Sonny Dalesandro
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Vincent James Dalesandro IV | ||
| Date of birth | October 24, 1977 | ||
| Place of birth | Hayward, Wisconsin, United States | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||
| Playing position | Goalkeeper | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1995–1996 | Tulsa Roughnecks (1993-2000) (indoor) | 17 | |
| 1996–1998 | Milwaukee Wave (indoor) | 3 | |
| 1999 | Tulsa Roughnecks (1993-2000) | 15 | (3) |
| 1999–2001 | Wichita Wings (indoor) | 24 | |
| 2008 | Tulsa Revolution (indoor) | 3 | |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. |
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Vincent "Sonny" Dalesandro (born October 24, 1977 in Hayward, Wisconsin) is a retired professional soccer player and current restaurateur. He resides in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He is also co-owner of the Tulsa Athletics of the National Premier Soccer League.
Dalesandro dropped out of Cascia Hall Preparatory School following his junior year to pursue a career as a professional soccer player. He had been named to the All-Conference team in all three years at Cascia. At 17 he joined the USISL's Tulsa Roughnecks. He had an excellent debut season and was named 1995 USISL "Rookie of the Year".
In the fall of 1996, present day Tulsa Athletics coach Joey Ryan secured Daleasndro a tryout with the Milwaukee Wave. Sonny impressed enough to be taken on as the club's 3rd choice goalkeeper, later becoming the back-up to indoor soccer legend Victor Nogueira. He regards his tutelage under Nogueira as the most valuable instruction he received in his time as a professional. Dalesandro saw limited time in Milwaukee and was released during training camp the following season due to a broken thumb and the acquisition of former Canadian Olympic team goalkeeper Carmine Isacco.
Dalesandro returned to Tulsa and to playing for the Roughnecks in 1999. During the '99 season he was asked to play forward on 5 occasions where the team traveled a light roster. Scoring on three separate occasions against the Houston Hurricanes has earned him the peculiar title of top scoring American on the list of goalscoring goalkeepers.
Following the 1999 Outdoor season, friend and former coach Victor Moreland sent Dalesandro to his former club the Wichita Wings for a trial. Dalesandro impressed during the preseason tournament in Cleveland and was subsequently signed to a two-year contract. He was victorious and named "man of the match" in his first NPSL start against the Kansas City Attack at Kemper Arena October 23, 1999. A respectable 8-8 record subsequently placed Dalesandro 11th in the NPSL "Rookie of the year" voting. The following season Dalesandro was one of 6 players the Wings protected in the expansion draft. However, when the Edmonton Drillers folded in the beginning of the 2000-2001 season, the acquisition of 3-time All-Star goalkeeper Jim Larkin in the dispersal draft ultimately led to Dalesandro's release. During his time in Wichita, Dalesandro became an ordained minister through Universal Life Church (though he is an atheist) and would bless players shoes with water in the shape of a plus sign said to represent "positive energy".
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