Andrei Gotsmanov

Andrei was born in Minsk, then part of the Soviet Union. He moved to Woodbury, Minn., in 1996 when his father joined the Thunder. He graduated from Woodbury High School and began his college career at St. John's University in New York, leading a team that reached the NCAA Elite Eight in points. After a single season at St. John's, Gotsmanov transferred to Creighton University in Omaha, Neb., to be closer to home. After a two-year break from college soccer, Gotsmanov reached the Elite Eight again with the Bluejays. He was a semi-finalist for college soccer's most prestigious award, the Hermann Trophy, in 2008 and was also named the Missouri Valley Conference player of the year and tournament MVP. The New England Revolution selected Gotsmanov with the 24th overall pick of the 2009 Major League Soccer Superdraft, but he elected to finish his sociology degree before joining the team. This prevented Gotsmanov from attending training camp with the Revolution, and he never signed with the club, going on trial instead with Swedish club Mjallby AIF. He scored twice in an exhibition match with the club, but wasn't offered a contract. He returned to Minnesota and signed with the Thunder in 2009.