Philadelphia opens 2005 with a win in KC; returns home for a rematch with the Comets on Jan. 8
Published on January 4, 2005 under Major Indoor Soccer League 2 (MISL 2)
Philadelphia KiXX News Release
Philadelphia, PA, January 4, 2004 âThe Philadelphia KiXX return to the Wachovia Spectrum for a rematch with the Kansas City Comets on Saturday, January 8; the club rang in the New Year with a 7-5 victory in Kansas City on January 1. The first 2,500 fans to enter the gates on January 8 will receive a complimentary 2004-05 Philadelphia KiXX Rally Towel. Game-time is scheduled for 7:05 pm ET, with doors opening at 6:00 pm ET. The team then takes to the road to battle the Cleveland Force on Sunday, January 9. Start-time at the Convocation Center at CSU is slated for 3:05 pm ET, with the action available live via webcast at www.thesportsking.com.
This Week's Itinerary:
Monday, January 3, Off Day
Tuesday, January 4, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Wednesday, January 5, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Thursday, January 6, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Friday, January 7, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Saturday, January 8, KiXX vs. Kansas City Comets, Wachovia Spectrum, 7:05 pm
Sunday, January 9, KiXX @ Cleveland Force, Convocation Center at CSU, 3:05 pm
*all times are Eastern and subject to change
Injury Report:
Player Injury Status
Shawn Boney Foot Out
Joel Shanker Abdominal Questionable
KiXX vs. Comets
2004-05 Series: 1-0 (home 0-0, away 1-0)
Overall: 14-14 (home 7-6, away 7-8)
The Philadelphia KiXX and the Kansas City Comets rang in the New Year with the first of four meetings between the two clubs on Saturday, January 1... the KiXX left Kemper Arena with a 7-5 victory, thanks to four-point effort from seven-year veteran Goran Vasic ... newcomer John Barry Nusum also chipped in with three points ... former MISL Most Valuable Player Dino Delevski and Vlatko Andonovski each tallied two points for Kansas City ... Philadelphia had its postseason ended abruptly last season when the visiting Comets defeated the KiXX, 8-5, in the MISL Quarterfinal match at the Wachovia Spectrum on April 10, 2004 ... player/coach Don D'Ambra registered four of the club's five goals in the contest ... veteran defender Jeff Davis led Kansas City with three points on a pair of goals and one assist, while stabilizing the team's defense with three blocks ... forward Miodrag Djersilo also chipped in with three assists ... the Comets claimed the season series in 2003-04, three-games-to-one, including a two-game sweep in the City of Brotherly Love.
KiXX vs. Force
2004-05 Series: 1-2 (home 0-1, away 1-1)
Overall: 29-18 (home 20-4, away 9-14)
This is the fourth of eight meetings 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 ... for his efforts, Morris was named the MISL's Defensive Player of the Week ... 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 ... 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 ... Namazi then finished the season as the club's player/coach ... all three (DePalma, Handsor, Namazi) were members of Philadelphia's championship team in 2001-02 ... the Force also added all-star defender Wendell Regis via a trade with Baltimore ... last season, the clubs split the six total meetings, with each team winning the series, two-games-to-one at home.
Changes Throughout the MISL: The MISL has experienced several changes in the past few days ... first, the League's Management Committee directed Commissioner Steve Ryan to accept the decision of Mr. Raj Kalra, operator of the San Diego Sockers, to suspend operations of the San Diego Sockers team and to discontinue operations in Monterrey, Mexico for the remainder of the season, effective immediately ... as such, the MISL has released an adjusted schedule and has realigned all seven remaining teams under one division ... all players competing with either San Diego or Monterrey were released from their contract and are available for selection in the MISL Dispersal Draft that is scheduled for Wednesday, January 5 at 2:00 pm ET ... results of the draft will be released on Thursday, January 6 to allow time for the teams to contact their picks ... the postseason format was also adjusted ... under the new system, four of the seven teams with qualify for the playoffs ... complete details of all the changes can be found on the MISL website, www.misl.net.
Effects for the KiXX: The KiXX remaining schedule experienced several minor adjustments as result of the San Diego Sockers and the Monterrey Tigres discontinuing operations for the balance of the season ... first the four road dates with Monterrey and San Diego have been cancelled ... those contests have been replaced with a pair of visits to the Kansas City Comets, February 9 and February 19, and a date versus the Milwaukee Wave at the U.S. Cellular Arena scheduled for April 8 ... also, Monterrey's lone remaining trip to Philadelphia on February 16 has been replaced by the Milwaukee Wave ... the contest will remain on February 16 at 10:35 am ET ... the complete 2004-05 schedule is available online at www.kixxonline.com.
