KiXX Weekly
January 29, 2007 - Major Indoor Soccer League 2 (MISL 2)
Philadelphia KiXX News Release
Philadelphia, PA, January 29, 2007 - The Philadelphia KiXX (10-5) prepare for a home-and-home weekend commencing with a visit to Baltimore to take on the defending MISL champions Blast on Friday, February 2. Game time is slated for 7:35 pm ET with the action available live via webcast at www.wmssfm.com. The club concludes the home-and-home set on February 3 when the Blast make their second trip to the Wachovia Spectrum. NBC10 Hat Night begins at 7:05 pm ET, with the first 2,500 fans to enter receiving a KiXX hat courtesy of NBC10.
This Week's Itinerary:
Monday, January 29, Off
Tuesday, January 30, Light Training, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Wednesday, January 31, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 am
Thursday, February 1, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Friday, February 2, Baltimore Blast, 1st Mariner Arena, 7:35 pm ET
Saturday, February 3, Baltimore Blast, Wachovia Spectrum, 7:05 pm ET
Sunday, February 4, Off
*all times are Eastern and subject to change
Injury Report:
Player Injury Status
John Nusum Quad Questionable
Shawn Boney Lower Back Questionable
Casey Barton Hip Out
KiXX vs. Blast
2006-07 Series: 1-0 (home 1-0, away 0-0) Overall: 39-30 (home 23-12, away 16-18)
Friday's contest will be the second meeting between Philadelphia and the Baltimore Blast this season, and the team's first visit to 1st Mariner Arena ... the KiXX earned a 16-8 victory against Baltimore on January 14 in Philadelphia ... three-time Defender-of-the-Year Genoni Martinez buried two three-point goals and recorded two assists on his way to an eight-point night ... Peter Pappas stopped 6-of-10 shots while the KiXX defense blocked seven shots ... the defending champions are led by former Blast stand-out Danny Kelly, who retired from professional play at the end of the 2005-06 season to coach the team full time ... Kelly played 14 seasons in the MISL, collecting three MISL Titles ... Machel Millwood leads the Blast in points (37) and goals (15) ... Denison Cabral has contributed 13 goals while he and Robbie Aristodemo lead the Blast with eight assists apiece... in goal, Sagu has started 13 of 16 games, with a record of 6-6 ... Sagu's .743 saves percentage ranks tops in the League.
PennLive Webcasts: The Philadelphia KiXX recently completed an agreement to webcast a pair of upcoming games ... the KiXX - Baltimore Blast game scheduled for Friday, February 2 and the team's 12th Annual School Day Game versus the California Cougars on Wednesday, February 7 with both be available live via webcast at www.wmssfm.com ... veteran broadcaster John Wilsbach will provide the play-by-play for both webcasts.
Back-to-Back Contests: This weekend's back-to-back set marks the third of seven occasions in which the team will compete in two games in the same number of days ... the club will commence the series versus the Baltimore Blast at 1st Mariner Arena on February 2 ... the home-and-home set concludes with a visit from the Blast on February 3 at the Wachovia Spectrum ... the KiXX enter this weekend with a 2-2 record when competing in back-to-back games ... here is the club's schedule of back-to-back games this season and their results in each:
Date Opponent W/L* Date Opponent W/L*
12/9 vs. Chicago L, 4-10 12/10 vs. Chicago W, 16-13
1/27 vs. Chicago L, 2-6 1/28 at Detroit W, 9-8
2/2 at Baltimore 7:35 pm 2/3 vs. Baltimore 7:05 pm
2/24 vs. Milwaukee 7:05 pm 2/25 at Detroit 4:35 pm
3/10 at Chicago 2:00 pm 3/11 at Milwaukee 2:00 pm
2/24 vs. Baltimore 7:05 pm 2/25 at Milwaukee 2:00 pm
3/30 at Baltimore 7:35 pm 3/31 vs. Detroit 7:05 pm
*all times are Eastern and subject to change
Leading the Way: Player/coach Don D'Ambra has paced the KiXX on their way to the top of the MISL Standings ... D'Ambra's 11-game point streak was snapped January 27 against Chicago, before D'Ambra scored against Detroit on January 28 to begin a new one ... the KiXX are 10-2 when D'Ambra records at least one point ... D'Ambra leads the KiXX in points (41), goals (15), assists (10), and power-play goals (5) ... the 11-year veteran is fifth in the MISL in points, tied in fifth for goals, and tied for first in first-goals (3) ... during the weekend of December 29-December 31, the KiXX defeated Chicago 10-8 and Milwaukee 13-12 ... in those two games, D'Ambra played in his 450th career game, recorded his 900th career point, and tallied his 400th career goal ... D'Ambra was named Player-of-the-Week for the seven day period ending December 10.
