KiXX embark on first back-to-back weekend
December 5, 2005 - Major Indoor Soccer League 2 (MISL 2)
Philadelphia KiXX News Release
Philadelphia, PA, November 28, 2005 - The Philadelphia KiXX (2-2) embark on their first set of back-to-back games, commencing with a trip to the U.S. Cellular Arena to battle the defending Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) Champion Milwaukee Wave (5-0) on Friday, December 9. The contest is scheduled to kick-off at 8:05 pm ET. The club then returns to the City of Brotherly Love to entertain the Chicago Storm (2-3) on Saturday, December 10. The first 1,500 fans (14 and older) will receive a complimentary KiXX Dance Team Calendar, courtesy of Cherry Hill Nissan. The 16-month edition features each dance team member in their finest swimsuit attire. Game-time is slated for 7:05 pm ET with doors opening at 6:00 pm ET.
This Week's Itinerary:
Monday, December 5, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Tuesday, December 6, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Wednesday, December 7, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Thursday, December 8, Practice, Tri-State Sports, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Friday, December 9, Travel to Milwaukee
Friday, December 9, KiXX @ Milwaukee Wave, U.S. Cellular Arena, 8:05 pm
Saturday, December 10, Return Travel to Philadelphia
Saturday, December 10, KiXX vs. Chicago Storm, Wachovia Spectrum, 7:05 pm
*all times are Eastern and subject to change
Injury Report:
Player Injury Status
Don D'Ambra Hamstring Questionable
Kevin Sloan Hamstring Questionable
KiXX vs. Wave
2005-06 Series: 0-1 (home 0-1, away 0-0) Overall: 16-23 (home 13-6, away 3-17)
Friday's contest is the second of six meetings between the KiXX and the Milwaukee Wave this season ... the Wave, under the direction of Head Coach Keith Tozer, earned a 6-3 victory in the first match-up at the Wachovia Spectrum on November 19 ... forward Todd Dusosky led all scorers with three points, all assists, while six different scorers struck for Philadelphia ... Milwaukee earned the top spot in the playoffs last season and knocked-off former KiXX player/coach Omid Namazi and the Cleveland Force in the two-game MISL Championship, their fourth League Championship in franchise history ... Milwaukee returns its core with two-time Spalding Scoring Champion Greg Howes leading the way (2nd MISL) with 11 points in five games this season ... netminder Nick Vorberg ranks first among MISL goalkeepers in nearly every category including wins, minutes, saves, goals against average, and save percentage ... Milwaukee won the season series in 2004-05, four games to two.
KiXX vs. Storm
2005-06 Series: 0-0 (home 0-0, away 0-0) Overall: 2-2 (home 1-1, away 1-1)
The Philadelphia KiXX and the Chicago Storm met for the first time in franchise history on November 14, 2004 ... Philadelphia dropped the decision, 4-7, but split the season-series, two-games apiece, in 2004-05 ... KiXX midfielder Andy Guastaferro made his professional indoor debut with Philadelphia in the 2003-04 campaign, but was then selected third overall by the Storm in the 2004 MISL Expansion Draft ... with Chicago, the native of Canandaigua, NY recorded 16 points on 10 goals and six assists ... the KiXX reacquired the rights to the 26-year-old midfielder in exchange for a player-to-be-named on October 24 ... Chicago finalized the deal by selecting Allen Eller, whom the KiXX acquired in the 2005 MISL Dispersal Draft of the Cleveland Force roster ... led by Head Coach Frank Klopas, the Storm enter the contest with a 2-3 overall record ... former Force team captain John Ball leads the team with five points on three goals and two assists ... goalkeeper Danny Waltman ranks third among MISL netminders with a 5.30 goals against average ... the two clubs will square-off a total of six times this season.
Dance Team Calendar Debuts: The 2006 Philadelphia KiXX Dance Team Calendar debuts on Saturday, December 10 as the club battles the Chicago Storm at the Wachovia Spectrum ... the first 1,500 guests (14 and older) will receive a complimentary calendar, courtesy of Cherry Hill Nissan ... the 16-month edition, commencing January 2006, features each dance team member in their finest swimsuit attire ... following the contest, the calendar will be available for purchase at all KiXX home games in the 2005-06 campaign and through the KiXX Office at 1-888-888-KIXX (5499).
