Voting for the 2014 MLS Save of the Year kicked off on Tuesday. Sporting Kansas City has four nominees on the ballot, two from homegrown goalkeeper Jon Kempin and one apiece from Andy Gruenebaum and Eric Kronberg.
Unlike MLS Goal of the Year, the Save of the Year field has only 32 saves. Those saves are divided into eight groups of four saves. The top two vote-getters from each group advance to the Second Round.
Sporting KC's first nominee is Andy Gruenebaum, whose 21st-minute save against the Chicago Fire on October 10 was placed in Group B along with saves from Raul Fernandez, Julio Cesar and Steve Clark.
The Overland Park native was active that night, making six saves including four in a 12-minute span in the first half and his save from Watson was one of his best. Despite his momentum carrying him in the opposite direction, Gruenebaum reacted quickly to block Watson's volley destined for the lower right-hand corner of the net. The save was an important one for Sporting KC as it propelled the club to a 2-0 playoff-clinching victory in front of a sold-out crowd at Sporting Park.
Voting for Groups A-B is open until 1:59 a.m. CT, October 30, 2014. The winner of the tournament will be announced on Wednesday, December 3.
