Arturo Ordoñez selected by Houston Dynamo in MLS draft

Former Pitt defender Arturo Ordoñez was selected by the Houston Dynamo in the 2022 MLS draft on Tuesday. Ordoñez was selected in the second round with the 39th overall pick, and he was the first Pitt alum off the board.

Ordoñez came to Pitt in 2019 and played for the Panthers for three seasons. During his time at Pitt, the 6’2”, 174-pound defender out of Salou, Spain, started in all 57 games he participated in. And in addition to his defensive contributions, Ordoñez came up with six goals and four assists in his three years on campus. Three of those goals came in the 2020-21 season, and all three were game-winners.

The Spaniard made multiple All-ACC teams in each of his three seasons on campus. In 2019, Ordoñez made the All-ACC freshman team, the tournament team and the academic team. In 2020, he made the All-ACC third team and the academic team. And in 2021, he made the All-ACC second team and the tournament team. He also made the Top Drawer Soccer Top 100 in 2021, coming in at No. 69 in the nation.

In Houston, Ordoñez will join a team that has finished last in the Western Conference of MLS in each of the last two years. During that span, the team has won just 10 games, lost 26 and tied 21, while giving up 94 goals. Given the poor results the Dynamo have achieved in recent years, there could be opportunities for Ordoñez to see the field early in his career.

With his selection on Tuesday, Ordoñez became the fourth Pitt alum to be chosen in the MLS draft. The first was Pol Planellas, who went to Los Angeles FC in 2018. The second was Javi Perez, who went to Los Angeles FC in 2019. And the third was Edward Kizza, who went to the New England Revolution in 2021. All of Pitt’s MLS draft selections have come during the tenure of Pitt coach Jay Vidovich.