Gerardo "Jerry" Laterza (born July 1, 1974) is an American former soccer player. He is the technical director of

Newport Mesa Soccer Club Newport most commonly refers to: * Newport, Wales * Newport, Rhode Island, US Newport or New Port may also refer to: Places Asia * Newport City, Metro Manila, a Philippine district in Pasay Europe Ireland * Newport, County Mayo, a town on ...

. He was the first

Paraguayan American Paraguayan Americans ( es, paraguayo-americano, or ) are Americans of Paraguayan descent. The Paraguayan population in the United States at the 2010 Census was 24,933. Paraguayans are the smallest Latino group in the United States. The Parag ...

to play football in Paraguay.

Career

Laterza graduated from

Walnut High School Walnut High School is a public high school located at Walnut, California, among the San Jose Hills of the San Gabriel Valley in Southern California. Ranked in the top 100 high schools in America by the Daily Beast Publication, Walnut High Scho ...

where he was the 1990 and 1992

California Interscholastic Federation The California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) is the governing body for high school sports in the U.S. state of California. CIF membership includes both public and private high schools. Unlike most other state organizations, it does not have ...

1-A Player of the Year. Laterza attended

Southern Methodist University , mottoeng = " The truth will make you free" , established = , type = Private research university , accreditation = SACS , academic_affiliations = , religious_affiliation = United Methodist Church , president = R. Gerald Turner , pr ...

, playing on the men's soccer team in 1992. On April 3, 1993, Laterza signed with the

Los Angeles Salsa The Los Angeles Salsa was an American soccer team based in Los Angeles that played in the American Professional Soccer League (APSL) and the USISL Pro League. The club played on the campus of California State University, Fullerton at Titan St ...

of the

American Professional Soccer League The American Professional Soccer League (APSL) was a professional men's soccer league with teams from the United States and later Canada. It was formed in 1990 by the merger of the third American Soccer League with the Western Soccer League. It ...

. In 1997, Laterza began the season with the

Orange County Zodiac Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower * Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum ...

. In July 1997, the

Los Angeles Galaxy LA Galaxy, also known as the Los Angeles Galaxy, are an American professional soccer club based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Galaxy competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), as a member of the Western Conference. The club began pla ...

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Cana ...

signed Laterza. He played four games for the Galaxy in 1997, plus one game 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. T ...

. The Galaxy released him on April 1, 1998, during a pre-season roster reduction. On April 10, 1998, Laterza signed with the

Seattle Sounders Seattle Sounders Football Club is an American professional men's soccer club based in Seattle. The Sounders compete as a member of the Western Conference of Major League Soccer (MLS). The club was established on November 13, 2007, and began ...

of 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, p ...

. He played two games, then was released on April 22. He then played for several clubs, including

South China AA South China Athletic Association (known simply as South China, SCAA, ) is a Hong Kong professional football club that competes in the Hong Kong First Division, the second-tier league in Hong Kong football league system. The club is histori ...

, and various teams in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...

, China and Paraguay. While in Hong Kong, he was selected to play for

Hong Kong League XI The Hong Kong League XI, also known as the Hong Kong XI or Hong Kong League Selection, is a football team which represents the Hong Kong First Division League in exhibition matches, mainly the Lunar New Year Cup. The team is selected from th ...

, featuring in one of the matches against

Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

References

External links

*
Legends FC: Jerry Laterzo

Newport Mesa Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Laterza, Jerry 1974 births Living people American soccer players American expatriate soccer players American expatriate sportspeople in Hong Kong American expatriate sportspeople in China American expatriate sportspeople in Paraguay American Professional Soccer League players North Carolina Fusion U23 players Hong Kong First Division League players Kitchee SC players LA Galaxy players Los Angeles Salsa players Major League Soccer players Orange County Blue Star players Seattle Sounders (1994–2008) players SMU Mustangs men's soccer players South China AA players Expatriate footballers in Hong Kong Expatriate footballers in China Expatriate footballers in Mexico Expatriate footballers in Paraguay American people of Paraguayan descent American sportspeople of Paraguayan descent Sportspeople of Paraguayan descent C.D. Veracruz footballers Cerro Porteño players A-League (1995–2004) players Soccer players from Los Angeles Men's association football midfielders Hong Kong League XI representative players