Philadelphia blasts Baltimore, 9-6; welcomes the Force to town on Saturday, March 26
Published on March 21, 2005 under Major Indoor Soccer League 2 (MISL 2)
Philadelphia KiXX News Release
Philadelphia, PA, March 21, 2005 â The Philadelphia KiXX, who defeated the two-time defending Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) Champion Baltimore Blast 9-6 on March 19, remain home to entertain former player/coach Omid Namazi and the Cleveland Force at the Wachovia Spectrum on Saturday, March 26. The first 2,500 fans under 14 will receive a complimentary KiXX Nesting Doll featuring Shawn Boney, Pat Morris and Ze Roberto. Game-time is scheduled for 7:05 pm ET, with the doors opening at 6:00 pm ET. The action can be heard live via webcast at www.thesportsking.com.
This Week's Itinerary:
Monday, March 21, Off Day
Tuesday, March 22, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Wednesday, March 23, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Thursday, March 24, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Friday, March 25, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Saturday, March 26, KiXX vs. Cleveland Force, Wachovia Spectrum, 7:05 pm
Sunday, March 27, Off Day
*all times are Eastern and subject to change
Injury Report:
Player Injury Status
Shawn Boney Foot Out
Joel Shanker Hamstring Questionable
KiXX vs. Force
2004-05 Series: 4-3 (home 2-1, away 2-2) Overall: 32-19 (home 22-4, away 10-15)
This is the eighth and final meeting between Philadelphia and the Cleveland Force this season ... the KiXX defeated Cleveland, 11-8, at the Convo in the team's season opener on October 28 thanks to a four-point, three-block performance from Philadelphia native Pat Morris ... former KiXX members Gary DePalma and Chris Handsor each notched a pair of points for the Force ... Cleveland dominated the second meeting on November 26, leading from start to finish and earning a 6-3 victory ... the Force then edged Philadelphia, 6-5, at the Wachovia Spectrum on December 11, despite three-point performances from both John Barry Nusum and Goran Vasic ... the KiXX responded with a 6-5 victory of their own on January 9 ... Nusum and Force forward Adauto Neto led all scorers with three points apiece ... on February 5, KiXX midfielder Edgar Bartolomeu registered the game-winning goal at 7:13 of double overtime to give Philadelphia a 7-6 victory ... the 82 minutes and 13 seconds of action marked the second longest game and only the third double-overtime match in KiXX franchise history ... the Force dominated the meeting on February 20, earning an 8-2 victory at the Wolstein Convocation Center, but Philadelphia answered right back to snap a four-game losing streak with a 7-6 overtime victory on February 26 ... player/coach Don D'Ambra paced all scorers with a season-high five points on four goals and one assist ... DePalma was acquired in a three-team trade that also involved the St. Louis Steamers and the Milwaukee Wave, while Handsor was added via a trade with the Baltimore Blast ... Omid Namazi, former KiXX player/coach, re-signed as Cleveland's head coach after signing as player midway through the 2003-04 campaign ... all three (DePalma, Handsor, Namazi) were members of Philadelphia's championship team in 2001-02 ... last season, the clubs split the six total meetings, with each team winning the series, two-games-to-one at home.
Force Enters Red Hot: The Cleveland Force enter Saturday's meeting as arguably the hottest team in the MISL ... the Force is currently riding a five-game winning streak and posts an impressive 8-2 record in their last 10 outings ... the sudden burst has catapulted the club into third place in the MISL standings with a 16-13 overall mark, trailing the KiXX by a mere one-half of a game for the second position and the Wave by three full games for the top spot ... the club also picked up all three weekly honors this week, veteran goalkeeper Jim Larkin was named the League's Goalkeeper of the Week, while defender Genoni Martinez and team captain John Ball each added their second consecutive accolade as Defensive and Offensive Players of the Week, respectively.
Midfielders Return: Midfielders Edgar Bartolomeu and Ze Roberto each returned to action versus the Baltimore Blast on March 19 and provided the extra spark the team needed to snap a two-game losing skid ... Roberto returned after missing the club's previous 13 contests with a knee injury and registered three points on a pair of goals and one assists ... with the performance, the 26-year-old native of Belem, Brazil has now matched his 2003-04 season total with 18 points on 11 goals and seven assists in only 16 appearances ... Bartolomeu, sidelined for four consecutive outings with a toe injury, also added a goal in the game and has now registered a career-high 16 points (nine goals, seven assists) this season.
Rookie Leads the Way: KiXX rookie forward John Barry Nusum continues to shine in his first professional indoor season ... the 23-year-old native of Devonshire, Bermuda notched a game-high four points in the team's 9-6 victory versus Baltimore on March 19 ... his three goals marked the third hat trick of 2004-05 and in addition to his one assist, the outing tied his season-high for points in a single game ... a product of Furman University, Nusum currently sits fourth on the MISL Leaderboard, first amongst the KiXX scorers, with 42 points on a team-high 25 goals and 17 assists.
