Sports stats



MLS Columbus Crew SC

Florida Leg Of Preseason Culminates With Saturday Match Vs. D.C.

February 10, 2010 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Columbus Crew SC News Release


COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Crew is set to wrap up the Florida leg of its 2010 preseason this weekend, with a Saturday match vs. D.C. United, before returning to Columbus on Sunday. Three days of training at the SuperKick/TeamZone indoor facility in Lewis Center (409 Orangepoint Drive) will follow, then a two-week trip to Arizona.

The Black & Gold has participated in three preseason matches in Florida to date, two scrimmages against the U.S. Under-17 team and a third against the IMG Academy Under-19 squad.

The first match against the U.S. U-17s took place on Saturday (Feb. 6), with three separate sessions being played - one 45 minute session and two 30-minute sessions. In the first session, the Crew came away victorious by a score of 4-0, behind goals from Chad Marshall, Guillermo Barros Schelotto, Robbie Rogers and newly-acquired Colombian forward Sergio Herrera. The Crew won again in the second session, this time by a margin of 3-0, with goals coming from Steven Lenhart, Emilio Renteria and first-round 2010 SuperDraft pick Dilly Duka. The scrimmage wrapped up with the Crew earning a 1-0 victory in the third session, with the lone goal coming courtesy of fellow 2010 first-rounder Bright Dike, making it eight different goal scorers for the Crew on the day.

The Crew took to the field again on Tuesday (Feb. 9) for a morning rematch against the U.S. U-17s, followed by an afternoon scrimmage with the IMG Academy U-19s. In the morning proceedings - which consisted of a regulation game of two 45-minute halves - the Crew earned a 2-1 victory, thanks to goals by Marshall and Schelotto. The afternoon scrimmage was made up of two halves of 30 minutes each and theBlack & Gold came away with a 4-0 victory behind a Jason Garey hat trick and a late goal by Adam Moffat.

The Crew will play the fourth and final match of its Florida preseason trip this Saturday (Feb. 13), when it will take on D.C. United at 4 p.m. at IMG Academies. The squad then returns to Columbus, where it will train at SuperKick from Tuesday, Feb. 16, through Thursday, Feb. 18.

The Black & Gold is then scheduled to depart for Arizona, where among its preseason matches will be a Feb. 27 affair vs. Chivas USA, with more expected to be announced soon. The squad is slated to return to Columbus on March 5, where it will prepare for the first leg of its CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal vs. Toluca of Mexico (see item below).

The Crew will open the MLS regular season - its 15th season overall and 12th in first-of-its-kind Crew Stadium - when it hosts Toronto FC in the first leg of the Trillium Cup on Saturday, March 27.

Upcoming Crew 2010 Preseason Schedule (subject to change):

Saturday, Feb. 13: vs. D.C. United at IMG Academies, Bradenton, Fla., 4 p.m.

Sunday, Feb. 14: Return to Columbus

Monday, Feb. 15: OFF

Tuesday, Feb. 16-Thursday, Feb. 18: Training at SuperKick, 409 Orangepoint Dr., Lewis Center, 10 a.m.

Saturday, Feb. 20-Friday, March 5: Arizona

Friday, March 5-Monday, March 8: Columbus

Tuesday, March 9: CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal vs. Toluca, Crew Stadium, 8 p.m.

TICKETS FOR CONCACAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE QUARTERFINAL ON SALE

Tickets for the March 9 home leg of the Crew's CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal vs. Mexican club Toluca are currently on sale at the Crew Stadium Box Office, all central Ohio Ticketmaster retail locations, via Ticketmaster phone at 1-800-745-3000 and on-line at TheCrew.com. Ticket prices start at $25 ($20 youth) for the March 9 match that is slated to kick off at 8 p.m. at Crew Stadium. The second game of the two-game, home-and-home total-goals match-up will be played at Toluca on Wednesday, March 17. Should the Crew advance to the semifinal stage, it would face the winner of the Pachuca (Mexico) vs. Comunicaciones (Guatemala) series March 30-April 1 and April 6-8. The Crew advanced to the quarterfinals by finishing the group stage in second place of Group C with 8 pts. The CONCACAF Champions League is the confederation's annual club championship which features 24 teams from CONCACAF's three sub-regions: North America, Central America and the Caribbean. The top two teams from each group qualified for the Championship Round. The Final Round, to be held in late April 2010, will also be two-legged, home-and-away. The champion will qualify for the prestigious seven-team FIFA Club World Cup - which annually pits each continental confederation's champion against the others - in December 2010.

GAVEN, MARSHALL AND ROGERS ONCE AGAIN REPORT FOR U.S. NATIONAL TEAM DUTY

The Crew's Eddie Gaven, Chad Marshall and Robbie Rogers reported to U.S. National Team Training Camp in Carson, Calif., today (Feb. 10), as the squad prepares for an international friendly against El Salvador on Feb. 24 at 7 p.m. ET at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla. The match against El Salvador will be one of the last games before the 2010 FIFA World Cup roster is named in May and gives the group a chance to make an impression on Bob Bradley's coaching staff with an eye towards South Africa. That match will be broadcast live on ESPN Classic beginning at 7 p.m. ET.

NEW CYCLE OF CREW SOCCER FOUNDATION REFEREE SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM SET TO KICK OFF SATURDAY

After a one-week postponement, due to inclement weather, the Crew Soccer Foundation (CSF) Referee Scholarship Program kicks off its next cycle this Saturday, Feb. 13, as the 2010 referee scholars begin their referee certification classes, conducted by the Columbus Area Soccer Officials Association (CASOA). Sixteen successful applicants will attend classes on each Saturday during the month of February and the first week of March. Upon successful completion of the course, the Crew will also provide a referee kit that consists of a yellow shirt, black shorts, black socks, whistles, book, yellow/red cards, two flags and a sports watch. After finishing the training and receiving certification, each scholarship recipient will be assigned to recreational and/or competitive youth matches by CASOA, which will also serve as a resource for questions. All scholarship winners will also be invited to attend a selected Crew game during the regular season to observe an officiating crew in action.

CREWXTRA RETURNS TO WEEKLY PRODUCTION STARTING TONIGHT AT 8 AND 11 P.M. ON ONN-TV

CrewXtra, the Crew's weekly show, returns to weekly production tonight (Feb. 10). It will continue to air every Wednesday at 8 p.m. (and again at 11 p.m.) on ONN-TV. This week, host Beau Bishop will be joined by goalkeeper Andy Gruenebaum, the "Voice of the Crew," Dwight Burgess, and Columbus Dispatch beat writer Shawn Mitchell. CrewXtra provides viewers with in-depth coverage and access to the team every week, including game recaps, breakdowns and previews of the upcoming matches, while interspersing other news, interviews, discussion and features.

Check out the Columbus Crew SC Statistics



Major League Soccer Stories from February 10, 2010


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central