The Major League Soccer SuperDraft has become somewhat of an annual celebration for Georgetown’s standout players. Last Friday, senior forward Ricky Schramm was chosen in the draft’s third round, and 37th overall in the four round, 52-pick draft., by D.C. United – the third straight year that a Hoya has been selected in the draft.

“This means a lot to me,” Schramm said. “It’s something that used to be a real abstract goal when I was younger, almost wishful thinking on my part. It became more and more realistic over the last four years, and now it’s just a dream come true.”

Schramm was the fourth player selected by D.C. United in this year’s draft and the seventh player chosen from the Big East Conference. He is the sixth Georgetown player selected in the MLS draft, following Phil Wellington (COL ’96), Brandon Lieb (COL ’97), Eric Kvello (MSB ’99), Dan Gargan and Jeff Curtin (COL’06).

Schramm has led the Hoyas in scoring for the past four years and finished his Georgetown career tied for third on the school’s all-time list with 39 total goals.

“Ricky has a nose for the goal unlike I’ve ever seen,” Georgetown Head Coach Brian Wiese said after the Hoyas’ 1-0 victory over Marquette in the 2006 season finale.

In 2004, Schramm earned all-Big East first team honors and was named Big East offensive player of the year, leading the conference with 13 goals and 32 points. In 2005, Schramm scored seven goals to earn third team, all-Big East honors. He was named second team, all-Big East in 2006 after ranking third in the league with 10 goals and finishing fourth in the conference with 24 points.

Schramm said his third-round selection came as a surprise because he was not one of the 62 prospects invited to the 2007 MLS Player Combine, held a week before the draft in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.

Schramm said that he will start preseason workouts with D.C. United on Jan. 29. He will travel with the team for much of February before returning to the Washington, D.C. area to train with the squad in March. Opening day for D.C. United is April 2.

Schramm compared his entrance in the major leagues to his arrival at Georgetown.

“I came to Georgetown after not being heavily recruited,” Schramm said. “I felt like the coaches were taking a chance on me. But I was confident in my ability. I got them to see what I see in myself, and I want to do the same thing now. I have to play well for about a month and show them that I want it.”

Schramm hopes to graduate on time this spring by taking two four-credit tutorials, which will allow him to submit assignments online when he is out of town. He said that a contract and his playing time will not be discussed until after the preseason.

“I haven’t really gotten any information from them and I don’t expect to for a while,” Schramm said.

Schramm said that the success of former Georgetown players in the MLS SuperDraft over the last three years is a reflection of the strength of the Hoya program.

“Georgetown continues to bring in good players and develop players,” Schramm said.