Chicago Storm Pulls Out 6-5 Thriller Against the Philadelphia KiXX
February 26, 2005 - Major Indoor Soccer League 2 (MISL 2)
Chicago Storm News Release
Chicago â The Chicago Storm extended their the home winning streak to seven straight games after pulling out a thrilling 6-5 victory against the Philadelphia KiXX at the UIC Pavilion. The Storm improved to 13-13 in the MISL and remain in fourth-place. "Yellow and Black" midfielder Lazo Alavanja extended his point-scoring streak to seven straight games after registering a goal at the 4:01 mark of the third quarter. Storm midfielder Andy Guastaferro managed to bag two goals in the contest against his former team as he has now scored five in four games against the KiXX.
"We started out poorly," said Storm Head Coach Frank Klopas. "In the first half, they got the better of us. They were making good runs, capitalizing on our mistakes and (Philadelphia goalkeeper Peter) Pappas made some very good saves. When we came out for the second half, the guys responded and did a great job. They brought a lot of energy and started playing much simpler. We got confident after a couple of goals and we were able to take advantage of some of their mistakes. I am very proud of the team in how they reacted. Now we have to stay focused and prepare for Baltimore on Sunday."
The game-winning goal came at the 5:51 mark of the fourth quarter after Storm midfielder/forward Nino DaSilva passed off the boards in the lower left corner to Guastaferro who was streaking down the middle of the box. The Canandaigua, New York native, gathered the pass and blasted a shot past Pappas, giving the Storm a 6-3 lead.
In the first quarter, Philadelphia got on the board first after midfielder Jeff Moore dumped a pass down into the corner, finding forwad/head coach Don D'Ambra who gathered the pass, turned and fired a shot past Storm goalkeeper Danny Waltman for an early 1-0 lead. Philadelphia added to their lead when Kevin Sloan blasted a shot from just outside the arch and into the lower left corner past.
Philadelphia's 2-0 lead stood through halftime, but the Storm answered at 3:20 of the third quarter. Storm forward Mark Ughy recorded the first of five straight goals for Chicago. Defender Fred DeGand found Ughy on the right side of the box. The Miskolc, Hungry native turned and fired a shot past Pappas, cutting the lead to 2-1. Less than a minute later, defender Leo Pernia lofted a long pass to Alavanja, who controlled the ball on the right side of the field. The Crown Point, Indiana native faked right and left twice before he nailed a left footer at the 4:01 mark of the third quarter to tie the game up at 2-2. The Storm broke the tie 28 seconds later when Novi passed the ball across the field to Guastaferro, who settled the pass in stride and rifled a shot past Pappas.
The "Yellow and Black" extended the lead to 4-2 after forward Jorge Valle passed off the boards to Matthew Stewart. Pappas came up to the yellow line, but Stewart beat him to the ball and chipped a shot over him that found the back of the net. Storm forward Novi also picked up his 20th goal of the season at the 13:12 mark of the third to extend the lead to 5-3.
Philadelphia managed to put together a late run in the fourth after they brought on defender Pat Morris as the sixth attacker at the 4:31 mark of the quarter. The KiXX cut the score to 5-3 after D'Ambra picked up his second goal of the night on a pass from Goran Vasic. Philadelphia picked up two more sixth-attacker goals late in the game from John Barry Nusum and Vasic, cutting the lead to 6-5 with just under 30 seconds left to play, but the Storm was able to hold off the KiXX, picking up the 6-5 victory.
The Storm will return to the UIC Pavilion Sunday afternoon to face off against the two-time defending MISL champion Baltimore Blast at 3:00 p.m. CT. This will only the third meeting between the two teams, with the Storm winning both games. This game can be heard live on www.chicagostorm.net.
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Major Indoor Soccer League 2 Stories from February 26, 2005
- Milwaukee Rockets Past Kansas City, 6-1 - Milwaukee Wave
- KiXX Edge Past Cleveland, 7-6, in Overtime - Philadelphia KiXX
- Force Falls To Philadelphia KiXX In Overtime For The Third Time (7-6) - Cleveland Force
- Chicago Storm Pulls Out 6-5 Thriller Against the Philadelphia KiXX - Chicago Storm
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