Offensive Outburst: The KiXX entered the fourth quarter tied, 4-4, with the expansion California Cougars on December 3 ... just 52 seconds into the period, defender Drew Kopp connected with teammate Andy Guastaferro to give the KiXX their first lead of the night, 5-4 ... the tally opened the flood gates, as the team would rattle off three more unanswered goals and a total of six in the quarter ... forward Goran Vasic and defender Drew Kopp paced the club with two goals apiece, while six other players lit the lamp for Philadelphia ... the outburst marked the best offensive output for the club in both a single quarter and over the length of a game this season.
Goalkeeper Honored: The MISL announced today that Philadelphia KiXX goalkeeper Peter Pappas has been named the League's Goalkeeper-of-the-Week for the seven-day period ending December 4 ... the distinction is the first such honor for the Toronto, Ontario native in the 2005-06 season and the second for the club after teammate Ptah Myers earned the Defensive Player-of-the-Week accolade for the seven-day period ending November 13 ... the 10-year veteran posted yet another stellar performance between the posts for Philadelphia, earning a 10-5 victory versus the expansion California Cougars on December 3 ... Pappas turned away 12 of the 17 shots he faced to even his record at 2-2 this season and currently ranks tied for second in saves (52), third in save percentage (.703), tied for third in wins, and fourth in both minutes played (236) and goals against average (5.59) ... overall in his career, he has received Player-of-the Week honors 23 times, as well as nine Player-of-the-Month honors.
Midfielders Debut: Philadelphia announced the signings of local-product Steve Wacker to a five-game/15-day contract and midfielder David Schofield for the remainder of the 2005-06 season on December 2 ... each player made their professional indoor debut versus the California Cougars on December 3 ... Wacker received a five-minute misconduct penalty in the contest ... the Temple University graduate was named the Philadelphia Soccer Seven Academic Player of the Year after his senior season of 2004 and with Academic All-Atlantic 10 and ESPN The Magazine Second Team All-America accolades ... the 22-year-old midfielder most recently competed with the Ocean City Barons in the Premier Development League (PDL), where he appeared in 13 games during the 2005 season ... Schofield recorded four goals and 10 assists for 18 points in 27 games with the Harrisburg City Islanders of the United Soccer League (USL) Second Division in 2005 ... he was named to the USL Second Division Team of the Week for his play in Week 14 and also earned weekly honors three times with the Islanders in 2004
Homegrown Talent: With the acquisition of midfielder Steve Wacker, the KiXX roster now features six players with ties to the local area ... player/coach Don D'Ambra, all-star defender Pat Morris, rookie-midfielder Tim O'Neill, and Wacker are all alumni of Northeast Catholic, while two-year veteran defender Chris Fehrle is a product of Holy Ghost Prep in Bensalem ... rookie midfielder David Castellanos was born in Fairfax, VA, but relocated to Philadelphia early in his childhood and considers the City of Brotherly Love his hometown.
Power-Less: Philadelphia's power-play unit finally capitalized on a man-advantage opportunity, as player/coach Don D'Ambra blasted a right-footer into the back of the net versus California on December 3 ... the power-play tally marked the first of the season after failing to connect on their previous three opportunities ... the unit is still at the bottom of the League with a 25 percent (1-of-4) success rate ... vice versa, the club's penalty-killing unit ranks fourth in the six-team League, blocking three-of-the-five (60.0) man-down situations they have faced ... last season, Philadelphia ranked third in power-play success rate (54.0) and first in kill rate (64.7).
Scorin' Goran: KiXX forward Goran Vasic exploded offensively for a season-high three points versus California on December 3 ... the native of Belgrade, Yugoslavia recorded his first goal of the season in the second quarter and then added an assist and his second goal in the fourth stanza ... Vasic is now only one of two players (John Barry Nusum) that has recorded at least one point in each of the club's four games this season ... defender Ptah Myers had previously notched a point in each of the team's first three outings ... Vasic is also currently riding a game-played streak of 43, dating back to last season ... with the offensive outburst, the eight-year veteran moves into a tie for third place on the MISL leaderboard with six points on two goals and four assists ... he finished the 2004-05 season with 42 points on 11 goals and a club-high 31 assists (tied 2nd MISL) and also led the club in both points (48) and assists (34) in 2003-04.
