KiXX embarks on two-game road trip
March 27, 2006 - Major Indoor Soccer League 2 (MISL 2)
Philadelphia KiXX News Release
Philadelphia, PA, March 20, 2006 - The Philadelphia KiXX (7-19), fresh off a two-game split this weekend, embark on a two-game road trip that may decide their postseason fate. The club first heads to the Gateway to the West to square-off versus former player/coach Omid Namazi and the St. Louis Steamers on Thursday, March 30. The school-day matinee is scheduled to kick-off at 11:35 pm ET at the Savvis Center. The KiXX then continue with their final regular-season visit to Stockton Arena to battle the expansion California Cougars on Saturday, April 1. Game-time is slated for 10:30 pm ET.
Philadelphia enters the two-game trip trailing the Chicago Storm by three-full games for the fourth and final position available in the 2006 Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) Championship Series with four games remaining for both clubs. The Storm's magic number to eliminate Philadelphia from playoff contention is two; any combination of Chicago wins or KiXX losses will knock the team from the postseason for the first time in franchise history. The KiXX have qualified for the postseason in each of their nine years of existence.
This Week's Itinerary:
Monday, March 27, Off Day
Tuesday, March 28, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Wednesday, March 29, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Wednesday, March 29, Travel to St. Louis
Thursday, March 30, KiXX @ St. Louis Steamers, Savvis Center, 11:35 am
Thursday, March 30, Travel to California
Friday, March 31, Practice, Stockton Arena, TBD
Saturday, April 1, KiXX @ California Cougars, Stockton Arena, 10:30 pm
Sunday, April 2, Travel to Philadelphia
*all times are Eastern and subject to change
Injury Report:
Player Injury Status
Shawn Boney Hamstring Questionable
Andy Guastaferro Ankle Out
John Barry Nusum Abdominal Doubtful
Kevin Sloan Back/Hamstring Questionable
Goran Vasic Jaw Out
KiXX vs. Steamers
2005-06 Series: 0-5 (home 0-3, away 0-2) Overall: 4-9 (home 2-5, away 2-4)
Philadelphia and the St. Louis Steamers met for the first time in franchise history on November 14, 2003 ... the club defeated the Steamers, 7-3, and split the series (2-2) in each of the past two seasons ... the Steamers, who earned an 8-4 win in the first meeting between the two clubs this season on November 26, are led by former KiXX player/coach Omid Namazi ... six different St. Louis scorers recorded multiple points in the contest, while forward John Barry Nusum was the lone KiXX representative to register more than one point ... veteran defender Genoni Martinez led all players with four points (two goals, two assists), as the Steamers edged past Philadelphia, 6-5, in overtime on January 7 ... KiXX defenders Drew Kopp and Pat Morris each notched a pair of points ... Martinez again proved to be too much for Philadelphia, connecting on a game-high five points including the game-winning goal late in the fourth quarter of the Steamers' 8-6 win on February 18 ... in the most recent meetings on March 11 and March 18, the KiXX fell 5-2 at the Savvis Center and 7-3 at the Wachovia Spectrum respectively ... Namazi led the Cleveland Force team that knocked-off Philadelphia in the semifinals last season, but then fell to the Milwaukee Wave in the two-game Finals ... with Cleveland becoming inactive this season, Namazi was hired to replace player/coach Daryl Doran who is now listed as the club's Vice President of Corporate Sales and Alumni Relations ... former Kansas City Head Coach Zoran Savic also joined the Steamers this past off-season as the team's President.
