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Rookie kick-starts pro career Date published: 4/1/2001
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.--Chris Carrieri hovered near the soccer goal on the Irish-green fields of Weston Sports Complex. He was cutting, juking, spinning--whatever it took to get past his defender. Opportunity arose when teammate Jeff Agoos kicked a long ball in his direction. Carrieri's eyes widened as he fielded Agoos' kick and made a quick cross to Ian Russell. Goooaaaalllll! Carrieri smiled, adjusted his shorts--tucked up for maximum sun exposure--and went back to work. He called twice more during the scrimmage for Agoos to send him the ball. "Goose, Goose!" He waved his right hand in the air. But the San Jose Earthquakes' practice ended without another kick from Agoos sailing Carrieri's way. The 20-year-old Carrieri is adapting to a team of players who, like him, expected the ball when they signaled for it. But that was before they joined the pros. For the first time, it's not guaranteed he'll get the ball. It's not even guaranteed he'll start. Since graduating from North Stafford High School and joining San Jose as Major League Soccer's No. 1 overall draft pick, Carrieri has been on a fast-moving train with stops he expects and stops he doesn't. Like many area athletes before him, he has found advancing to the next level is not only a significant physical challenge but a mental one as well. Carrieri played with some of the country's top soccer players during spring training with the Earthquakes in Fort Lauderdale. In between two-a-day practices, he tanned poolside at the Wyndham Resort and Spa and juggled interviews with ESPN, Tiger Beat and The Miami Herald. Carrieri is beginning life as a professional soccer player. It's a life he's wanted since he was 4 and first found happiness in the black-and-white patches of a soccer ball. 'Everything's earned now'Carrieri, a center forward, has a quick two-footed agility that leaves defenders continuously on edge. His skills once caused a goalkeeper to drop to his knees and cry during a game with his select soccer team in Prince William County. His work ethic always has been strong. Carrieri would return home from games and drill outside his house in Hampton Oaks for hours. He'd dribble 50 times on his left foot, 50 times on his right. If he dropped the ball, he'd start again. Darkness didn't stop him.
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