Andy Rosenband\'s Tally With 8 Seconds Remaining Keeps the Storm\'s Playoff Hopes Alive

Published on April 16, 2005 under Major Indoor Soccer League 2 (MISL 2)
Chicago Storm News Release


Chicago (Saturday, April 16, 2005) – The Chicago Storm won a heart stopping 6- 5 contest over the two-time defending MISL champion Baltimore Blast today at the UIC Pavilion in Chicago. The win increases the Storm's record to 18-20 in the MISL. The Storm's playoff hopes remain intact as the St. Louis Steamers were defeated earlier in the day by the Milwaukee Wave, 7-2. The top four teams in the league make the playoffs and only one spot remains as Milwaukee, Philadelphia and Cleveland have clinched berths. The "Yellow and Black" needs the Steamers to lose at Kansas City on Friday, April 22 and then the Storm must defeat St. Louis on Saturday, April 23 at 7:00 p.m. CT at the Savvis Center to make the playoffs. The Storm-Steamers contest can be heard live on www.chicagostorm.net.

"This is what indoor soccer is all about," said Storm Head Coach Frank Klopas. "There were a lot of shots and some goal, but there was a tremendous ending. The team stayed in the game and worked hard and we got some good bounces and some great finishes. Novi was spectacular and took control of the fourth quarter. Andy Rosenband scored the goal he deserved. He works so hard and to see him score a goal like that just makes you feel good for him."

The Storm clinched the victory with eight seconds remaining in the contest. Forward Jorge Valle found midfielder Andy Rosenband darting up the right wing. The Hammond, Indiana native jetted past two defenders and blasted a shot to the top right corner past a diving Baltimore goalkeeper Brian Rowland to give the Storm the 6-5 win. The goal was the Storm's third with the sixth attacker on the field.

Chicago trailed the entire contest until Novi registered a sixth attacker goal to level the score at 5-5 with 1:03 left in the game. Storm midfielder Lazo Alavanja dished a pass to Novi just beyond the Baltimore arc and he ripped a shot that banked off of the lower portion of the left post and into the back of the net.

The Baltimore Blast got on the scoreboard first after forward Mike Apple fired a shot from the left wing that Storm goalkeeper Danny Waltman parried. The rebound fell to Giuliano Celenza and he quickly slotted it into the goal past the prone goalkeeper to give the two-time defending champions a 1-0 lead at 10:35 of the first quarter.

The Blast lead held up for the first half and Baltimore compounded the Storm's woes when Sipho Sibiya deposited a goal to make it 2-0, at 4:13 of the third quarter. The Storm cut into the lead at 12:16 of the third when Novi scored his first goal of the afternoon to make it 2-1. Only 1:10 later, Baltimore came right back and made it 3-1 when David Bascome tallied his first of the game.

The Blast extended their lead to 4-1 when Nate Houser blasted a shot past Storm goalkeeper Danny Waltman just 20 seconds into the fourth quarter. Chicago chipped away at the Baltimore lead and forward Awadalla Morad muscled in his 16th goal of the season at 1:11 of the fourth. Novi scored his second of the night when Matthew Stewart found him camped at the back post. The Serbian midfield maestro found an opening in the Blast defense and Stewart's pin-point pass landed right on his foot and then into the back of the net to cut the Blast lead to 4-3. Baltimore scored again when Bascome trickled in a shot under the arm of a diving Waltman to make it 5-3.

The Storm returns to action in their last game of their inaugural campaign on Saturday, April 23 at the St. Louis Steamers at 7:00 p.m. CT at the Savvis Center in St. Louis, MO. The game can be heard live on www.chicagostorm.net.

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Major Indoor Soccer League 2 Stories from April 16, 2005


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