Philadelphia drops 9-5 decision to St. Louis; falls behind Blast in Eastern Division standings
Published on January 5, 2004 under Major Indoor Soccer League 2 (MISL 2)
Philadelphia KiXX News Release
Philadelphia, PA, January 5, 2004 â The Philadelphia KiXX (9-5) prepare for their fifth set of back-to-back contests this weekend, kicking-off versus the Kansas City Comets on Saturday, January 10. Game-time at the Kemper Arena is slated for 8:35 pm ET. The club then returns to Philadelphia to welcome the Dallas Sidekicks to the Wachovia Spectrum on Sunday, January 11. The contest will kick-off at 1:05 pm ET and will be televised on CN8 with a 2:00 pm ET broadcast time.
Philadelphia dropped to second place in the Eastern Division after a 9-5 loss to the St. Louis Steamers on January 3. The team now trails the defending Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) Champion Baltimore Blast for the top spot in the division by one full game. The current one-game deficit marks only the second time this season the club has not occupied the Eastern Division's top spot.
This Week's Itinerary:
Monday, January 5, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Tuesday, January 6, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Wednesday, January 7, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Thursday, January 8, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Friday, January 9, Travel to Kansas City
Saturday, January 10, KiXX @ Kansas City Comets, Kemper Arena, 8:35 pm
Sunday, January 11, KiXX vs. Dallas Sidekicks, Wachovia Spectrum, 7:05 pm
*all times are Eastern Standard and subject to change
Injury Report:
Player Injury Status
Peter Pappas Knee Probable
Kevin Sloan Hamstring Questionable
KiXX vs. Comets:
2003-2004: 1-1 Home: 0-1 Away: 1-0
Overall: 13-12 (home 7-5, away 6-7)
Philadelphia suffered its first home loss of the 2003-04 season to the Kansas City Comets by a score of 11-9 on Saturday, November 15. KiXX forward Goran Vasic led all scorers with a career-high six assists in the contest, while newcomer Jamar Beasley led Kansas City with four points on three goals and one assist. The KiXX avenged the loss by knocking-off Kansas City, 13-8, on their home turf at Kemper Arena on November 28. Player/coach Don D'Ambra led the attack with a season-high four goals and one assist for five points, while Vasic and Joel Shanker each chipped in four tallies. Last season, Philadelphia won the 2002-03 season series versus the Comets, three-games-to-two, to mark the third consecutive year the KiXX have claimed the season series. Overall, the clubs have squared-off a total of 24 times with each team winning 12 games. The squads have met only once in postseason play, on April 19, 2003, in the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) Semifinals; the KiXX claimed a 18-13 victory to advance to the League Finals. The club then defeated the favored Milwaukee Wave, two-games-to-one, in the MISL Finals to claim their first League Championship in franchise history. The two teams will square-off for the final time this season on Tuesday, March 9 in the City of Brotherly Love.
KiXX vs. Sidekicks:
2003-2004: 0-1 Home: 0-0 Away: 0-1
Overall: 4-2 (home 3-0, away, 1-2)
The KiXX endured their first defeat of the 2003-04 campaign with an 8-4 loss at the hands of the Dallas Sidekicks on October 22. Beau Brown led the way with a pair of goals, while Nick Stavrou added a goal and two assists for three points. Shawn Boney led Philadelphia with a pair of tallies for two points. Philadelphia and Dallas met for the first time last season with the KiXX taking the upper hand in four of the five contests; the Sidekicks earned the victory in the first meeting with a last-second goal from player/coach Tatu, but Philadelphia rebounded to knock-off the Sidekicks in the next four meetings, including two overtime victories. The January 11 contest is the second of four overall meetings between the two clubs this season.
KiXX by the Numbers: The Philadelphia KiXX offense has recorded 88 goals in 14 contests this season to post an average of 6.3 goals scored per game. The average ranks the club third in the nine-team League, tied with the Baltimore Blast and Dallas Sidekicks. The team's defense has allowed 74 goals for an average of 5.3 goals per contest, ranking fifth in the MISL. The complete breakdown of the team's goals per game is listed below.
Goals per Game 1st 2nd 3rd 4th OT TOTAL
KiXX 21 26 18 23 0 88
Opponents 18 15 18 23 0 74
Plus/Minus with Man Advantage: The KiXX have both benefited and suffered from the power play this season. The team currently sits atop the MISL with the Cleveland Force in the one-man advantage situations, each connecting on the power-play 50 percent of the time. Philadelphia's defense, however, has fallen victim to the power-play, turning away only seven-of-the-16 situations, including one-of-two versus St. Louis (1/3), they have defended the man advantage for a League-worst 43.8 percent.
Vincello Breaks the Seal: Defender Mauricio Vincello connected on a goal in the first quarter of action versus the St. Louis Steamers on January 3. The tally marked the first for the native of Salto, Argentina for both the season and as a member of the Philadelphia KiXX. Vincello recorded three goals as a member of the Toronto Thunderhawks during the 2000-01 National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) season, before leaving the indoor game to concentrate solely on his A-League career with the Toronto Lynx.
Third Quarter Barrage: The St. Louis Steamers lit the lamp versus Philadelphia a total of six times in the third quarter of the contest on January 3. The six-point onslaught marked the highest output allowed by the KiXX defense in a single period of action this season. The club has now allowed as many goals as they have scored in the third quarter, 18-18.
