COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Columbus Crew announced today that it has signed defender Andrew Peterson to a developmental contract. Per club and league policy, no further terms of the deal were disclosed. The Crew, riding a three-game winning streak, is in Denver to take on the Colorado Rapids tonight at Dick's Sporting Goods Park. The game, which kicks off at 9:30 p.m., will be televised live on ONN.
Peterson, who appeared in the Crew's Reserve Division match at Chicago on June 4 as a guest player, comes to Columbus from the Cleveland City Stars of the USL Second Division, where he opened his first professional season. He is a recent graduate of Creighton University, where he was a four-year starter and teammate of current Crew defender Ryan Junge. In order to make room for Peterson, the Crew waived rookie forward Aaron Chandler, who had yet to appear in a league match.
Peterson, a left-footed defender who started 74 of the 85 matches in which he appeared at Creighton, was named a second-team all-Missouri Valley Conference selection as a senior in 2006. As a junior, he was named second-team NSCAA All-Midwest Region and was named to the MVC all-tournament team in helping the Bluejays to the tournament title. Creighton twice ranked in the NCAA top 25 in defense in his time at Creighton, including 19th in the country with a 0.77 goals against average in 2003. The CU defense posted 33 shutouts during his four years, including 10 in 2005.
Founded by American sports pioneer Lamar Hunt, the Columbus Crew is Ohio's Major League Soccer club, anchoring a diverse sports and entertainment enterprise. One of the league's Charter Members and the U.S. Open Cup champion in 2002, it recently opened its 12th season overall and ninth in first-of-its-kind Columbus Crew Stadium.
