Cicerone is one of 53 players who have been invited to the Combine by Major League Soccer. At the Combine, held from Jan. 8-12 in Los Angeles, Cicerone will compete in front of personnel from all 22 MLS teams ahead of the 2017 SuperDraft, on Jan. 13.
A committee of MLS and NCAA Division I coaches from every conference selected the invitees, all of whom completed their college eligibility this season. Further invitees, including Generation adidas signings, non-collegiate players and additional college seniors, will be announced in the coming weeks.
“It is a real honor to be the first UB player to represent Buffalo at the MLS Combine,” stated Russell Cicerone. “I am very proud to have come out of Buffalo. I believe that Stu Riddle and the rest of the UB coaching staff have done an excellent job in preparing me for the next few weeks and for a professional career. I will be doing my best to make my family, friends, teammates and the entire UB community proud.”
Cicerone closed out his impressive UB career with his best season in 2016 as the Bloomfield Hills, MI native netted a career-high 14 goals, nine assists and 37 points as he led the MAC in all goals and points. The 37 points are the highest point total in program history since 1998 when Steve Butcher netted a program record 43 points. He closed out the season ranked fourth in the NCAA in points (37), seventh in goals (14) and 13th in assists (9)
The captain also earned First-Team All-MAC accolades for the fourth consecutive season, becoming the first player in UB history and third in MAC history to do so. Cicerone became just the second UB player in program history to earn MAC Player of the Year honors following his junior season but didn’t receive the same recognition this past season despite leading the MAC in scoring by six goals and 16 points.
The lethal scorer etched his name all over the UB record books as he was able to start all 71 matches he appeared in during his career for the blue and white. He wrapped up his four-year career ranked first in career assists (22), second in goals (42) and second in points (106) while also ranking third in MAC history in goals and points. Cicerone is just the third player in MAC history to surpass the 100-point plateau for his career.
Cicerone capped his great Buffalo career ranking second in career goals (42), second in career points (106), fifth in points/game (1.49), sixth in goals/game (0.59), 13th in career assists (22) and 15th in assists/game (0.31), among active NCAA Division I athletes for a career.
“Everyone involved in the program is delighted for Russell and it shows how far he has developed and the program has grown over the last four seasons,” said UB head coach Stu Riddle. “Being selected for the combine is the easy part, he knows he will face stiffer competition than ever before and I am confident that he will rise to the challenge and perform at levels we all know he can.”
The Bulls closed out one of their most successful seasons in program history with a 12-4-3 overall record, most wins in a season since 2005. UB also advanced to their second straight MAC Championship match for the first time in program history.
from UBBulls.com via IFTTT
