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The Portland Timbers U23's took on the Fraser Valley Mariners yesterday and did something that the Timbers first team has not done since the first week of the season: they won big and they won in style. With a final score of 3-0, a score that was generous to the Mariners, the U23's opened their season with an exciting victory.

The expansion Montreal Impact used their first pick in franchise history to select the versatile Andrew Wenger with the top pick in the 2012 MLS SuperDraft on Thursday afternoon in Kansas City.

Wenger, considered to be the most talented and complete player in the draft, enjoyed a successful career at Duke University.

Arsene Wenger might consider his namesake Andrew Wenger in his search for a full back. Wenger, a Duke University standout shows why he is the top pick in this year's MLS SuperDraft. He is listed as a defender/forward and you can see why. He has impressive ball skills, attacks down the flanks with speed, and finishes impressively.

Four player with ties to New England were taken in Thursday's MLS SuperDraft.

Defender Andrew Jean-Baptiste (Connecticut), defender Aaron Maund (Dorchester, Mass.), midfielder Tony Cascio (Connecticut) and forward Luckymore Mkosana (Dartmouth) all had their names called at the Kansas City Convention Center.

The Philadelphia Union select Raymon Gaddis with the 35th overall pick in the 2012 MLS SuperDraft. This pick was originally acquired from Sporting Kansas City in 2010 in the Shavar Thomas trade.

Gaddis was considered by some to be the best right back in the draft, even ahead of Aubrey Perry.

U.S. Under-23 defender Andrew Wenger, who was called in once again to the U-23s this month for training in Carson, Calif., is also taking home some collegiate hardware on the side.

The junior out of Duke won the Hermann Trophy on Friday, an honor that is given to the top NCAA Division I soccer players.

NEWTON, Mass. – The Boston College women's soccer team kicked off the 2012 season in style, cruising past Providence College on their way to a 3-0 victory in front of 831 at the Newton Campus Soccer Field.

Senior Kristen Mewis, who was named to the Hermann Trophy Watch List earlier this week, led the charge with a goal and an assist, while freshman McKenzie Meehan and junior Patrice Vettori also scored.

Photo: Michael Long

Midfielder Sinead Farrelly has officially agreed to terms to return to the Philadelphia Independence for the 2012 season. Farrelly was a standout at the University of Virginia where she was a second team All-American and a Hermann Trophy finalist.  The Havertown-native was Philadelphia's first pick (second overall) in last season's draft.

U.S. Under-23 defender and U.S. Soccer Development Academy alum Andrew Wenger out of Duke was the top selection by the Montreal Impact during Thursday's MLS SuperDraft held at the NSCAA Convention in Kansas City. Three of the first five selections in the draft had Development Academy ties.

The 2011 Hermann Trophy winner and ACC Offensive Player of the Year had 17 goals and eight assists last year.

Four New England-based college players will be making the trek to Fort Lauderdale, Fla. for the 2012 MLS Player Combine, which will run from Jan. 6-10, 2012.

The UConn duo of defender Nick Blake and forward Tony Cascio, as well as Dartmouth forward Luckymore Mkosana and Providence goalkeeper Jhojan Obando, are among 52 college seniors that will attempt to improve their SuperDraft stock during the five-day showcase, which will host a number of MLS coaches, general managers and scouts all hoping to get a glimpse of the country's best college-based talent.

By FRANCO PANIZO

FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- If you were to ask MLS coaches which players at this year's combine helped their cause the most, David Silva would surely be among the more common names mentioned.

The Mexican-born attacking midfielder from UCSB was one of the brightest spots at the combine, showing the playmaking ability that his him considered a top prospect.

By FRANCO PANIZO

FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Dom Dwyer did not know he was heading to the 2012 MLS Combine until a day before the event kicked off, but that did not stop him from having a decent showing at the event that he capped off with a goal.

Dwyer helped adiZero (blue) to a 3-1 win over Prime (green) on Tuesday morning, scoring an insurance goal in the 52nd minute of the game when he pounced on a rebound and knocked the ball into the back of the net.

Duke standout Andrew Wenger and Stanford senior Teresa Noyola were named winners of the Hermann Trophy on Saturday in recognition of being the top players in Division I NCAA soccer.

Wenger, who signed a Generation Adidas contract after a stellar junior year at Duke, led the ACC with 17 goals and eight assists.

Photo courtesy of Duke athletics

The quest for college soccer's top individual award has been narrowed to three competitors.

Duke's Andrew Wenger, North Carolina's Billy Schuler and Creighton's Ethan Finlay were named finalists for the Hermann Trophy, emerging from a list of 15 semifinalists that was released earlier in the week.

Photo courtesty of Creighton Sports Information

Duke's Andrew Wenger and Creighton's Ethan Finlay have had standout seasons, and they headline the list of Hermann Trophy semifinalists released by the NSCAA on Sunday.

The two strikers were the only repeat semifinalists from last year for the Hermann Trophy -- college soccer's top individual award -- out of a list of 15 players that also includes South Florida forward Dom Dwyer, North Carolina forward Billy Schuler and Maryland striker Casey Townsend.

Photo courtesy of Duke University

Pennsylvania native Andrew Wenger won the Hermann Trophy Friday as the best player in men's college soccer. The former Reading United and Duke University star is expected to be a top-3 pick in this month's MLS college draft. Stanford's Teresa Noyola won the women's award.

Photo by Tony Quinn/ISIphotos.com

The MLS Combine gets underway in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., later this afternoon, and MLS has released the rosters for the four teams that will compete in front of coaches and scouts for the next four days.

Seven foreign players were invited to participate in the combine, which is otherwise comprised of NCAA seniors and Generation adidas signings.

The Hermann Trophy finalists were announced Friday, and two of the three finalists are Reading United AC alumni: forwards Andrew Wenger of Duke and Billy Schuler of North Carolina. Both are juniors who grew up in Pennsylvania.

All told, six Reading United alumni were named All-American, with goalkeeper Brian Holt of Creighton and defender Matt Hedges of North Carolina joining Wenger and Schuler on the first team.

Boston College alumnus Laura Georges helped lead France on an impressive run to the semifinals in the women's soccer tournament at the 2012 London Olympics, but her team came up just short against Japan in a 2-1 loss at Wembley Stadium on Monday. France will now head to the bronze medal match against the loser of the semifinal between the U.

By FRANCO PANIZO

FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- The second day of the MLS Combine was the first day for Ethan Finlay, who had arrived to the Sunshine State on Saturday. He had missed the first day of the event on Friday to attend the Hermann Trophy Award ceremony in St.