Mike Saunders is a retired Jamaican soccer player who played professionally in the

USL A-League The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, pl ...

and National Professional Soccer League. Saunders attended the

University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university in Storrs, Connecticut, a village in the town of Mansfield. The primary 4,400-acre (17.8 km2) campus is in Storrs, approximately a half hour's drive from H ...

where he played on the Huskies soccer team from 1990 to 1992. In 1993, he left the team to sign with the

Connecticut Wolves The Connecticut Wolves were an American soccer club that was founded by the Clifton Onolfo, the Onolfo Family, and several investors including Tony DiCicco. The Club's inaugural match was attended by 5,200 plus fans and competed in the United Soc ...

of the

USISL United Soccer League (USL), formerly known as United Soccer Leagues, is a soccer league in the United States and Canada. It organizes several men's and women's leagues, both professional and amateur. Men's leagues currently organized are the ...

. He played for the Wolves again in 1994. In 1995, Saunders joined the New York Fever. In 1996, the Fever moved up to the A-League, but they sent Saunders on lone to the Wolves of the 1996 USISL Select League for most of the season. Despite playing on loan, Saunders scored fifteen goals for Connecticut. That fall, Saunders moved indoors with the

Wichita Wings The Wichita Wings were a professional indoor soccer franchise based in Wichita, Kansas. The Wings were admitted to the Major Indoor Soccer League as an expansion team on August 21, 1979.

of the National Professional Soccer League. He was back with the Connecticut Wolves in 1997 as it played in the 1997 USISL A-League. The Wolves sent Saunders on loan to the

Carolina Dynamo North Carolina Fusion U-23, formerly known as Carolina Dynamo, is an American soccer team based in Greensboro, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1993, the team plays in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid. Th ...

for three games. On January 20, 1998, the Connecticut Wolves sold Saunders contract to the

Minnesota Thunder Minnesota Thunder was an American professional soccer team based in Minnesota, United States. Founded in 1990, the team played in the USL First Division (USL-1), the second tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, until 2009. The team played its home ...

. In 1999, Saunders and the Thunder won the USL A-League championship. On May 10, 2000, the Thunder released Saunders. Eight days later, the Connecticut Wolves signed him.Wolves Seek Home Edge
/ref> He played five games that season, then retired. In June 2010, Saunders became an assistant with the

University of the District of Columbia The University of the District of Columbia (UDC) is a public historically black land-grant university in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1851 and is the only public university in the city. UDC is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall ...

men’s soccer team.

External links

Columbia Firebirds: Michael Saunders

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saunders, Mike Living people 1972 births North Carolina Fusion U23 players Connecticut Wolves players UConn Huskies men's soccer players Jamaican men's footballers Jamaican expatriate men's footballers Minnesota Thunder players National Professional Soccer League (1984–2001) players New York Fever players USISL players USL Second Division players USISL Select League players A-League (1995–2004) players Wichita Wings (NPSL) players Men's association football forwards