USL Richmond Kickers

Kickers Regular Season Opens Saturday

Published on April 14, 2010 under United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Richmond Kickers News Release


Richmond, VA - (Wednesday, April 14, 2010) - The defending USL Second Division Champions Richmond Kickers return to the University of Richmond Stadium this Saturday, April 17th to host the Harrisburg City Islanders and Pro Pass Kickoff Night at 7:00 p.m. Complimentary Richmond Kickers Youth Pro Passes (ages 3-17) are available to be picked up this week at locations throughout Richmond such as Mexico Restaurant, RISE, Soccer Post, Crossridge Family & Cosmetic Dentistry, Strictly Soccer and the Kickers office. Activate your Pro Pass at RichmondKickers.com by Saturday, April 17th to be eligible to win a Nintendo DS Lite, courtesy of Play N Trade Carytown, during halftime at the Kickers home opener this weekend.

After a successful preseason that saw the Kickers go 6-0-2 against local college and professional teams, the regular season officially opens this weekend when Richmond's hometown team hosts USL-2 rivals Harrisburg City Islanders. Over the past four seasons, the Kickers hold a narrow 6-2-3 record over the City Islanders. The heated rivalry continues as Richmond has not forgotten the 2007 USL-2 Championship match when Harrisburg stripped the defending champions of the title after nine rounds of nail-biting penalty kicks.

The two clubs last met at UR Stadium in the 2009 USL-2 Semifinals on August 22nd. Scoreless through regulation and nearly two full overtime periods, 2009 Goal Scoring Champion Matthew Delicâte was able to find the back of the net after a scramble in the box left him open inches from the goal. The last second tally narrowly avoided a penalty kick shootout and boosted the club to their fourth Championship appearance in five seasons.

Richmond also opened the 2009 campaign at UR Stadium against the City Islanders when the two teams battled to a 2-2 draw. Later in the season, the Kickers handed their USL-2 foes a 5-0 decision in June, followed by a 1-0 win on the road last July. The Kickers concluded the 2009 campaign with a regular season record of 11-3-6 and 39 points, good for a first-place tie in the USL Second Division, alongside the now-defunct Wilmington Hammerheads (12-5-3, 39 points). The Kickers narrowly missed claiming the Regular Season Champion title as the Hammerheads took the tiebreaker based on total wins in league games. Meanwhile, the City Islanders finished in third place in the standings with a record of 9-7-4 and 31 points.

Familiar Faces

The Kickers are pleased to welcome back 12 players from last year's Championship squad including three-time USL-2 Goalkeeper of the Year Ronnie Pascale. Goalkeeper Mark Murphy returns to back up Pascale, joining a veteran defensive unit that consists of Sascha Görres, 2009 Defender of the Year Yomby William and sophomore defender Henry Kalungi. Fan favorite Mike Burke returns for his 11th season in Richmond, while Luke Vercollone, Gerson dos Santos, Ross Mackenzie and Chris Carrieri return to anchor the midfield. Leading the attack again in 2010 is Edson Elcock, alongside last season's USL-2 Goal Scoring Champion and MVP Finalist Matthew Delicâte.

Recent Signings

The Kickers recently added two former Kickers youth players, midfielder Bobby Foglesong and defender Jordan Evans, pending USSF approval. Evans and Foglesong epitomize the Kickers vertically integrated player development system as the first class of players to rise from the youth to the pro ranks within the club.

Evans spent seven seasons with the Kickers youth system, joining the club as a U-15 elite player before graduating to the Kickers Premier Development League team, the Richmond Kickers Future in 2007. Leading the Future in goals (6) and points (13) that season, he made 21 appearances over two seasons. Evans spent two seasons at the University of Richmond before concluding his collegiate career with the 2009 NCAA Champions University of Virginia. A native of Chester, Virginia, the 6'4" defender captained the Thomas Dale High School team his senior season, earning First Team All-State honors. His game-tying goal in the Semifinals led Thomas Dale to the State Championship where he notched the game winning goal in the finals.

A native of Fredericksburg, Virginia, Foglesong was a member of the Richmond Kickers Super Y-League program before joining the Richmond Kickers Future in 2008. With the Future, he started all 16 games played, recording one goal and two assists on the season. He recently finished his career at Old Dominion University where he notched seven goals and seven assists in 78 appearances.

Players to Watch

Kickers: New to the Kickers squad in 2010 is defender David Hertel (#17) who created a dangerous attempt that nearly resulted in a goal in the Kickers Pro-Am Challenge with 2009 NCAA National Champions University of Virginia two weeks ago. Forward Edson Elcock (#11) created the Kickers most dangerous attempt in the 88th minute of the UVA exhibition, but missed the target just inches outside the post. Most recently, he scored the lone goal in the Kickers final preseason match against the University of Richmond Tuesday night. Elcock joined the Kickers roster in late July of 2009, but made an immediate impact with the team, scoring the equalizer in the USL-2 Championship. Defender Henry Kalungi (#25) proved himself last season as an anchor in the defense for the Kickers. In his breakout year, Kalungi played every minute of all but one game in the 2009 season.

City Islanders: Defender Dustin Bixler (#3) is the City Islanders All-Time leader in starts and minutes played. He received All-League First Team selection honors for the 2009 season, and is an integral part of the team's defense. Midfielder David Schofield (#10) is another key player returning for the City Islanders, and the lone remaining player from the original 2004 Harrisburg squad. Schofield is the team's All-Time leader in assists. Harrisburg has high hopes for newcomer Nate Jafta (#7) who was a known playmaker and goal scorer with the Michigan Bucks (PDL). Goalkeeper Danny Cepero (#12), who starred for Harrisburg in 2008 while on loan from the New York Red Bulls of MLS, returns to protect the net in 2010.

Pro Pass Kickoff Night

Saturday is Pro Pass Kickoff Night and all Pro Pass holders in attendance will be eligible to win great prizes. Visit RichmondKickers.com and activate your Youth Pro Pass by April 17th to be eligible to win a Nintendo DS Lite, courtesy of Play N Trade Carytown. In addition to the grand prize drawing, to be held at halftime, Pro Pass holders are eligible for special prizes and drawings, including a 2010 Kickers soccer camp, gift certificates, autographed Kickers gear and more!

Tickets

General admission tickets for regular season home games will remain $12/adults and $7/youth ages 3-17 for the fourth consecutive season. Order tickets in advance via RichmondKickers.com and receive a $2.00 discount per ticket. Alleviate the hassle of individual tickets and enjoy all of the Kickers Pro regular season home games, plus the Mexico U-21 National Team exhibition on April 21st, for the best possible pricing with a 2010 Family Pass ($119), All-Access Pass ($90) or Adult Pro Pass ($55).

Richmond Kickers 18th Season

Established in 1993, the Richmond Kickers pro team has consistently been one of the most successful professional soccer clubs in America. Over 17 seasons, Richmond has qualified for postseason play 15 times, and reached the title match in 2009 for the fifth time in the past eight campaigns, claiming their second Championship crown in four seasons. Richmond's six previous league Championship appearances (1995, 1996, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007) include winning the Premier League title in 1995, a shoot-out loss to Seattle in the USL First Division final in 2005 and taking the USL Second Division crown against Charlotte in 2006. In addition to on-field success, the Kickers have taken United Soccer Leagues Organization of the Year honors on five occasions (1995, 2000, 2006, 2007, 2009).

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United Soccer League Championship Stories from April 14, 2010


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