RIVERSIDE, Calif. – Today, former Highlanders' defender, Aleksandar Vukovic was selected by Real Salt Lake with the 89^th pick (3^rd round) in the MLS SuperDraft 2025. A native of Nova Pazova, Serbia, Vukovic attended Zemunska Gimnazija.

Prior to joining the Highlanders he played at LSU-Eunice where he started in 17 of 18 matches for the Bengals. He then moved on to UC Riverside where he played two seasons.

"I am absolutely thrilled for Vuko!" said UC Riverside's head coach Tim Cupello. "He is now the most recent draft pick in a long history of UCR players being selected into Major League Soccer. Thank you to Real Salt Lake for believing in him - they are a top class organization that did a tremendous job with this draft class." 

In his first season (2022) with the Highlanders he played in 19 matches and started in 18. He netted two goals for UCR one against St. Thomas (MN) and one against Portland in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

He helped guide UC Riverside to its second Big West Conference postseason title in a 1-0 win over UC Santa Barbara. That year Vukovic was selected to the First Team All-Big West. 

In the 2023 season he played in 12 matches and recorded nine starts. His lone goal of the year came at home against Cal Poly in a 1-1 draw.

After graduating from UC Riverside with a Business Administration degree, Vukovic pursued a Master's degree at Marshall University. There he saw time in 21 matches and started in ten. His lone goal of the year came in a 3-0 win against Cal State Fullerton. The Herd advanced to the NCAA Championship Match where they fell 2-1 to Vermont.

"Thank You to Vuko for two amazing seasons in the UCR blue and gold," added Cupello. "I cannot wait to be his biggest fan!"