Philadelphia KiXX Weekly
Published on January 19, 2004 under Major Indoor Soccer League 2 (MISL 2)
Philadelphia KiXX News Release
Philadelphia, PA, January 19, 2004 â Philadelphia concludes their three-game homestand by welcoming the Monterrey Fury to the Wachovia Spectrum on Saturday, January 24. The club has partnered with the nationally acclaimed architecture, engineering, interior design, and planning firm EwingCole to present SocceRoo, the team's mascot, as the bobblehead giveaway for the 2003-04 campaign. The doll will be distributed to the first 3,000 fans, 14 and under, and all season ticket holders that enter the gates on January 24. Game-time is slated for 7:05 pm ET with the doors scheduled to open at 6:00 pm ET. Following the conclusion of the contest, the team travels to Dallas to battle the Dallas Sidekicks at the Reunion Arena on Sunday, January 25. The contest is scheduled to kick-off at 7:05 pm ET.
Philadelphia is fresh off the first shutout of the season in the MISL, a 5-0 victory over the San Diego Sockers at the Wachovia Spectrum on January 17. The KiXX now trail the defending Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) Champion Baltimore Blast by two and one-half games for the top spot in the Eastern Division.
This Week's Itinerary:
Monday, January 19, Off-Day
Tuesday, January 20, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Wednesday, January 21, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Thursday, January 22, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Friday, January 23, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Saturday, January 24, KiXX vs. Fury, Wachovia Spectrum, 7:05 pm
Sunday, January 25, Travel to Dallas
Sunday, January 25, KiXX @ Sidekicks, Reunion Arena, 7:05 pm
*all times are Eastern Standard and subject to change
Injury Report:
Player Injury Status
Shawn Boney Foot Out
Ze Roberto Ankle Questionable
Kevin Sloan Back Questionable
KiXX vs. Fury:
2003-2004: 1-0 Home: 1-0 Away: 0-0
Overall: 1-0 (home 1-0, away 0-0)
The Philadelphia KiXX and the Monterrey Fury squared-off for the first time in franchise history on November 22. KiXX forward Shawn Boney recorded a personal-best four goals to lead the club to a 8-5 victory over Monterrey at the Wachovia Spectrum. Former Harrisburg Heat defender Genoni Martinez led the Fury with three goals and one assist for four points. Monterrey was granted an MISL expansion team on July 14, 2003, with play beginning in the 2003-04 campaign. Former KiXX midfielder Gary DePalma was selected by the Fury in the League Expansion Draft, but was shortly thereafter traded to the Milwaukee Wave in exchange for the first round pick in the 2004 MISL Amateur Draft. Martinez, who also played for Philadelphia in a brief stint during the 1999-00 campaign, was acquired in the MISL Dispersal Draft. Saturday's meeting is the second of four between the two clubs this season.
KiXX vs. Sidekicks:
2003-2004: 1-1 Home: 1-0 Away: 0-1
Overall: 5-2 (home 4-0, 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. The most recent meeting on January 11 was forced to overtime, where KiXX forward Nikola Vignjevic registered a shoot out goal past David Doyle just over the 13-minute mark of the extra stanza to give Philadelphia a 5-4 victory. Doyle, who replaced Sagu in net after the Sidekicks goalkeeper was called for a two-minute tripping penalty, finished the contest with a game-high three goals. Vignjevic's tally marked his first for both the season and as a member of the KiXX franchise. 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 25 contest is the third of four overall meetings between the two clubs this season.
KiXX by the Numbers: The Philadelphia KiXX offense has recorded 103 goals in 17 contests this season to post an average of 6.1 goals scored per game. The average ranks the club fourth in the nine-team League, tied with the Dallas Sidekicks and trailing the Milwaukee Wave, Kansas City Comets and Baltimore Blast (all of which average 6.6 goals per game). The team's defense, fresh off a 5-0 shutout victory over San Diego (1/17), has allowed 84 goals for an average of 4.9 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 23 30 19 30 1 103
Opponents 18 17 21 27 1 84
Making History: KiXX netminder Peter Pappas posted a perfect performance (16 saves on 16 chances) versus the San Diego Sockers to earn a 5-0 shutout victory at the Wachovia Spectrum on January 17. The shutout was the first of the season in the MISL and the first (regular season) in professional indoor soccer since Pappas' last shutout performance versus the Florida Thundercats on April 2, 1999. The Philadelphia University graduate also recorded a combined shutout win over Florida on March 27, 1999; Pappas played the first 48:27 of the game and teammate Keith Englehardt stepped in for the final 11:13. For his efforts versus San Diego (1/17), the Toronto, Ontario native was named the MISL Goalkeeper of the Week for the seven-day period ending January 18; his third such accolade of the 2003-04 campaign.
