POMONA, Calif. – Collecting All-American honors in each of the past four years, Luis Gonzalez certainly made the most of his collegiate career.

Now that Gonzalez has signed with the Los Angeles Blues for the 2012 season in the United Soccer Leagues (USL) Pro Division, a new chapter in his soccer career is set to begin.

Born and raised in Long Beach, Calif., the explosive forward brings an impressive track record of goal-scoring at the college level as well as in the Premier Development League.

“Luis has been on our radar for a while, but we had to wait for him to finish college,” Blues' head coach Charlie Naimo said. “I don't think I've seen a better finisher than Luis, and that's the kind of guy we were missing in 2011. If we can give him the chances that we created last year, I'm confident his strike rate will be great and that he can help us increase our goal-scoring output significantly.”

Playing for Cerritos College in 2008 and 2009, Gonzalez was an NSCAA All-American both years. After captaining the team and receiving selection as the Junior College National Player of the Year in 2009, he finished his Cerritos career with 52 goals and 36 assists before subsequently moving on to Cal Poly Pomona, where he played in 2010 and 2011.

Gonzalez was a two-time NCAA Division II All-American while with the Broncos and made the All-CCAA First Team both seasons. In 2011, he took home the CCAA Most Valuable Offensive Player of the Year award. Gonzalez totaled 26 goals and 14 assists during his time with the Broncos. In addition, he had five goals and four assists for Premier Development League outfit Thunder Bay Chill in 2010 and 2011, helping the Canadian side to the Heartland and Central Conference title last season.

After signing with the Blues, Gonzalez is eager to step into competition once again.

“I've been in touch with the Blues for a while and followed them throughout 2011,” he said. “The coaches are great, and so are the players who are in camp right now. A lot of them are from the area like me, so I know them pretty well. I really like the style of play too. Knocking the ball around on the ground and not hitting many long balls definitely suits my game. I was excited when I was offered the contract, especially since it's my first opportunity in the pros. I'm ready to work hard and give everything for the club.”

Gonzalez added: “As soon as we have most of the guys for 2012 signed, we have to try and get to know each other even better and develop the chemistry on the field that we'll need to be a winning team. Individually, I like to set the bar high for myself. Being a striker, I eventually want to be scoring in the double-digits over the course of a season, even though I realize it might be tough as a rookie.”

Other former Broncos featured in professional soccer news are Jonathan Bornstein competing for the Tigres UANL of the Mexican First Division and Justin Valashinas signing with the L.A. Blues in February 2011.

Information in this release courtesy of Gunnar Berndt, L.A. Blues Communications