Michael Behonick (born January 3, 1981, in

Bohemia, New York Bohemia is a hamlet (and census-designated place) in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 10,180 at the 2010 census. It is situated along the South Shore of Long Island in the Town of Islip, approximately 50 miles from ...

) is an American retired soccer player who last played for the

Puerto Rico Islanders Puerto, a Spanish word meaning ''seaport'', may refer to: Places *El Puerto de Santa María, Andalusia, Spain *Puerto, a seaport town in Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines *Puerto Colombia, Colombia *Puerto Cumarebo, Venezuela *Puerto Galera, Orient ...

of the

USL First Division The USL First Division (usually referred to as USL-1) was a professional men's soccer league in the United States and Canada from 2005 to 2010. During its existence, it formed the second tier of soccer in the United States soccer league system ...

. Behonick is now an assistant coach at for the

Pittsburgh Panthers The Pittsburgh Panthers, commonly also referred to as the Pitt Panthers, are the athletic teams representing the University of Pittsburgh, although the term is colloquially used to refer to other aspects of the university such as alumni, facu ...

men's soccer team.

Career

College

Behonick played

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 American University from 1999 to 2002, where he helped the Eagles reach the NCAA Tournament as a junior and earned second-team all- Patriot League honors the same season.

Professional

Behonick was selected 51st overall in the

2003 MLS SuperDraft The 2003 MLS Superdraft was held January 17, 2003 in Kansas City, Missouri. It was the fifth annual SuperDraft held by Major League Soccer. Player selection Any player whose name is marked with an * was contracted under the Project-40 Generat ...

D.C. United D.C. United is a professional soccer club based in Washington, D.C. that competes in the Eastern Conference of Major League Soccer, the top tier of American soccer. Domestically, the club has won four MLS Cups (league championships), four Supp ...

but did not remain with the club. Instead, he began his professional career with the

Charleston Battery The Charleston Battery are an American professional soccer club based in Charleston, South Carolina, and member of the USL Championship. Founded in 1993, the Battery are one of the oldest continuously operating professional soccer clubs in th ...

of the A-League but did not see significant playing time until starting 10 matches in the 2005 season. In 2004, the Battery sent him on loan to the

Harrisburg City Islanders Penn FC (formerly the Harrisburg City Islanders) was an American professional soccer team based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 2003, the team most recently played in the USL Pro, the second tier of the United States soccer ...

where he played seven games. In 2006, he was signed by

New York Red Bulls The New York Red Bulls are an American professional soccer club based in the New York metropolitan area. The Red Bulls compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The club was established in October 1994 and be ...

as the team's third-choice goalkeeper behind

Tony Meola Antonio Michael "Tony" Meola (; ; born February 21, 1969) is an American former professional soccer player who played as a goalkeeper. He represented the United States national team at the 1990, 1994, and 2002 World Cups. From 1996 to 2006, he ...

and

Jon Conway Jon Conway (born May 6, 1977) is an American retired soccer goalkeeper and current goalkeeping coach for Toronto FC. Youth and college Born in Media, Pennsylvania, as a youth, Conway played club soccer for the Lower Merion Gorillas, leading t ...

. The Red Bulls sent him on loan to the

Long Island Rough Riders The Long Island Rough Riders are an American association football, soccer team based in South Huntington, New York, United States. Founded in 1994, the team plays in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid. The team plays i ...

before releasing him at the end of the season. In 2007, he joined

Crystal Palace Baltimore Crystal Palace Baltimore was an American professional soccer team based in Baltimore, Maryland, US. Founded in 2006, the club was originally named Crystal Palace USA and was affiliated with English side Crystal Palace. The club was a member of t ...

after passing their trial in early 2007. He began the season as first choice goalkeeper, but after some heavy defeats found himself dropped in favor of

Brian Rowland Brian Rowland (born December 30, 1980) is a Canadians, Canadian retired soccer player who was a goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper in both the indoor and outdoor versions of the sport. He is currently the head coach for the Temple Owls ...

. Half way through the season he was signed by the Islanders to serve as second string goalie behind

Josh Saunders Josh Saunders (born March 2, 1981) is an American former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He last played for Orlando City in Major League Soccer. Career College Saunders, the younger brother of Shawn Saunders, spent the f ...

. In January 2008 he suffered an injury to his leg when in camp with the Puerto Rico national team, sidelining him for five months and ruining his chance of becoming first

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...

for the

after

left. In July 2008 he rejoined the

as backup to

Bill Gaudette William Gaudette (born September 14, 1981 in Hummelstown, Pennsylvania) is a retired American-born Puerto Rican footballer who played for several MLS teams and the Puerto Rican national team. Gaudette commenced his soccer career at Lower Dau ...

Honors

Club

Puerto Rico Islanders

* USL First Division Championship ** Runners-up (1):

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

* Commissioner's Cup ** Winners (1):

* CFU Club Championship ** Runner-up (1): 2009

References

External links

Charleston Battery bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Behonick, Michael 1981 births Living people American Eagles men's soccer players American men's soccer players Men's association football goalkeepers American University alumni USL First Division players USL Second Division players Charleston Battery players Crystal Palace Baltimore players Puerto Rico Islanders players Long Island Rough Riders players Penn FC players Expatriate men's footballers in Puerto Rico A-League (1995–2004) players Soccer players from New York (state) D.C. United draft picks