When it was announced Friday afternoon that UCSB men’s soccer star senior Memo Arzate was drafted by the L.A. Galaxy with the 22nd overall pick, Arzate received a text message from teammate senior Dave McGill congratulating Arzate on his selection.

In response, Arzate reassured McGill that his time was soon to come.

“When I got drafted, I told him you’re next, but I had a feeling we were going to end up on the same team,” Arzate said. “When I went to the combine, there were some players that shouldn’t have been there. It was supposed to be the best collegiate players in the nation and I was like, ‘Gilla you could have been there.'”

Indeed, McGill’s name was called just one round later by the same team that drafted Arzate in the third round. There was a bit of uncertainty surrounding McGill’s prospects for the draft considering McGill was an alternate at the MLS combine.

“David was an alternate for the combine so there was no way of knowing if he could get drafted, except that at the combine two teams who had seen our game at St. John’s were inquiring about his situation,” UCSB Head Coach Tim Vom Steeg said. “The Galaxy, who knew that Memo and David played so well together, did not want to lose him to another team. Had the Galaxy not drafted David, he would have been picked by Chicago or New England.”

Arzate and McGill enjoyed two of the most prolific seasons any two UCSB teammates have ever shared. UCSB went 34-8-2 with Arzate and McGill in the midfield, including two postseason victories in the NCAA Tournament. Arzate led the nation in assists with 0.82 per game while McGill was the steam in the engine for the Gauchos, a leader in the truest sense of the word.

However, their past accolades will soon mean nothing. The two teammates will begin brushing shoulders with some of the top players in the world, and there is no guarantee either will earn a contract.

“Both players were extremely excited about the selection, but they will need to still make the roster in order to get a full contract. We are very optimistic, especially given the needs of the Galaxy team, and the fact that the Galaxy coaching staff has seen both of these players on numerous occasions hints that they will make the roster,” Vom Steeg said.