Alex Bengard (born March 13, 1979) is a retired

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

player.

Career

College

Bengard played one year of

college soccer College soccer, called college football in some countries, is played by teams composed of soccer players who are enrolled in colleges and universities. While it is most widespread in the United States, it is also prominent in Japan, South Kore ...

at Mt. San Antonio College before transferring to

California State University, Dominguez Hills California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH, CSU Dominguez Hills, or Cal State Dominguez Hills) is a public university in Carson, California. It was founded in 1960 and is part of the California State University (CSU) system. In 2020, ...

. During his senior year Bengard broke the CSUDH single-season points record and earned the CCAA First Team All-Conference award, was named a First Team All-American, and won the Division 2 NCAA National Championship.

Professional

Bengard was drafted in the fifth round (57th overall) in the

2001 MLS SuperDraft The 2001 Major League Soccer MLS SuperDraft, SuperDraft was held on February 5, 2001, at the Signature Grand in Davie, Florida. Player selection ;Key Round 1 Round 1 trades Round 2 Round 2 trades Round 3 Round 3 t ...

Los Angeles Galaxy The Los Angeles Galaxy are an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The Gal ...

. He played in 7 MLS games for Galaxy in his two years with the team, winning the 2001 U.S. Open Cup and the 2002 MLS Cup, before being waived at the end of the 2002 season. Bengard dropped down a level to play in the

USL First Division The USL First Division (USL-1) was a professional men's soccer league in the second tier of the United States league system. It was organized by the United Soccer League as its premier league for men from 1996 to 2010, above the USL Second ...

, with Seattle Sounders in 2003 and with

Portland Timbers The Portland Timbers are an American professional Association football, soccer club based in Portland, Oregon. The Timbers compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The Timbers have p ...

in 2004. After briefly playing with

Toronto FC Toronto Football Club is a Canadian professional Association football, soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference (MLS), Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matc ...

's reserves in 2007, Bengard returned to Southern California to work as a coach for local youth soccer organization Legends FC. He also played with Legends'

USL Premier Development League USL League Two (USL2), formerly the Premier Development League (PDL), is a semi-professional soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States, forming part of the United States soccer league system. The league will featu ...

team

Los Angeles Storm LA Laguna FC was an American soccer team based in the Los Angeles area, United States. Founded in 2010, the team played in the Premier Development League (PDL) (now USL League Two), the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Southwe ...

in 2007. In addition to his coaching work, Bengard also occasionally plays with the amateur Hollywood United, which plays in the Los Angeles-based

USASA The United States Adult Soccer Association (USASA) is a national organization for amateur soccer in the United States. It consists of 54 state associations in four regions, as well as national, regional, and state leagues. It compares to the Uni ...

-affiliated Coast Soccer League. Bengard was part of the Hollywood team which beat

3–2 in the first round of the 2008 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bengard, Alex 1979 births Living people American men's soccer players Men's association football midfielders Cal State Dominguez Hills Toros men's soccer players LA Galaxy players Portland Timbers (2001–2010) players Seattle Sounders (1994–2008) players LA Laguna FC players Hollywood United F.C. players USL League Two players Major League Soccer players LA Galaxy draft picks A-League (1995–2004) players