Cleveland Downs KiXX, 6-3, in Game One of MISL Semifinals
April 29, 2005 - Major Indoor Soccer League 2 (MISL 2)
Philadelphia KiXX News Release
St. Louis, MO, April 29, 2005 The third-seeded Philadelphia KiXX (0-1, 22-17) dropped a 6-3 decision to the second-seeded Cleveland Force (1-0, 23-16) in Game One of the two-game Major Indoor Soccer League Semifinal series at the Savvis Center tonight. Force forward Kyt Selaidopoulos recorded the game-winning goal on a dish from teammate Adauto Neto at 8:27 of the fourth quarter. Peter Pappas (0-1, 19-15) took the loss in net for the KiXX, turning away 14 of the 19 shots he faced, while Jim Larkin (1-0, 20-14) earned the win for Cleveland with 16 saves on 19 chances.
In his first career playoff appearance, KiXX rookie forward Damien Pottinger opened the scoring with the lone goal of the first quarter, an unassisted tally at 11:11 of the stanza; the native of Toronto, Ontario registered 11 goals and 18 points in the regular season.
Philadelphias Drew Kopp extended the teams advantage to two, 2-0, connecting on a nice feed from teammate Shawn Boney at 6:17 of the second period. Just over a minute later (7:29), rookie forward John Barry Nusum found the back of the net on a pass from Philadelphia native Pat Morris to add to the clubs lead, 3-0.
Cleveland broke their scoring drought with a pair of goals in the third quarter to cut into the KiXX advantage, 3-2, entering the fourth and final period of play. Midfielder Allen Eller struck first with an unassisted notch at 7:34, followed by a score from Aaron Susi on a pass from teammate John Ball at 10:20.
Adauto Neto registered Clevelands third unanswered goal to knot the score, 3-3, with a tally from Larkin at 3:04 of the fourth quarter. Midfielder Kyt Selaidopoulos then provided the Force with their first lead of the evening, 4-3, connecting on an assist from Neto at 8:27 of the stanza. Less than two minutes later, former KiXX forward Chris Handsor extended Clevelands advantage, 5-3, with a score from Eller at 9:58. With Morris serving as sixth attacker for Philadelphia, Clevelands Antonio Sutton pushed the teams lead to three, 6-3, with the games final goal at 12:12 of the quarter.
Notes: Philadelphia also held the Force scoreless in the first period of play in two-of-their-eight outings in the regular season, December 11 and March 26. Tonights contest marked the first occasion that the KiXX held Cleveland scoreless for the first half in 2004-05.
Philadelphia: 1-2-0-0=3 Shots: 25
Goalkeepers: Pappas (L, 14 saves), Morris (-, 0 saves).
Scorers: Boney (assist), Kopp (goal), Morris (assist), Nusum (goal), Pottinger (goal).
Cleveland: 0-0-2-4=6 Shots: 25
Goalkeepers: Larkin (W, 16 saves)
Scorers: Neto (goal, assist), Eller (goal, assist), Ball (assist), Handsor (goal), Larkin (assist), Selaidopoulos (goal), Susi (goal), Sutton (goal).
The clubs will complete the two-game series at the Wolstein Convocation Center in Cleveland, Ohio on Sunday, May 1. Should the KiXX prevail in Game Two, an overtime period with a Golden Goal will determine the series winner that will advance to the MISL Championship Series Final. Game-time is scheduled for 5:05 pm ET with the action available live via webcast at www.PennLive.com. For additional information, please contact the clubs Executive Office at 1-888-888-KiXX (5499) or visit www.kixxonline.com.
The Philadelphia KiXX are a member of the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL), a single-entity organization that features a coast-to-coast presence across the United States. The club is currently in the midst of its ninth season of play in 2004-05 at the Wachovia Spectrum located in Philadelphia, PA. The team also operates the Philadelphia KiXX Summer Kamp program, which is offered to boys and girls, ages four to 18, throughout the Tri-State area.
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