the All-Star game, he said.\n"It's definitely a great honor. Anytime you get to play with the best of the MLS, it's always an honor," Noonan said.\nIU men's soccer coach Mike Freitag said Noonan's selection should come as no surprise, since he has been one of the top players in the league recently.\n"Pat has established himself as one of the top-10 players in the league, and that's evidenced by his call-ups to the national team," Freitag said. \n"Pat has a great future in front of him because of his mentality and skill, which makes him a great pro in the MLS, and assures him a place to play in Europe and on the national team," added Freitag. \nDespite missing several of the Revolution's games due to playing for the U.S. National Team, Noonan, who was the 2004 Budweiser Scoring Champion, is currently tied for the MLS lead in goals with eight. Noonan is also tied for fourth in points with 17 at this point in the season. Noonan has played in 13 matches for the Revolution this season. \nNoonan joins his fellow Revolution teammates, goalkeeper Matt Reis, midfielders Clint Dempseyand Shalrie Joseph, and forward Taylor Twellman on the 2005 All-Star team. The Revolution's five selections trail only FC Dallas, who had six players make the squad. The Revolution are currently in 2nd place in the Eastern Conference, trailing the Chicago Fire by three points, 32 to 35 respectively. \nNoonan's second all-star selection marks the 14th time a Hoosier has been selected for the MLS All-Star game, further solidifying IU soccer as one of the preeminent programs in the country. Noonan follows in the tradition of former Hoosiers such as Brian Maisonneuve, Chad Deering, Mike Clark, and Chris Klein to be selected as an all-star twice. Dema Kovalenko leads all former Hoosiers in all-star selections, having been selected a total of three times, making the team in 2001, 2002, and 2004. Juergen Sommer made the team as well in 2002. Maisonneuve was the first Hoosier ever selected for the team in 1999.\nThe format for the 2005 All-Star game will feature the MLS All-Stars squaring off against Fulham FC of the Barclay's English Premier League. The format is similar to that of the 2003 and 2002 all-star games, in which the MLS team played CD Guadalajara and the U.S. National Team, respectively. \nGetting the opportunity to play one of the top teams in Europe is something Noonan and the rest of the All-Stars are looking forward to, he said.\n"This year we play Fulham, so it should be much more competitive," Noonan said. "We're not going to see the usual laid back atmosphere that it usually is when it's East vs. West. We're going to go out and try to win the game."\nThe 2005 Sierra Mist All-Star Game will be played July 30 in Columbus, Ohio at the Columbus Crew Stadium. The game is scheduled for 2:30 p.m., and will be televised live on ABC.