Force set to continue winning ways

February 24, 2005 - Major Indoor Soccer League 2 (MISL 2)
Cleveland Force News Release


CLEVELAND, OHIO - The Cleveland Force will play its fourth of nine home and road back-to-back weekend contests this weekend when the team will first hit the road to take on the MISL leading Philadelphia KiXX on Saturday, February 26 at Wachovia Spectrum. The Force will then return home to face the St. Louis Steamers on Sunday, February 27 at the Wolstein Convocation Center.

Both games can be heard live on WHK 1420 AM or 1440 AM in Warren/Youngstown or live worldwide on the Internet at www.thesportsking.com. Saturday's game is scheduled to begin at 7:05 and Sunday's contest will start at 3:05.

Cleveland enters the weekend with a record of 11-12 overall, 6-6 at home and 5-6 on the road. The Force posted two victories last weekend as they defeated the Baltimore Blast on Saturday by a final score of 6-4 at 1st Mariner Arena and the followed that up with an impressive 8-2 victory over the KiXX on Sunday at the Wolstein Center. Cleveland is currently in a three-way tie for the fourth in the MISL Standings along with the Chicago Storm and Kansas City Comets trailing the Milwaukee Wave and Philadelphia atop the standings by three games and 1.5 games ahead of the Blast.

Philadelphia enters the weekend on a three-game losing streak and with a record of 16-11 overall, 9-5 at home and 7-6 on the road. The KiXX were the first team in the MISL to be held scoreless last weekend when the Comets posted a 4-0 victory on Saturday.

The game between the Force and Philadelphia will mark the seventh of eighth meetings this season between the two squads as well as the third of four meetings at the Wachovia Spectrum. The contest will also mark the 67th meeting between the two squads with Philadelphia holding a 42-24 advantage. The season series is tied at 3-3 after last Sunday's 8-2 victory for Cleveland.

In the series with the KiXX, the Force is led by forward Chris Handsor and midfielder John Ball with nine points apiece. Handsor has recorded five goals and four assists while Ball has tallied three goals and six assists. Sipho Sibiya is second with seven points on six goals and one assist.

The KiXX is led by defender Pat Morris and midfielder Goran Vasic are tied with eight points in the season series. Morris has recorded six goals and two assists in four games while Vasic has notched three goals and five assists in five games. Rookie forward John Barry Nusum is second on the team with seven points on three goals and four assists in four games.

St. Louis, who only plays Cleveland this weekend, comes into the match-up on a three-game losing streak and with a record of 15-12 overall, 8-5 at home and 7-7 on the road. The Steamers fell to the Storm on Friday night by a final of 8-1 and to the Wave by a final score of 7-3 on Sunday. St. Louis trails Milwaukee and Philadelphia by one game for first in the standings.

The game between the Force and the Steamers will mark the fourth of five meetings this season between the two squads as well as the last meeting at the Wolstein Convocation Center. The Force leads the season series with a 2-1 overall. In addition, forward Lindsay Kennedy, the first female to play in the MISL, will make the trip to Cleveland and is expected to see action.

In the season series with the Steamers, the Force is led by Ball and forward Antonio Sutton with four points apiece. Ball has tallied two goals and two assists while Sutton has notched three goals and one assist. Handsor is second on the team with three points on a goal and two assists.

St. Louis is led by forward and head coach Daryl Doran, who will miss the contest after knee surgery, with five points on three goals and two assists. Forward and Akron native Mike Apple and forward Shaun David are tied for second with four points each. Apple has recorded two goals and two assists while David has posted one goal and three assists.



Major Indoor Soccer League 2 Stories from February 24, 2005


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