It’s been quite a year for Kelyn Rowe.
The midfielder is the newest member of the 2012 Generation adidas class after two outstanding seasons at UCLA. This past season, Rowe was named the Pac-12 Player of the Year this year and led the Bruins to the national semifinals.
MLSsoccer.com caught up with native of Federal Way, Wash., native to talk turning pro and the Seattle Sounders.
MLSsoccer.com: What are your thoughts on signing a Generation adidas contract?
Rowe: I’m happy. It’s every kid’s dream to be a professional soccer player, and I’m definitely in that boat. It’s a dream come true, so it’s a little surreal right now, hasn’t quite hit me. I think it will once preseason starts.
MLSsoccer.com: How would you describe yourself as a player?
Rowe: I’m primarily an attacking player, I love to get the ball and run at the back four. I have good vision, decent pace, and my ability to play the dangerous ball is something I think coaches like about me and I bring to the field.
MLSsoccer.com: How have you grown as a player at UCLA over the past two years?
Rowe: Going from a youth club at Crossfire [Washington], we had a good team, but the next level there’s always that better factor, and in college it was speed of play, physicality, awareness on the ball, and someone’s always closing you down. Now I’m going to have to do that again, take the next step. So college helped prepare me as a stepping-stone for the next level.
MLSsoccer.com: What are your thoughts on coping to a higher level of play?
Rowe: Luckily for us at UCLA, we had a chance to play against the Galaxy and Chivas USA. We had a chance to train with them. And so we got a little taste what it’s like to play at the next level. But it’s going to be hard, it’s never easy, the pace of the game is that much faster, the physicality is there, you’re playing against guys who have been playing for years at that level.
MLSsoccer.com: As a native of the Seattle area, what has it been like watching the Sounders take off in the region?
Rowe: It’s been great. The fan base is unreal. You walk through Seattle and half the people you see are in Sounders gear, it’s just an amazing movement. I’ve been able to catch a couple of games and the atmosphere, the crowds, are unlike anything I’ve been to, and I’ve been to games in Argentina and Germany.
