Stephenson, Former Williams Men's Soccer Standout, Signs with San Jose Earthquakes
Courtesy Williams Sports Information
SAN JOSE, Calif. – Former Williams College star Khari Stephenson has signed a three-year deal with the San Jose Earthquakes in the MLS and will not be returning to Norway to rejoin Aalesunds FK, which plays in the top Norwegian league.
In 2009 Stephenson was a member of the Aalesunds team that won the Norwegian Cup and qualified for play in the Europa Cup.
Last spring the Earthquakes worked out a loan arrangement with Aalesunds that permitted Stephenson to complete the 2010 MLS season with the provision that he return to Aalesunds. The arrangement did offer a provision that allowed the Quakes the opportunity to work out a deal with Aalesunds if they wished to pursue the rights to Stephenson
Stephenson was brought in to solidify the Quakes midfield and they did not waste any time inserting Stephenson into the starting lineup upon arrival in an attempt to find out if he would be the answer in their midfield. Stephenson appeared in 11 games, all starts for the Quakes. Playing 776 minutes, Stephenson scored one goal and assisted on a game-winner.
When Stephenson picked up an injury his playing time with the Quakes diminished and the team turned to Designated Player Geovanni, a Brazilian.
The Quakes obviously liked what they saw in Stephenson as they quickly began maneuvering to obtain his rights from Aalesunds and ridding themselves of Geovanni at season's end.
San Jose marks the third team in MLS that Stephenson has signed with as he was drafted 27th in the 2004 MLS Draft by the Chicago Fire and then traded to the Kansas City Wizards. He played in the 2005 MLS Cup with Kansas City. He scored a goal in the playoffs on the Wizards' run to the MLS Cup Final. He appeared in nine regular season matches for the Wizards.
In addition to playing professionally in Europe and the U.S., Stephenson has made 31 appearances on the international scene for his native Jamaica.
Eph head coach Mike Russo has stated before that "Khari is the most talented player ever at Williams and with his size, speed, skill, and experience is a definite asset in the midfield."
At Williams Stephenson twice earned All-America honors and is the second Eph to be drafted by an MLS team, joining former teammate Alex Blake '03 who was drafted by the Colorado Rapids.
Dan Calichman '90 also played in the MLS for three teams: LA Galaxy, New England Revolution, and the San Jose Earthquakes, while making two appearances for the U.S. National Team. Calichman was not drafted by the MLS, but received an even higher designation as an allocated player in the first year of the MLS. He was assigned to the LA Galaxy, which he later captained. Today Calichman is the head coach at Claremont McKenna College (Calif.).
