NEW YORK (Thursday, November 11, 1999) - With two games remaining to determine the participants in MLS Cup '99 at Foxboro Stadium on November 21, Major League Soccer unveiled the final three candidates for the last two of the league's year-end awards.

Dallas Burn forward Jason Kreis, the 1999 Budweiser Scoring Champion, joins D.C. United icons Marco Etcheverry and Jaime Moreno as finalists for the 1999 Honda Most Valuable Player Award. United defender Jeff Agoos is one of three players considered for the 1999 BIC Defender of the Year Award, along with Los Angeles captain Robin Fraser and Chicago Fire stalwart Lubos Kubik.

The Dallas Burn visit the Rose Bowl tonight to face the Los Angeles Galaxy (10:30 p.m. ET, Fox Sports West 2/Southwest) to determine the Western Conference representative at MLS Cup '99, while three-time Eastern Conference champion D.C. United hosts the Columbus Crew at RFK Stadium on Saturday in Game Three of their East Final (4:00 p.m. ET, ESPN2).

Winners for all 12 MLS awards will be announced November 15-21. The name, position and team of the three finalists for the Honda Most Valuable Player and BIC Defender of the Year candidates follow:

Awarded to the player judged by the media, coaches and general managers to be the most valuable to his team during the regular season, the Honda Most Valuable Player award winner will be a player whose presence made the biggest impact on his team's overall play during the regular season. The three finalists include 1998 Honda honoree, midfielder Marco Etcheverry, the man known as "El Diablo" and MLS' top all-time playmaker with 66 assists, who led D.C. United to the league's top record (23-9) for the second time in four seasons.

Dallas Burn forward Jason Kreis is also in the running, as the fourth-year MLS veteran became the first player in league annals to record a 15-15 season. Kreis' 18 goals and 15 assists (51 points) enabled him to capture the league's Budweiser Scoring Championship, accounted for 61% of his team's total goals (54), and became just the fourth player in MLS history to cross the 50-point plateau.

Etcheverry's United teammate and Bolivian countryman, forward Jaime Moreno, scored 10 goals and added 13 assists to finish as the league's seventh-leading scorer. Moreno even filled in as United's playmaker in games Etcheverry missed due to injury, suspension or national team duty, and demonstrated that he is arguably the league's fastest player with the ball at his feet.

HONDA MOST VALUABLE PLAYER NOMINEES
	Marco Etcheverry--D.C. United 1998 Honda MVP notched four goals and 17 assists in 22 games
	Jason Kreis--Dallas Burn First 15-15 player in MLS history (18 goals, 15 assists)
	Jaime Moreno--D.C. United 10 goals, 13 assists in 25 games; filled in for Etcheverry occasionally

The BIC Defender of the Year will be awarded to the player judged by MLS coaching staffs and general managers to be the best defender during the regular season. Since Major League Soccer has a separate award for goalkeepers, only field players are eligible for the BIC Defender of the Year. D.C. United defender Jeff Agoos served as his team's "Iron Man" in the back, appearing in 30 league games while defensive teammates Eddie Pope and Carlos Llamosa battled injuries throughout the season. Agoos, a four-time MLS All-Star and 1997 AT&T Best 11 member, scored two goals and two assists in 1999.

Los Angeles Galaxy captain Robin Fraser was also selected as one of the BIC finalists. Fraser teamed with goalkeeper Kevin Hartman and defensive midfielder Danny Pena to follow the Galaxy's 1998 record-setting offensive performance by helping Los Angeles set new league standards on the defensive side of the ball, as the team became the first-ever to allow fewer than one goal per game (29 goals in 32 games, a 0.91 goals against average).

A veteran of 10 years of professional American soccer, Fraser (and Agoos) are joined among 1999 BIC candidates by the Chicago Fire's Lubos Kubik, the 1998 BIC Defender of the Year. Kubik's sophomore campaign with the Fire saw him score five goals and add eight assists in 27 games to lead the league's defenders in scoring. His imposing presence on the back line and intelligence in organizing the Chicago defense helped the defending league champion to the third-stingiest defense in MLS (1.13 goals allowed per game).

BIC DEFENDER OF THE YEAR NOMINEES
	Jeff Agoos--D.C. United All-time MLS leader in playoff games (21), minutes (1754)
	Robin Fraser--Los Angeles Galaxy Captained first MLS defense to allow less than goal per game (0.91)
	Lubos Kubik--Chicago Fire Five goals and eight assists led MLS defenders in scoring

Ten of the 12 total postseason awards (including the AT&T Best 11, the equivalent of an "All-League" team) honor individual players, while Major League Soccer's top head coach and referee will also be recognized. The Budweiser Scoring Title, won by Dallas' Jason Kreis, was decided during the regular season.

Along with the 10 awards that recognize regular-season efforts, Preki (Kansas City Wizards) was named the MasterCard Most Valuable Player of the 1999 MLS All-Star Game on July 17, while the MLS Cup '99 Most Valuable Player will be decided by a panel of media immediately following the November 21 championship game.