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USSF D-2 Minnesota United FC

Stars Prepare for RailHawks

October 4, 2010 - U.S. Soccer Federation D-2 (USSF D-2)
Minnesota United FC News Release


BLAINE, Minn. (Oct. 4, 2010) -- The NSC Minnesota Stars enter the USSF Division 2 Pro League playoffs as the league's hottest team. Winners of four straight, the Stars are preparing for a two-legged match with the NASL Conference champion Carolina RailHawks.

The Stars are 2-0 against the RailHawks this season, claiming 1-0 wins on April 16 in Cary, N.C., and September 15 in Blaine. Even with their winning streak and the season sweep of the RailHawks, the Stars are staying grounded as they prepare for a team that finished its season with a 13-9-8 record and pipped the Vancouver Whitecaps to the NASL Conference crown on the last day of the season.

"It's good for us to play Minnesota again because we weren't at our best against them in the regular season," RailHawks head coach Martin Rennie told the team's website. "We've got a real hunger to prove ourselves against that team and make up for a couple performances that weren't at the level we've come to expect."

Like the Stars, the RailHawks are riding a winning streak and wave of momentum. After a 1-0 setback in Blaine, it looked unlikely that Carolina could claim the NASL Conference title and the No. 2 playoff seed that came with it, but the RailHawks won three straight to finish the season, scoring nine goals in the process. Carolina's 3-1 win Friday at home against the Austin Aztex led them past the Whitecaps, who slipped all the way down to the fifth overall seed for the eight-team playoffs.

"Carolina was one of the best teams in the league this season, and we're preparing accordingly," Stars head coach Manny Lagos said after practice Monday. "We have to approach the games against them the way we did before, as playing a solid team."

Lagos has been trying to find a balance in the last week-and-a-half between training and recovery. The Stars ended the season with no serious long-term injuries to regular contributors, but Lagos said a 30-game season inevitably takes a toll on players' bodies. Since winning 3-1 at Tampa Bay on September 24 to finish their season, Lagos has been asking his players do go all out in training in exchange for a few more rest days than normal. As a result, he said, the team has had excellent training sessions that are preparing them for the intensity of the playoffs.

"We've had to create a level of routine that's similar to how we approached the regular season, but there's an acknowledgement that there's got to be a greater level of intensity," he said. "It's a unique series. It's two games, and it'll be halftime when we finish at home."

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