D'Ambra Busts Loose: Philadelphia native Don D'Ambra registered a hat trick to lead the KiXX past the San Diego Sockers, 5-0, at the Wachovia Spectrum on January 17. The player/coach recorded the first three tallies of the game, including a notch in the third stanza to snap the club's three-game scoreless streak in the third period of play. The 32-year old forward now sits tied for third on the club with 18 points on 16 goals and a pair of assists and tied for first in the MISL with three game-winning goals and four first goals.
Home Sweet Home: The club will conclude a three-game homestand with a meeting versus the Monterrey Fury on January 24, before taking to the road for a three-game swing. The KiXX kicked-off the month by dropping a 9-5 decision to the St. Louis Steamers on January 3, then edged past the Dallas Sidekicks, 5-4 in overtime, on January 11. In the last outing on January 17, the club blanked the San Diego Sockers for a 5-0 shutout victory. Overall, the team posts a 6-2 record at the Wachovia Spectrum this season. Last season, Philadelphia posted a League-best 16-2 mark when playing in the City of Brotherly Love, including a franchise best 15-game home-winning streak to start the campaign.
Third Quarter Barrage: KiXX player/coach Don D'Ambra connected on a goal at 11:50 of the third quarter versus San Diego (1/17) to snap the club's three-game scoreless streak in the third stanza of play. Prior to D'Ambra's tally, the KiXX were outscored 9-0 in the third period of their last three outings. The St. Louis Steamers started the offensive onslaught on January 3, lighting the lamp six times to mark the highest output allowed by the KiXX defense in a single period of action this season. Philadelphia has allowed more goals (21) then they have scored (19) in the third period of action this season, the only quarter in which the club has failed to outscore their opponent.
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 164 of the team's 183 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 an 82 consecutive games played streak.
Last Time Out: KiXX 5, Sockers 0 (1/17): KiXX player/coach Don D'Ambra notched a natural hat trick, but one tally was all goalkeeper Peter Pappas needed, as the Toronto, Ontario native blanked the San Diego Sockers (9-10) with 16 saves on 16 chances to lead Philadelphia (11-6) to a 5-0 shutout at the Wachovia Spectrum on January 17. The shutout marked the only the third time in franchise history the club has held an opponent scoreless. D'Ambra tallied the first three goals of the contest, including a strike at 11:50 of the third quarter to snap the team's three-game scoreless streak in the third period of play; the club had been previously outscored 9-0 in the third stanza of their last three outings. Matt Brooks and Mauricio Vincello finished the scoring, each with a fourth quarter tally in the team's 5-0 victory. KiXX forward Goran Vasic recorded two assists in the contest to mark his 150th dish in his six-year career. San Diego defender Sean Bowers led the Sockers with nine shots and four blocks. With the victory, Pappas improves to 10-5 in net for Philadelphia, while Victor Noguiera (six saves on 10 shots) dropped to 9-10 with loss for the Sockers.
KiXX on the MISL Leaderboard (as of 1/19):
#9 Joel Shanker
17th MISL with 22 points
#10 Goran Vasic
2nd MISL with 23 assists
Tied 5th MISL with 32 points
#11 Don D'Ambra
Tied 1st MISL with three game-winning goals
Tied 1st MISL with four first goals
#17 Pat Morris
3rd MISL with 36 blocks
#22 Peter Pappas
2nd MISL with a .759 save percentage
3rd MISL with 10 victories and a 4.46 goals against average
4th MISL with 900 minutes and 211 saves
Future Games: Philadelphia will travel to Monterrey, Mexico to battle the Monterrey Fury for the first time in franchise history on Thursday, January 29. Game-time at the Monterrey Arena is slated for 9:35 pm ET. The club wraps up the three-game road swing with a meeting versus the Cleveland Force on Saturday, January 31. The contest is scheduled for a 7:05 pm ET start time and can be heard live via webcast at www.pennlive.com. The KiXX finally return home to entertain the defending MISL Champion Baltimore Blast at the Wachovia Spectrum on February 7. Game-time is scheduled for 7:05 pm ET with doors open at 6:00 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.
KiXX RECORD:
Overall: 11-6
Home: 6-2
Road: 5-4
vs. Eastern Division Opponents: 4-1
vs. Central Division Opponents: 3-3
vs. Western Division Opponents: 4-2
LAST WEEK'S RESULTS:
1/17 vs. San Diego Sockers â W, 5-0
THIS WEEK'S GAMES:
1/24 vs. Monterrey Fury â 7:05 pm ET
1/25 @ Dallas Sidekicks â 7:05 pm ET
Major Indoor Soccer League 2 Stories from January 19, 2004
- Philadelphia KiXX Weekly - Philadelphia KiXX
- MISL Names Players of the Week - MISL 2
- Force Forward Earns Weekly MISL Honor - Cleveland Force
- Pappas Receives League Honor for Third Time this Season - Philadelphia KiXX
- Force Forward Injured in Accident - Cleveland Force
- Wave Getting Ready for back-to-back Games with the Force - Milwaukee Wave
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