High Rankings: Philadelphia not only leads the League by a full game over Detroit, but the defensive unit, led by perennial All-Stars Pat Morris, Genoni Martinez, and goalkeeper Peter Pappas, are holding opponents to 9.5 points per game, best in the MISL ... the team's offensive unit ranks third, averaging 11.7 points per game ... after winning the past six games on the road, the KiXX are the league's toughest visitors, posting a 6-1 road record overall ... the team has also jumped out to fast starts, sporting a 6-0 record when leading after one, while player/coach Don D'Ambra is tied for the League lead with three first-goals ... the team ranks second in first-quarter points for with 57 ... the KiXX also post the League's second best penalty-killing unit, posting a 65.6 percent kill rate.
Rivalry Brewing: With Philadelphia's January 28 win over Detroit, the KiXX have taken the lead in the season series 3-1 in four thrilling matches ... in Philadelphia's home opener on November 11, the Ignition needed overtime for their first road win in franchise history ... the KiXX returned the favor with an overtime win in Detroit on November 19 on a Tony Donatelli game-winner ... January 20 was a battle for first place, with both teams tied atop the MISL standings ... Edgar Bartolomeu's goal with 10 seconds left gave Philly lone hold over the top spot ... January 28 in Detroit was the rematch, with both teams tied for first place yet again ... after a furious comeback attempt by the Ignition, who were down 6-2 in the third quarter, two-time MVP Dino Delevski buried a three-pointer with just 45 seconds left, giving Philadelphia a 9-8 win and sole possession of first place ... the remaining two games in this season series between the clubs have the potential to be instant classics ... Philadelphia will visit Detroit once more on February 25 before the Ignition come to the Wachovia Spectrum on the last day of the regular season, March 31, in what could be a fight for the top seed in the playoffs ... off the field ties between the two teams are notable, with former KiXX General Manager Greg Bibb at the helm for Detroit ... Bibb drafted the playing rights to Philadelphia player-coach and KiXX leading scorer Don D'Ambra in the Ignition Expansion Draft, before trading D'Ambra's rights back to Philly for All-Rookie Team selection Josh Rife.
Last Week's Outing: KiXX 9, Ignition 8 (1/29/07): Two-time League MVP Dino Delevski buried a three-pointer with just 45 seconds left with 6th attacker Pat Morris setting up the game winner ... the KiXX won their sixth straight road game, improving to 6-1 overall, tops in the MISL ... Philadelphia has already matched their win total from last season, in exactly half the amount of games played ... Dave Castellanos struck first on his fourth of the season to put the KiXX up 2-0 just 3:48 into the opening frame ... Andy Guastaferro was credited with the helper ... with just over a minute left in the first quarter, player-coach Don D'Ambra put the KiXX up 4-0 with his team-leading 15th goal of the season, the helper from Dino Delevski ... defender Matt Johnson put the Ignition on the board with his second goal of the season, assisted by Mauricio Salles ... Steve Wacker responded for the KiXX with the first goal of his two-year career, putting Philadelphia up 6-2 ... the helper came from Ptah Myers ... Wacker, a four year starter and captain at Temple University, was signed as discovery player in 2005 ... Detroit began the second half with Carlos Farias' 13th goal to bring the Ignition to within two, 6-4 ... the assist came from former KiXX player Josh Rife ... Mike Apple's 10th goal of the season with 3:23 left in the third quarter from Novi tied the game at six apiece ... rookie Mauricio Salles broke the tie in the fourth quarter with his second goal of the season, assist from Nate Craft ... Detroit led 8-6 with two minutes remaining when Philadelphia replaced keeper Peter Pappas with 6th Attacker and reigning Defender-of-the-Week Pat Morris ... the gamble would pay huge dividends as Morris set up Dino Delevski's seventh goal of the season, a three-pointer with just 45 seconds left ... Philadelphia's defense blocked a season high 19 shots, led by Genoni Martinez's four-block performance ... Ignition forward and MISL leading scorer Jamar Beasley was held scoreless on nine shots ... both clubs went 0-1 on the power play ... Philadelphia split the weekend series, 1-1, following a January 27 loss to Chicago ... the win is the third of four against Detroit this season.
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Major Indoor Soccer League 2 Stories from January 29, 2007
- MISL names players of the week - MISL 2
- Storm to face Stars of Mexico - Chicago Storm
- California's Farber named MISL Offensive Player of the Week - California Cougars
- Larkin Honored - Chicago Storm
- Greenfield sees recognition for weekend performance - Detroit Ignition
- Dusosky MISL's Co-Defensive Player of the Week - Milwaukee Wave
- KiXX Weekly - Philadelphia KiXX
- Ignition weekly - Detroit Ignition
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