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Mariners Are Ready for Back-to-Back Weekend

August 5, 2005 - USL First Division (USL-1) - Virginia Beach Mariners News Release


Virginia Beach, VA - The Mariners kick off a home and away weekend Saturday night hosting the fifth place Vancouver Whitecaps Saturday night at the Sportsplex at 7:30 p.m. The team will depart immediately after that match to travel to seventh-place Charleston to face the Battery at 6 p.m. on Sunday. The Mariners dropped a 3-1 decision at Vancouver on May 21 and is 1-0-1 against Charleston, drawing 1-1 with the Battery on April 29 and winning 1-0 on July 16.

The Mariners will have had an 8-day rest since the teams 3-1 loss at Minnesota on July 28 and Vancouver will be coming off of 7 days rest since their draw with Seattle on July 29. Charleston lost at Puerto Rico Friday night 2-1.

The Match Ups

The Mariners (4-11-5, 17 points) Virginia Beach has had some success of late going 3-1-2 in the team's last six matches. The highlights of the run were a 2-1 win over First Division powerhouse Rochester on July 23 and a 1-0 victory over Sunday's rival Charleston on July 16. Both wins were posted at the Sportsplex. Midfielder Darren Caskey has led the team in scoring most of the season and still holds the lead with 11 points (4 goals, 3 assists) in 20 games. He stands 20th in the USL First Division. Forward David Castellanos stands just behind Caskey with his 9 points that include 4 goals and one assist. Goalkeeper Matt Nelson ranks 9th in the Division with three shutouts, and eighth in saves with 56 in 20 matches. He also ranks 8th with a 1.60 goals-against-average (GAA).

The Whitecaps (8-3-7, 31 points) Vancouver has gone undefeated in its last six matches, posting 2 wins and 4 draws. The team's last loss was to Charleston 2-0 on June 19. Vancouver forward Jason Jordon leads the First Division in points with 25 in 18 games and first in shots with 42. His 18 goals ranks him second Division-wide. Jordon is followed by teammate Steve Klein who ranks 8th in the Division with 16 points and 8th in goals scored with seven. Martin Nash stands in second place in assists with 5 also in 18 games. Goalkeeper Michael Franks stands sixth in the Division in wins with six in 13 games and fifth in shutouts with five. He has tallied 49 saves and has a fifth place 0.923 GAA.

The Battery (7-12-3, 24 points) Charleston has gone 2-3-1 in it's last six matches including wins over Richmond and Puerto Rico, losses to the Mariners, Rochester and Montreal and a 1-1 draw with Toronto. Three Battery players have scored seven points this season: Lazo Alavanja (2 goals, 3 assists), and Alon Lubezky and Jesus Martinez-Morales each with 3 goals and 1 assist. Goalkeeper Chris Doyle has posted two shutouts and a 1.666 GAA.

For ticket information, please call 430-9800.

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