Kevin Guppy (born January 29, 1987 in
Chino Hills, California
Chino Hills (''Chino'', Spanish for "Curly") is a city located in the southwestern corner of San Bernardino County, California, United States. The city borders Los Angeles County on its northwest side, Orange County to its south and southwest ...
) is a former
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, pe ...
professional
soccer player.
Career
Youth and amateur
Guppy was a two-sport athlete at
Chino Hills High School
Chino Hills High School, abbreviated CHHS, is located in Chino Hills, California, United States and is a public comprehensive high school serving a student body from three cities in the Chino Valley Unified School District. The school was establ ...
, where he played four years of soccer under head coach Kyle Shuler, earning All-Sierra League accolades his last two years and being named team MVP in his freshman and sophomore campaigns. His second sport was football.
He went on to play four years of
college soccer
College soccer is played by teams composed of soccer players who are enrolled in colleges and universities. It is very prominent in United States, Japan, South Korea, Canada, and as well as in South Africa and the Philippines. The United K ...
at
California State University, Northridge as a goalkeeper, where he received All-Big West Honors four straight years, after being named to the First Team in 2005 in 2008, the Honorable Mention list in 2006, and the Second Team in 2007. In addition, he earned third-team College Soccer News All-Freshman, first-team All-Big West Conference and Goalkeeper of the Year honors in his first season at Northridge.
During his college years Guppy also spent three seasons with the
San Fernando Valley Quakes
San Fernando Valley Quakes was an American soccer team based in Calabasas, California, United States. Founded in 2006, the team played in the USL Premier Development League (PDL), the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, until 2008, whe ...
of the
USL Premier Development League
USL League Two (USL2), formerly the Premier Development League (PDL), is a semi-professional developmental soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States and Canada, forming part of the United States soccer league syst ...
, helping them reach the PDL playoffs in 2007 and 2008, and making 43 career appearances overall.
Professional
Undrafted out of college, Guppy signed with the
Major League Soccer as the
league pool goalkeeper in 2009, providing cover for any MLS team whose goalkeepers are injured. Despite training in the most part with
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 ...
, Guppy was called up to provide cover at
Chivas USA
Chivas USA (pronounced ''CHEE-vahs'') was an American professional soccer team based in the Los Angeles suburb of Carson, California. The club played from 2005 to 2014 in Major League Soccer (MLS) and was a subsidiary of Mexican club C.D. G ...
,
Toronto FC
Toronto Football Club (commonly known as Toronto FC or TFC) is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matches at BM ...
and
Seattle Sounders FC, but never saw any minutes in his debut professional year.
Guppy spent most of 2010 on call for
Chivas USA
Chivas USA (pronounced ''CHEE-vahs'') was an American professional soccer team based in the Los Angeles suburb of Carson, California. The club played from 2005 to 2014 in Major League Soccer (MLS) and was a subsidiary of Mexican club C.D. G ...
; he was on the Chivas USA bench on numerous occasions during the season due to injuries to
Dan Kennedy and
Zach Thornton
Zach Thornton (born October 10, 1973) is an American former goalkeeper who spent 16 seasons in Major League Soccer with the New York/New Jersey MetroStars (1996–97), Chicago Fire (1998–2006), Colorado Rapids (2007), New York Red Bulls (2008 ...
, before making his first team debut on September 14, 2010 in an international friendly against
Chivas Guadalajara
Club Deportivo Guadalajara (); often simply known as Guadalajara () and their nickname ''Chivas'' (), is a Mexican professional football club based in Zapopan, Jalisco. Guadalajara is one of the ten founding members of the Mexican First Divisi ...
, even saving a spot kick during his team's 4–2 victory on penalties. He was formally added to the regular Chivas gameday roster in October 2010 due to Dan Kennedy's season-ending injury, and made his MLS debut on October 20, 2010 starting in goal against the
San Jose Earthquakes.
Guppy was not retained by
Chivas USA
Chivas USA (pronounced ''CHEE-vahs'') was an American professional soccer team based in the Los Angeles suburb of Carson, California. The club played from 2005 to 2014 in Major League Soccer (MLS) and was a subsidiary of Mexican club C.D. G ...
at the end of the 2010 season, and re-signed with the MLS Goalkeeper Pool in 2011. He was called up by the
Portland Timbers in March 2011 for their
US Open Cup
The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, commonly known as the U.S. Open Cup (USOC), is a knockout cup competition in men's soccer in the United States of America. It is the oldest ongoing national soccer competition in that country.
The 2023 U.S. Op ...
game – ironically against
Chivas USA
Chivas USA (pronounced ''CHEE-vahs'') was an American professional soccer team based in the Los Angeles suburb of Carson, California. The club played from 2005 to 2014 in Major League Soccer (MLS) and was a subsidiary of Mexican club C.D. G ...
– as cover for the injured
Troy Perkins
Troy Perkins (born July 29, 1981) is an American former soccer player. During his career, he played for clubs in the United States, Canada, and Norway. The 2006 Major League Soccer Goalkeeper of the Year award winner earned seven caps with th ...
and
Adin Brown, but did not feature in the game,
and has been training with
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 ...
for the majority of the rest of the 2011 season.
Post-soccer career
Guppy retired from professional soccer following the conclusion of the 2012 season. He currently works as an
emergency medical technician
An emergency medical technician (EMT), also known as an ambulance technician, is a health professional that provides emergency medical services. EMTs are most commonly found working in ambulances. In English-speaking countries, paramedics a ...
, and resides in
Fullerton, California, with his wife Brittany Van Voorhis.
References
External links
MLS player profile Cal State Northridge interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Guppy, Kevin
1985 births
Living people
American men's soccer players
Cal State Northridge Matadors men's soccer players
Chivas USA players
San Fernando Valley Quakes players
California State University, Northridge alumni
USL League Two players
Major League Soccer players
Men's association football goalkeepers
Chino Hills High School alumni
Soccer players from San Bernardino County, California