KiXX-Force Overtime Again?!: Philadelphia and the Force have met a total of seven times this season, three of which have needed an extra stanza to determine a winner ... the KiXX have been fortunate enough to land the victory on each occasion ... the team first knocked-off the Force, 6-5, at the Wolstein Convocation Center on January 9 and then earned a 7-6 win in double overtime on February 5 ... the 82 minutes and 13 seconds needed to decide the outcome marked the club's longest outing of the season, second longest all-time, and only the third total time Philadelphia has been forced into the second extra stanza in their nine years of existence ... the KiXX defeated Cleveland, 7-6 in overtime in the most recent match-up on February 26 ... overall, Philadelphia is 3-3 in the extra stanza this season.
Television Broadcasts: The team's television package resumes on Saturday, March 26 when the Cleveland Force return to the Wachovia Spectrum for the final showdown of the 2004-05 regular season ... the contest will broadcast live, beginning at 7:00 pm ET, on CN8, the Comcast Network ... CN8 Sports Anchor Lou Tilley provides the play-by-play, while Jimmy Harrison serves as color analyst ... Bob Lampinen joins the tandem as a sideline reporter ... overall, the team posts a 10-6 record when competing in a game that is televised on CN8, the Comcast Network, over the past three seasons ... the complete 2004-05 television schedule is as follows:
Date Opponent CN8 Broadcast Time*
Sun, November 14 Chicago Storm L, 4-7
Sat., December 18 Milwaukee Wave W, 6-3
Sat., January 8 Kansas City Comets W, 4-3
Sat., February 5 Cleveland Force W, 7-6 2OT
Sat., March 26 Cleveland Force 7:00 pm
Sat., April 16 Kansas City Comets 7:00 pm
*all times eastern and subject to change
Among the League Leaders: Philadelphia is well represented on the MISL Leaderboard this season ... rookie forward John Barry Nusum ranks fourth on the circuit with 42 points, while veteran forward Goran Vasic sits 10th with 37 points ... player/coach Don D'Ambra, all-star defender and team captain Pat Morris and player/assistant coach Kevin Sloan all trail close behind, each tied for 11th with 35 points ... Vasic, a native of Belgrade, Yugoslavia, also sits atop the League leaders in assists with 26 dimes, and Morris ranks first in blocks with 75 ... not to be outdone, seven-time all-star goalkeeper Peter Pappas ranks among the MISL leaders in nearly goalkeeping category including second in minutes (1658), saves (364) and goals against average (4.67), tied for second in wins (15), and third in save percentage (.738).
Last Week's Outing(s):
KiXX 9, Blast 6 (3/19): Philadelphia opened the scoring with four unanswered goals to take a 4-0 lead into the second quarter; rookie forward John Barry Nusum (2:22), midfielders Edgar Bartolomeu (6:11) and Ze Roberto (8:30), and veteran forward Goran Vasic (9:07) each registered an unassisted tally in the opening period. Baltimore pulled within two, 4-2, with a pair of unanswered goals in the second quarter. Midfielder Allen Eller struck first on a dish from teammate Lee Tschantret at the 10-minute mark, followed by a tally from David Bascome on an assist from defender Wendell Regis at 13:11. Blast defender Scott Schweitzer notched a restart goal at 5:58 of the third stanza to cut the team's deficit to one, 4-3, but Nusum responded with his second tally of the evening a mere 31 seconds later (6:29). Philadelphia native Pat Morris drilled home a centering pass from player/assistant coach Kevin Sloan to again stretch the club's lead to three, 6-3, at 10:57. Roberto then found player/coach Don D'Ambra streaking down the left sideline, who in turn, blasted a shot into the top corner of the net to put Philadelphia ahead, 7-3, at 12:55 of the quarter. After Gloucester Township native Jeff Moore was sent to the penalty box for a two-minute holding infraction, Baltimore's Giuliano Celenza registered a power-play score on an assist from Danny Kelly at 1:30 of the final period. Nusum completed his hat trick with his third score of the contest, on a dish from Sloan to again give Philadelphia a four-goal advantage, 8-4, at 8:08. The KiXX continued their offensive assault, as Roberto found the back of the net for the second time of the evening on a Nusum shot that deflected off the boards at 11:06. Celenza recorded a pair of goals, 12:43 and 14:54 of the fourth quarter respectively, but Philadelphia held on to earn a 9-6 victory.
Major Indoor Soccer League 2 Stories from March 21, 2005
- Milwaukee Wave Weekly - Milwaukee Wave
- MISL names players of the week - MISL 2
- Philadelphia blasts Baltimore, 9-6; welcomes the Force to town on Saturday, March 26 - Philadelphia KiXX
- Force sweeps MISL weekly honors - Cleveland Force
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