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Lightning Lose Game, Division Title, to Detroit, 9-8

February 24, 2012 - Professional Arena Soccer League (PASL)
Louisville Lightning News Release


LOUISVILLE, KY - The Louisville Lightning suffered their first home loss of the season tonight in their last game.

The Detroit Waza beat the Lightning 9-8 to clich their first ever Eastern Division title. The Lightning finished the season in second place with an 11-5 record.

During the post-game press conference, the coaches of the Lightning were surprisingly happy with the way the game finished. Even though the Lightning lost, coach Scott Budnick had nothing bad to say about the loss. "It was a great game, I thought we played very well," Budnick said. "Detroit is a physical team, but they got some skill as well, but winning is a habit and its done by doing things consistently." That is exactly what they have done all year, finishing second in the Eastern Division.

The game ended in a 9-8 loss for the home team, but it was exciting right up until the last second.

Adam Boyer had one of the best games he's ever had for the side. He finished the game with two goals and two assists. Not only did he accrue four points, but he did so at the most opportune times of the game. "It's always great to have a productive night," he said. "It felt good to help the team get closer to our goal," he continued, "but its a team effort and I was just happy to help out."

Another player with a big game for the Louisville club was O.T. Yanez. Yanez is a player that is easy to spot on the field with his blazing speed and fierce determination. This attitude paid off with an early goal in the match that couldn't be described in any other way than a fluke. Early in the first quarter, Yanez capitalized on a good fore-checking play in which ended in him scoring after blocking a clearing attempt by the Waza defender. "It was honest defending," said OT, "it just happened to go in, but it's always nice to get a goal in any way possible."

Simon Bird, who is usually a talkative fellow during the post-game press conference was quiet, but it had nothing to do with his anger towards the outcome of the match. "I thought we lost our composure, we got it back, but its tough at times," said Bird. "But, if we lose the game, its because of us, not the refs." Bird wanted to add one more thing before it was all said and done though, "I want to thank the staff and the fans for coming out and supporting our team, it was a great season and I loved playing all year."

The Lightning will host the Kansas Magic in the Ron Newman Cup playoff quarterfinals on March 2. The winner will advance to the Final Four in San Diego March 9-10.

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