Rookie Making his Mark: Philadelphia newcomer John Barry Nusum continues to standout in his rookie season ... thanks to three-point performance in Kansas City on January 1, the native of Devonshire, Bermuda currently sits atop the MISL Leaderboard with 24 points on a League-high 16 goals and eight assists ... the 23-year-old forward has already registered a pair of hat tricks (three goals) and has scored at least one point in 11 of the 14 games he played this season ... Nusum is also enjoying a six-game point streak.
Tracking the Offense: After opening the season with a season-high 11 goals versus the Force in Cleveland (10/23), the team's offensive production sputtered and dropped as low as fifth in the nine-team League ... the KiXX' offense has seemed to once again find it's grove as the club lit the lamp nine times in two consecutive contests versus the Chicago Storm (12/12, 12/17) and then added six scores versus the Milwaukee Wave on December 18 ... the team's production dropped down with a four-goal effort in Baltimore on December 26, but quickly responded with a 7-5 victory in Kansas City on January 1 to sit the club tied for second in the MISL with a 6.0 goals per game average.
Among the League Leaders: Philadelphia is represented well on the MISL Leaderboard this season ... newcomer John Barry Nusum headlines the team's roster, ranking first in the League with 24 points ... forward Goran Vasic trails close behind at tied for fifth with 21 points, while sitting first in the nine-team MISL with 15 assists ... Philadelphia native Pat Morris currently ranks first with 24 blocks and tied for 11th with 17 points ... player/assistant coach Kevin Sloan snuck onto the board after connecting on a pair of goals in Baltimore (12/26) ... the native of Columbia, MD now ranks tied for 14th with 15 points on 13 goals and 10 assists ... not to be outdone, seven-time all-star Peter Pappas is ranked among the League's leaders in nearly every goalkeeper category ... the Toronto, Ontario native is tied for first in saves (160), second in minutes (715) and wins (7), third in save percentage (.737) and fourth in goals against average (4.78).
KiXX 7, Comets 5 (1/1): Kansas City's Vlatko Andonovski opened the scoring with a strike at 7:39 of the first quarter, and then added an assist with a pass to teammate Miodrag Djersilo at 9:50 to give the Comets an early 2-0 advantage. Just over a minute later (11:02), Philadelphia native Pat Morris found the far post for a restart goal on a dish from Vasic to cut the club's deficit to one, 2-1. KiXX newcomer John Barry Nusum connected on a feed from Ze Roberto (13:13) to close out the opening period with the score tied, 2-2. After KC goalkeeper Chris D'Amico was sent to the penalty box for a charging infraction, Roberto provided Philadelphia their first lead of the night, 3-2, with a power-play goal from Nusum at 2:22 of the second stanza. The Comets' Casey Stevens quickly responded to again knot the score, 3-3, on a dish from Dino Delevski at 3:23. Nusum then rang the bell for the second time of the evening, this one on an assist from Vasic at 8:35, to provide the KiXX with a 4-3 advantage. Delevski tied the score, 4-4, with a penalty-kick goal at 10:05 of the period, courtesy of a two-minute holding penalty called on Philadelphia defender Ptah Myers. KiXX player/coach Don D'Ambra, in his first action in six games, registered the only score of the third period, just 18 seconds into the quarter to give Philadelphia a 5-4 lead entering the final stanza of play. Comets midfielder Jonny Steele knotted the score at 5-5, connecting on a pass from teammate Stefan Stovich at 5:09 of the fourth quarter. Vasic emerged from a scramble at the top of the box and blasted a goal to regain the KiXX advantage, 6-5, at 14:10 of the period. Midfielder Edgar Bartolomeu, who also missed the club's previous four contests, sealed Philadelphia's victory, 7-5, with a tally from Peter Pappas at 14:38. Pappas (7-5) earned the victory in net for Philadelphia, turning away 18 of the 23 shots he faced, while D'Amico (4-3) took the loss for Kansas City with 12 saves on 16 chances.
KiXX RECORD:
Overall: 9-6
Home: 5-3
Road: 4-3
PREVIOUS RESULTS:
1/1 @ Kansas City Comets â W, 7-5
THIS WEEK'S GAMES:
1/8 vs. Kansas City Comets â 7:05 pm ET
Major Indoor Soccer League 2 Stories from January 4, 2005
- Philadelphia opens 2005 with a win in KC; returns home for a rematch with the Comets on Jan. 8 - Philadelphia KiXX
- All remaining Philadelphia KiXX home dates will be played as scheduled - Philadelphia KiXX
- Back-to-back champs announce revised 2005 schedule - Baltimore Blast
- Chicago Storm Schedule Changes Announced - Chicago Storm
- Force announces revised schedule - Cleveland Force
- MISL Releases Revised League Schedule - MISL 2
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