Road to Victory: The Philadelphia KiXX enter this weekend's set of back-to-back games with an overall 5-3 mark when playing away from home. The split this weekend's set of back-to-back road contests to post a 5-3 overall mark when playing away from home. The record, a League-best, is one of only three road marks above .500 in the nine-team MISL this season; the Baltimore Blast and the Milwaukee Wave also currently post a winning record away from home each at 4-3. Philadelphia finished the 2002-03 campaign with an 8-10 record away from the Wachovia Spectrum.
Second-Half Meltdown: This season, the KiXX have outscored their opponents in the first two quarters of action, but have failed to do so after the half. Overall, the club has recorded 88 goals, while allowing 74 to their opponent's in the team's 14 contests. After the half, Philadelphia has tallied exactly the same amount as their opponents in both the third (18) and fourth periods (23). Despite the second-half drought, the KiXX are a perfect 9-0 when leading after three periods, but are winless (0-5) when they trail entering the final period.
Best of the Best: The Philadelphia KiXX currently feature three members ranked in the MISL's top 20 in scoring this season. Forward Goran Vasic sits second on the MISL leaderboard with 29 points, behind current leader Greg Howes of the Milwaukee Wave. Forward Joel Shanker is tied for 14th in the League with 19 points, while captain Kevin Sloan rounds out the team's top scorers, ranking 17th with 19 points.
The Next Iron Man: Philadelphia native Pat Morris has become a permanent fixture for the KiXX backline and is truly becoming the franchise's iron man. The five-year veteran defender has appeared in 161 of the team's 180 total contests since he first stepped onto the floor as a rookie in the 1999-00 season. Morris did not miss a single game in both the 2000-01 and the 2002-03 campaigns and is currently in the midst of a 79 consecutive games played streak.
Last Time Out: Steamers 9, KiXX 5 (1/3): After trailing 1-0 on a power-play goal from Steamers forward Mark Thomas, Mauricio Vincello and Matt Brooks each rang the bell to give the KiXX a 2-1 lead early in the second quarter. Vincello's tally marked his first goal for both the season and as a member of the Philadelphia KiXX; he notched three goals with the Toronto Thunderhawks in the 2000-01 campaign. Thomas, who finished with a hat-trick (three goals), and St. Louis responded with seven unanswered goals, including six goals in the third quarter, before Philadelphia rookie Andy Guastaferro ended the bleeding with a strike just 38 seconds in the fourth period. The six-goal onslaught marked the highest output allowed by Philadelphia in a single quarter of play this season. In addition to Thomas, Steve Butcher (two goals, two assists), Joe Morelli, Craig Scheer, Sipho Sibya, and Aaron Susi each connected on a goal for the Steamers. Player/coach Don D'Ambra and Joel Shanker rounded out the scoring for the KiXX, both of which recorded a tally in the final quarter. Goalkeeper Stuart Dobson (1-1) took the loss in net for Philadelphia, turning away seven of the 15 shots he faced, while Brett Phillips (5-8) earned the victory for St. Louis with 13 saves on 18 chances.
KiXX on the MISL Leaderboard (as of 1/5):
#9 Joel Shanker
Tied 14th MISL with 19 points
#10 Goran Vasic
1st MISL with 20 assists
2nd MISL with 29 points
#17 Pat Morris
5th MISL with 29 blocks
#22 Peter Pappas
3rd MISL with eight victories
4th MISL with a .738 save percentage
5th MISL with 703 minutes
#37 Kevin Sloan
1st MISL with two sixth-attacker goals
17th MISL with 18 points
Future Games: Following the back-to-back set this weekend, the club continues their current three-game home stand with a meeting versus the San Diego Sockers on Saturday, January 17. Game-time at the Wachovia Spectrum is slated for 7:05 pm ET. For more information or to purchase tickets for any remaining KiXX home contest, contact the club's Executive Office at 1-888-888-KiXX (5499) or log onto the team's official website, www.kixxonline.com.
The Philadelphia KiXX are a member of the Major Indoor Soccer League, a single-entity organization that features a coast-to-coast presence across the United States. The club is entering its eighth season of play in the Wachovia Spectrum located in Philadelphia, PA. For more information, please contact David Deal, KiXX Director of Communications, in the office at (215) 952-5431 or via cell at (267) 688-4127. The Communications Department can also be reached via email, at ddeal@kixxonline.com.
KiXX RECORD:
Overall: 9-5
Home: 4-2
Road: 5-3
vs. Eastern Division Opponents: 4-1
vs. Central Division Opponents: 3-2
vs. Western Division Opponents: 2-2
LAST WEEK'S RESULTS:
1/3 vs. St. Louis Steamers â L, 9-5
THIS WEEK'S GAMES:
1/10 @ Kansas City Comets - 8:35 pm ET
1/11 vs. Dallas Sidekicks â 1:05 pm ET
Major Indoor Soccer League 2 Stories from January 5, 2004
- Philadelphia drops 9-5 decision to St. Louis; falls behind Blast in Eastern Division standings - Philadelphia KiXX
- Comets Weekly - Kansas City Comets
- Dan Green and Troy Dusosky Players of the Week - Milwaukee Wave
- MISL Names Players of the Week - MISL 2
- Steamers Defeat KiXX, 9-5 - St. Louis Steamers
- Force Weekly - Cleveland Force
- Comets Lose 7-5 in Dallas - Kansas City Comets
- Force To Televise Games on Local Cable - Cleveland Force
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