St. Louis Ambush Host Tacoma Stars Sunday
January 21, 2021 - Major Arena Soccer League (MASL)
St. Louis Ambush News Release
St. Charles, Missouri - The St. Louis Ambush clash with the Tacoma Stars Sunday at 5:05 p.m. CST at the Family Arena.
After opening the season with two losses to Florida, the Ambush bounced back to defeat the Dallas Sidekicks on January 9, followed by a win at home against the Kansas City Comets on January 16. Tacoma kicks off their season with a visit to the Comets on Friday night, followed by Sunday's contest at the Family Arena.
Tacoma comes to town with an offense bolstered by their off-season acquisition of forward Vini Dantas from the Baltimore Blast. Dantas has been a consistent scoring threat throughout his career and tallied 37 goals and 17 assists for the Blast last season. Dantas joins player and head coach Nick Perera, who posted 42 points last season and Micheal Ramos, who tallied 41 points. In goal for Tacoma, veteran goalkeeper Danny Waltman continues to be a dependable presence between the pipes. He finished ninth in the MASL in goals against average (6.01) last season.
Ten different Ambush players have scored goals thus far this season, lead by Vadim Cojocov and Ado Jahic with three each. Max Ferdinand continues to be one of the league's best playmakers, leading the team and ranking second in the league in assists with six. Ambush goalkeeper Paulo Nascimento has been solid in goal thus far, ranking second in the MASL in goals against average (5.50) and in save percentage (.702).
Ferdinand talked about the team's recent success saying, "Chemistry is a big reason. We've been training hard and now we're seeing the results on the field. We just have to keep working hard and control what we can control. We have another tough test against Tacoma this weekend. Perera will have those guys ready to play but we'll be ready to go also. It should be a great game! The coaching staff is doing a great job getting us ready."
In looking ahead to Sunday's game, Jahic said, "Big game ahead for us on Sunday and it's one we are all looking forward too. Tacoma is always is a good team but I am feeling good about our group of guys getting the job done especially being in the advantage of already playing some games as a group." He also said he is happy to have contributed to the team's success thus far and feels the team will continue to improve. "We have a talented group of guys here and we are gelling together and realizing how special we truly can be. The turnaround in the last two games is showing what we really are capable of even though I don't think we have reached our full potential yet but we are getting there," he said.
Jahic concluded with a tip of a hat to the fans. "Thank you to the fans that have stuck around even when times weren't good. This isn't the old Ambush where teams can check off wins on their schedule, any team that comes in or we go to will have to play to their maximum to get the best of us. It's time to bring playoff soccer back to St. Louis and it feels that much more special for me being a kid that grew up in this city and knows what this city is capable of. Time to flip the page and focus on Tacoma and get ready for the task ahead!"
Following Sunday's match, the Ambush continue their current home stand when the Florida Tropics come to town for a pair of games January 29 and 31, followed by a two-game set against the Ontario Fury February 5 and 6. Tickets for upcoming home games are available at the Family Arena box office or online at ticketmaster.com. All Ambush games can also be viewed online at Facebook Live PPV .
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Major Arena Soccer League Stories from January 21, 2021
- St. Louis Ambush Host Tacoma Stars Sunday - St. Louis Ambush
- Stars Open 2021 Schedule Friday Night in Kansas City - Tacoma Stars
- Comets Open 2021 Home Schedule Friday against Tacoma - Kansas City Comets
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