FC Tucson News Release -- www.fctucson.com
Thursday, November 8, 2012
TUCSON, Ariz. — Former FC Tucson midfielder Aaron Long and FC Tucson defender Matt Linenberger were named to the All-Big West Conference First Team on Monday, November 5. The duo becomes the second and third former FC Tucson players to earn All-Conference honors at the end of the season. Cal State San Bernardino forward Ricardo Velasco was the first.
“It means a lot to me,” Long said. “I’ve been striving for it since I was a freshman. It just shows hard work and a good offseason can really help you in the long run. I want to thank everybody at FC Tucson for my offseason and to help me get better and work toward my goal.”
Added Linenburger: “The professional atmosphere at FC Tucson was something that really pushed me to improve. My fitness increased and the physicality of the game made me tougher. It was a great experience.”
Linenberger appeared in eight matches for FC Tucson and played a total of 443 minutes. At Sacramento State, Linenberger appeared in 16 matches (started 15), played 1,367 minutes and scored a goal.
Long appeared in 11 matches for FC Tucson for a total of 664 minutes and recorded three assists and a goal. At UC Riverside, Long appeared in 16 matches (started 15) and led his team in goals scored (6) and total points (13).
"Matt and Aaron were tremendous for us all summer and it's no surprise to see them named to the All-Big West First Team," said FC Tucson head coach Rick Schantz. "Matt was a part of a back line that was one of the stingiest in the PDL in 2012. And Aaron was an excellent distributor for us in the midfield who created a lot of problems for opposing defenses. I couldn’t be more proud of them."