Back-to-Back: The club competes in seven sets of back-to-back games this season ... the first series commences on Friday, December 9 when the team battles the MISL Champion Milwaukee Wave at the U.S. Cellar Arena and concludes on Saturday, December 10 versus the Chicago Storm at the Wachovia Spectrum ... last season (2004-05), the club posted a 7-4 record in the first game of back-to-back series and a 5-5 mark in the latter contest ... concluded their home-and-home series and their last set of back-to-back games this season with a 6-3 loss to the League-leading Milwaukee Wave on April 9 ... on the season, the KiXX posted a 7-4 record in the first game of the back-to-back series and a 5-5 mark (game versus St. Louis on 1/22 was postponed) in the latter contest ... listed below are all of the back-to-back sets this season:
Date Opponent W/L* Date Opponent W/L*
12/9 at Milwaukee 8:05 pm 12/10 vs. Chicago 7:05 pm
1/20 at Milwaukee 8:05 pm 1/21 vs. Milwaukee 7:05 pm
1/28 vs. Chicago 7:05 pm 1/29 at Chicago 5:00 pm
3/3 at Baltimore 7:35 pm 3/4 vs. Baltimore 7:05 pm
3/18 vs. St. Louis 7:05 pm 3/19 at Milwaukee 2:05 pm
4/8 vs. Baltimore 7:05 pm 4/9 at Chicago 5:00 pm
*all times are Eastern and subject to change
Last Week's Outing(s):
KiXX 10, Cougars 5 (12/3): The Philadelphia KiXX recorded a season-high six goals in the fourth quarter en route to a 10-5 victory versus the California Cougars on December 3. Ato Leone opened the scoring with a tally from Aaron Susi at 2:20 of the first quarter, but KiXX forward John Barry Nusum quickly responded with a notch on a pass from teammate Drew Kopp to knot the score, 1-1, at 2:44. The Cougars regained their one-goal advantage, 2-1, as midfielder Brian Farber connected with Philadelphia native Anthony Maher at 5:24 of the stanza. Holy Ghost Prep graduate Chris Fehrle then buried a shot from behind the yellow line into the back of the net to again pull the clubs even, 2-2, at 9:42. With only 16 seconds remaining in the opening period, Cougars midfielder Ronnie Ekelund found the back of the net on a feed from Antonio Sutton, giving California a 3-2 lead. After 10 minutes of scoreless action (10:10) in the second quarter, Philadelphia native Pat Morris sliced the Cougars defense with a pass to teammate Goran Vasic, who easily deposited the ball past Larkin for his first goal (fourth point) of the season. Sutton recorded his second assist of the evening, this time to Ricardinho who put California back ahead one, 4-3, at 1:42 of the third period. With Maher in the penalty box for a two-minute tripping infraction, player/coach Don D'Ambra blasted a right-footer just inside the far post to knot the score, 4-4, at 8:05; the tally marked the club's first power-play goal of the season. Philadelphia's offensive exploded for four unanswered goals to open the final quarter of play and take an 8-4 lead, before Maher finally halted the scoring assault with a score on a pass from Ekelund at 6:36. Kopp struck first on a feed from Guastaferro less than minute into the period (0:52), followed by unassisted tallies from Philadelphia natives Tim O'Neill (1:40) and David Castellanos (3:11). Forward Shawn Boney rounded out the scoring on a pass from Vasic at 4:07. Vasic and Kopp sealed the victory, 10-5, with their second tallies of the evening at 9:47 and 13:39, respectively.
KiXX RECORD:
Overall: 2-2
Home: 2-1
Road: 0-1
PREVIOUS RESULTS:
12/3 vs. California Cougars - W, 10-5
THIS WEEK'S GAMES:
12/9 at Milwaukee Wave - 8:05 pm ET
12/10 vs. Chicago Storm - 7:05 pm ET
• Discuss this story on the Major Indoor Soccer League 2 message board...
Major Indoor Soccer League 2 Stories from December 5, 2005
- Elvir Kafedzic Named Offensive Player of the Week - St. Louis Steamers
- Blast Improves to 3-1 after 6-3 win over Chicago - Baltimore Blast
- KiXX embark on first back-to-back weekend - Philadelphia KiXX
- Peter Pappas Named MISL Goalkeeper of the Week - Philadelphia KiXX
- MISL names players of the week - MISL 2
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