KiXX vs. Cougars
2005-06 Series: 3-2 (home 2-1, away 1-1) Overall: 3-2 (home 2-1, away 1-1)
Philadelphia and the expansion Cougars met for the first time in franchise history at the Wachovia Spectrum on November 12 with the KiXX prevailing, 7-6 in overtime, thanks to a game-winning goal from defender Ptah Myers at 3:26 of the extra stanza ... forward Shawn Boney led Philadelphia with three points, accompanied by two points from local standout Pat Morris, and eight other players with one ... Ricardino, Ronnie Ekelund and Bernie Lilavois paced California with two points apiece ... the KiXX ran away with the second contest, 10-5, on December 3, connecting on five unanswered goals in the third and fourth quarters ... veterans Goran Vasic and Drew Kopp each notched three points, while Ekelund, Antonio Sutton, Aaron Susi and Anthony Maher all tallied a pair for the Cougars ... on January 16, Philadelphia earned a 8-5 win in the club's first trip to the Stockton Arena in franchise history ... player/coach Don D'Ambra led all scorers with four points, while player/assistant coach Kevin Sloan chipped in three ... former KiXX forward Gary Brooks then capped a Cougars comeback with a game winner in overtime, 4-3, on February 4 and then enjoyed a 5-3 win versus his former teammates on February 20 ... Brooks was sent to California in exchange for all-star defender Vlatko Andonovski ... Brooks also tallied a pair of goals versus Philadelphia on January 16, while Andonovski missed 10 consecutive outings with a calf injury ... the Cougars also acquired veteran forward John Ball from the Chicago Storm in exchange for South Jersey native Anthony Maher ... led by Head Coach Troy Dayak, the expansion team kicked-off their inaugural season with a 9-4 loss to the Blast in Baltimore on November 11 and then earned the first victory versus the Chicago Storm on January 7.
Playoff Scenario: With Philadelphia's two-game split this past weekend, the club is now three games behind the fourth-placed Chicago Storm for the final position in 2006 MISL Championship Series ... the St. Louis Steamers, who recently clinched the number one seed, Milwaukee Wave and Baltimore Blast all previously secured their postseason spot ... the Storm (10-16), who snapped a four-game losing skid versus the expansion California Cougars on March 26, still holds the seed with the Cougars (9-19) and the KiXX both within striking distance ... California, winners of eight of their last 11, rank fifth and trail Chicago by two-full games, while the KiXX are seated in the cellar position and trail an additional one game ... the Storm's magic number to eliminate Philadelphia is now two ... any combination of Chicago victories/KiXX losses that equal two will eliminate the KiXX from postseason contention ... the Storm's magic number to eliminate California is also two ... Philadelphia has qualified for the playoffs in each of their previous nine years of existence.
Operation Soccer Ball: The Philadelphia KiXX have partnered with the Defense Department's "America Supports You," as well as several branches of the United States Military and Eastern Pennsylvania Youth Soccer Association (EPSYA) to distribute soccer balls to the youth players throughout the countries of Afghanistan and Iraq .. any fan bringing a new soccer ball to the team's home finale versus the Baltimore Blast on Saturday, April 8 will receive a voucher for a complimentary ticket to a KiXX home game in the 2006-07 season ... the contest, which will be televised live on CN8, The Comcast Network, is scheduled to kick-off at 7:05 pm ET with the doors opening at 6:00 pm ET ... the KiXX and Spalding, the official soccer ball of the MISL, will partner to donate a minimum of 50 new official rocket red soccer balls to the cause .. for more information, please contact the KiXX Office at 1-888-888-KIXX (5499).
Familiar Face: Philadelphia will square-off versus the St. Louis Steamers for the sixth and final time this season on March 30 with a very familiar face on the visitors bench ... former KiXX player/coach Omid Namazi has guided St. Louis to their current position atop the MISL standings after leading the Cleveland Force to the League Finals last season ... Namazi, who currently remains as the franchise leader in assists, became Philadelphia's second head coach midway through the 1998-99 season ... after guiding the KiXX to a League Championship in 2001-02 and a 83-54 overall record, he left the club just four games into the 2002-03 campaign for other endeavors ... Namazi returned to the MISL after a one-year hiatus and took over the reigns in Cleveland for the final stretch of the 2003-04 season ... the KiXX are 0-5 versus their former player/coach this season and 6-9 overall.
A Man Among Boys: The sheer size of KiXX forward Shawn Boney is cause enough to don him a man among little boys, but his play in the team's back-to-back weekend spoke for itself ... the 6'7", 275-lb. native of Trinidad, returning for the first since re-aggravating a hamstring injury in Baltimore on March 3, recorded four of the team's eight goals in the two games combined including three tallies versus the Chicago Storm on March 25 ... the hat trick marked the sixth of his nine-year career ... on the season, Boney ranks second on the KiXX roster with 20 points on 13 goals and seven assists despite only appearing in 19 of the team's 26 contests.
