Stephen King (born March 6, 1986) is an American former professional soccer player.

Stephen King
Personal information
Full name Stephen King
Date of birth (1986-03-06) March 6, 1986 (age 38)
Place of birth Medford, New Jersey, United States
Height 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Position(s) Midfielder
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2004–2007 Maryland Terrapins 93 (30)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2008 Chicago Fire 20 (2)
2009–2010 Seattle Sounders FC 10 (0)
2010–2012 D.C. United 47 (1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of November 1, 2012

Career

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Youth and high school

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King attended Shawnee High School where he was a four-year starter (2000–03) under coach Brian Gibney.[1] He led the Renegades to a 99–5–3 record during his tenure, including 2001 and 2003 Group IV state championships. During the latter title run, King's senior year, he recorded 24 goals and 27 assists.[2] King was named the New Jersey Gatorade and NSCAA Player of the Year. He was also selected as a Parade, EA Student Sports and NSCAA/adidas All-American.[2] Additionally, King was named a USYSA Inter-Regional All-American and finished his prep career with 46 goals and 56 assists.[2]

King was selected to play for the Region I Olympic Development Program team from 1999 to 2004 and participated as a U–16 national pool player. During his earlier years he was the captain of the U–15 national team and also played for the nationally prominent FC Delco club team.[2]

College

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Heavily recruited out of high school, King chose the University of Maryland over other high-profile schools such as Wake Forest, Duke, Boston College, Harvard, St. John's and Rutgers.[2]

During his four-year tenure in which he started all 93 contests he played in (a Maryland career starts record), King would lead the Terrapins to two NCAA Sweet Sixteens, the 2004 College Cup, and the 2005 National Championship.[3] He was a Hermann Trophy semi-finalist for his junior and senior seasons, and a Lowe's Senior CLASS Award, College Soccer News First Team All-American and First Team All-ACC for his senior season.[3] According to UMTerps.cstv.com, "King finished his career second all-time in assists at Maryland with 33 while his 93 career points ranks sixth. He also scored 30 goals which is one away from the top 10. His three-assist performance against No. 14 Virginia on November 3, 2007 tied the program record for assists in a game. He racked up 13 assists in 2007 which is the second most in school history in a single season."[3]

King was also named the 2007 ACC Scholar-Athlete of the Year for men's soccer, an award for recognizing the top junior or senior student-athlete in each respective ACC sport. Candidates must maintain a career 3.0 or better grade point average and have gotten 3.0+ each of their past two semesters to qualify.[4] He was also named to ESPN The Magazine's 2007 Academic All-America Men's Soccer Team.[5]

Professional

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On January 18, 2008, King became the Maryland Terrapins' 22nd MLS draftee since its inception in 1996. The Chicago Fire selected him in the third round (40th overall).[3] He made his MLS debut against Real Salt Lake on March 29, entering in the 54th minute.,[6] and made his first career start against the San Jose Earthquakes on April 12.[7]

King scored his first MLS goal against the New England Revolution on May 3. It was an unassisted goal in the 76th minute.[8]

On November 26, 2008, King was selected by Seattle Sounders FC in the fourth round of the 2008 MLS Expansion Draft.[9] He made his Sounders debut on May 2, 2009, appearing as a substitute against his old club Chicago Fire FC.

King was traded to D.C. United on April 30, 2010. Seattle received a second-round pick in the 2011 MLS SuperDraft in exchange.[10] He made his debut for DC a day later in a 2–0 loss at home to the New York Red Bulls.[11] King signed a new contract with D.C. on September 8, 2011. Terms were undisclosed.[12]

King was released by D.C. United on December 18, 2012.[13]

Statistics

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Season Club Country Competition Apps. Goals Assists
2008 Chicago Fire FC   United States Major League Soccer 20 2 1
2009 Seattle Sounders FC 10 0 0
2010 0 0 0
D.C. United 20 0 1
2011 20 1 0
2012 7 0 1
Total Last Updated May 5, 2023 77 3 3

Honors

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Seattle Sounders FC

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Personal

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King is the son of Douglas and Jayne King, and has two brothers, Brian and Sean.[2]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ NSCAA Past Coaches of the Year Archived 2011-10-13 at the Wayback Machine. "2002, Brian Gibney, Medford, N.J." Accessed March 23, 2008.
  2. ^ a b c d e f UMTerps.com: Stephen King profile page Archived 2008-02-12 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed March 23, 2009.
  3. ^ a b c d UMTerps.com: King Chosen By Chicago Fire In MLS SuperDraft Archived 2008-04-04 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed March 23, 2008.
  4. ^ Maryland's Stephen King Named ACC Scholar-Athlete for Men's Soccer Archived 2008-05-14 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed March 27, 2008.
  5. ^ ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America Team. Accessed March 29, 2008. Archived January 14, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  6. ^ Chicago Fire vs. Real Salt Lake match tracker. Accessed March 29, 2008 Archived April 1, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ Chicago Fire vs. San Jose Earthquakes match tracker. Accessed April 15, 2008. [dead link]
  8. ^ Chicago Fire vs. New England Revolution match tracker Archived 2008-06-15 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed May 4, 2008.
  9. ^ "MLS announces expansion in Seattle". MLS.net. 2008-11-26. Archived from the original on 2009-03-25. Retrieved 2008-11-26.
  10. ^ "D.C. United news & notes". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on September 26, 2012.
  11. ^ Ibrahim, Angel power Red Bulls past United
  12. ^ "Stephen King signs new contract | D.C. United". Archived from the original on 2012-07-23. Retrieved 2011-09-08.
  13. ^ "Club parts ways with two | D.C. United". Archived from the original on 2012-12-31.
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