Former Maryland men’s soccer defender Alex Crognale has signed with Columbus Crew SC as a Homegrown Player, the club announced via Twitter on Tuesday.
The 6-foot-5, 201-pound center back was an NSCAA first-team All-American this season after scoring six goals and anchoring the backline of a squad that entered the NCAA tournament undefeated and the No. 1-overall seed. Coach Sasho Cirovski said the three-year starter developed into the best right center back in the country.
Crognale won a conference tournament championship in each of his four years in College Park. He also played crucial minutes off the bench in 2013 when Maryland lost to Notre Dame in the national championship.
A Gahanna, Ohio, native, Crognale played with the Crew SC Academy from 2010 to 2013. With the Crew SC Academy Under-19 team, Crognale won the Ohio South State Cup in consecutive years.
Crognale will join former Terps goalkeeper Zack Steffen, who played two seasons with Crognale at Maryland, on the Crew SC roster.