Last Week's Outing(s):
Blast 6, KiXX 2 (3/26): Adauto Neto provided the hosting Blast an early 1-0 lead after finishing a deflected save off a shot from teammate Giuliano Celenza at 4:25 of the opening quarter of play. Defender Wendell Regis increased Baltimore's advantage to two, 2-0, after connecting on a breakaway goal on a pass from P.J. Wakefield at 4:48 of the second stanza. Wakefield then blasted home a feed from Neto at 7:31 to further extend the Blast lead, 3-0. Less than 30 seconds later (7:59), midfielder Carlos Garcia netted a dish from Jonathan Steele to provide Baltimore with a four-goal cushion, 4-0. Forward Shawn Boney finally put Philadelphia on the board with a back heel that slid past Sagu and into the right corner of the net, 4-1, at 12:49 of the period; two-time League MVP Dino Delevski recorded the assist on the play. Billy Nelson regained Baltimore's four-goal lead, 5-1, with a score off a pass from Machel Millwood at 2:54 of the third frame. With only four seconds remaining in the quarter (14:56), Celenza registered a power-play goal on a feed from Blast player/coach Danny Kelly to end the stanza with the hosts leading 6-1. The Blast received the one-man advantage courtesy of a two-minute tripping infraction accessed on Pappas. Delevski connected on a restart feed from teammate and fellow Macedonia native Vlatko Andonovski at 5:53 of the fourth period, but Baltimore held on to earn a 6-2 victory.
KiXX 6, Storm 5 (3/25): Philadelphia defeated the visiting Chicago Storm (9-16) by a score of 6-5 to pull within two games of Chicago for the fourth and final position in the 2006 Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) Playoffs. Storm midfielder Semir Mesanovich opened the scoring with a left-footer that found the top corner of the net to give Chicago a 1-0 advantage at 6:48 of the opening stanza; Lazo Alanvanja recorded the assist on the play. A mere 27 seconds into the second frame, Mark Ughy extended the Chicago lead, 2-0, after netting a goal off a Matt Stewart assist. Player/coach Don D'Ambra registered his second goal in as many games, capitalizing on a shot off the boards from teammate Ptah Myers at 6:25 of the second period. Storm forward Fabinho connected on a power-play goal from Ughy at 12:07 of the second quarter, courtesy of a two-minute charging infraction imposed on Northeast Catholic graduate Pat Morris. With only 27 ticks remaining in half, Shawn Boney finished off a deflected Morris shot to pull the KiXX within one goal, 3-2. Less than a minute into the third quarter (:57), Philadelphia evened the score, 3-3, as all-star defender Vlatko Andonovski found Morris in front of the net for an easy deposit. The KiXX gained their first lead of the evening, 4-3, after Boney sent a no-look shot past the unexpecting arms of Waltman at 2:27 of the frame; Drew Kopp recorded the assist on the play. D'Ambra fell to his back while finishing off an overhead pass from teammate Chris Fehrle to extend the Philadelphia advantage to two, 5-3 at 9:29. Novi Marojevic took advantage of a Chicago power play at 6:24 of the fourth period by netting an Ughy assist, 5-4, after Pappas received a two-minute infraction for an intentional handball. Boney answered with a penalty kick to complete the hat trick (three goals) at the eight-minute mark; the club received the penalty-kick opportunity courtesy of a tripping penalty in the box on Denny Clanton. Awadalla Morad responded on a tally from Marojevic at 9:27 of the stanza, but the KiXX held on to earn a 6-5 victory.
Major Indoor Soccer League 2 Stories from March 27, 2006
- Cougars Goalkeeper Dominik Jakubek Earns Second MISL Player of the Week Honor - California Cougars
- Steamers weekly - St. Louis Steamers
- KiXX embarks on two-game road trip - Philadelphia KiXX
- Steamers Extend Namazi's Contract - St. Louis Steamers
- MISL Players of the Week for Monday, March 27, 2006 - MISL 2
- Steamers Apple Awarded with Offensive Honor - St. Louis Steamers
- Schmidt repeats as MISL Defensive Player of the Week - Milwaukee Wave
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