Tag: usl

Former Japan World Cup striker Takayuki Suzuki recorded a goal and an assist to lead the Portland Timbers to a 2-0 win over the Seattle Sounders in front of 9,894 fans at PGE Park on Saturday night — its 17th straight game without a defeat at home. The Timbers are in first place after three weeks with a perfect record of 3-0. For all the weekend results and goalscorers …

Former MLS player Chris Brown scored a late goal with a one-man advantage to help the Portland Timbers defeat the Puerto Rico Islanders, 1-0, in front of 10,977 fans Friday at PGE Park. In other USL First Division action, defending champion Seattle needed a save by goalie Chris Eyelander on Mike Richardson‘s penalty kick to keep the Sounders in the game and then Kenji Treschuk‘s equalizer in stoppage time to earn a 1-1 tie at Charleston. For all the USL-1 scores and goal scorers …

The San Francisco-based California Victory, which debuted in 2007, won’t return to USL-1 in 2008 but defending champion Seattle Sounders will return for one more season before Seattle becomes an MLS city in 2009 – setting up an 11-team slate in which each team will play 30 games.

Ten teams will compete in USL-2 in 2008, with the return of the Pittsburgh Riverhounds after a one-year hiatus and the arrival of expansion Real Maryland. Longtime USL-2 club New Hampshire Phantoms and the Cincinnati Kings have joined the Premier Development League for the 2008 season.

The PDL will consist of 67 teams in 2008, playing in 10 divisions that comprise four conferences. Expansion teams are the Kalamazoo Outrage, Houston Leones, Panama City Pirates, New Jersey Rangers, Austin Stampede and Vancouver Whitecaps U23s. For a list of all teams and conferences …

Amid reports that an MLS expansion team including their ownership group may be awarded to Seattle for the 2009 season, the Seattle Sounders won their record fourth USL First Division title Saturday with a 4-0 win over the Atlanta Silverbacks before a standing-room-only crowd of 4,893 at the Starfire Sports & Entertainment Complex. Seattle’s USL-1 MVP hails from the French Second Division, but its nucleus consists of college products, five of whom have spent time with MLS clubs.

The Seattle Sounders will be aiming for their fourth USL First Division title Saturday (Fox Soccer Channel, 10 pm ET) when it hosts the Atlanta Silverbacks, who are making their first final appearance. The Sounders won titles in 1995, 1996 and 2005. And this year’s championship game marks their third final appearance in four years. Here’s how that run compares to past USL clubs …

Fans of San Francisco’s USL-1 club, the California Victory, have launched a campaign to save the franchise after the original owner, Spanish club Alaves, withdrew its support. The California Victory Supporters Association, known as “The 1906,” are selling shares at $100 a pop at ww.savethevictory.org . Meanwhile, the club is negotiating with domestic and foreign investors. “The 1906 are a very determined group of supporters who brought a great atmosphere to our games,” said Victory coach Glenn Van Straatum. “They’re demonstrating that we have a good core of fans with the potential to grow into a strong support base.”

Three players hit significant milestones in USL First Division all-league honors with Montreal’s Gabriel Gervais being selected for a sixth time. Portland’s Andrew Gregor and Rochester’s Johnny Menyongar were named all-league for the fourth time in their career. Montreal and Portland led all teams with four selections each on the two all-league teams. For the first- and second-team selections …

The Richmond Kickers defend their USL-2 crown when they host the Harrisburg City Islanders in the 2007 final on Saturday (Fox Soccer Channel, delay, 10:00 pm ET).

The Laredo Heat won its first Premier Development League championship with a 4-3 win over the Michigan Bucks in a shootout to gain revenge for their loss to Michigan in last year’s final. Felix Garcia, 17, scored the winner in the shootout that followed 120 minutes of scoreless play.

First-half goals from Rebecca Moros and former U.S. international Christie Welsh gave the Washington Freedom a lead it would not relinquish en route to a 3-1 victory over the Atlanta Silverbacks to capture the 2007 W-League championship in its first season in the league.

The Michigan Bucks and Laredo Heat will meet next Saturday in Laredo, Texas, in a rematch of last year’s Premier Development League championship game. The defending champion Bucks clinched a berth in the final with a 5-4 win over the Brooklyn Knights on penalty kicks after their game ended in a 1-1 tie. Laredo returned to the PDL championship courtesy of a 1-0 victory over the Fresno Fuego before a crowd of 2,713 at the Student Activity Center.

[PDL RESULTS] The expansion Hampton Roads Piranhas clinched the top seed in the Eastern Conference and captured the PDL regular season title, becoming only the eighth team to finish with an unbeaten record in PDL history. The defending champion Michigan Bucks will host the Central Conference playoff tournament July 27-28. The complete playoff field: Central Conference — Cape Cod Crusaders, Brooklyn Knights, Michigan Bucks, Chicago Fire Premier, Thunder Bay Chill, St. Louis Lions, Hampton Roads Piranhas, Ocean City Barons, Carolina Dynamo, Central Florida Kraze, Laredo Heat, El Paso Patriots, BYU, Tacoma Tide, Fresno Fuego and San Fernando Valley Quakes.

The host Rochester Rhinos have a bye into the final four of the W-League playoffs, which they will host. They will be joined by the three conference champions. The defending champion Vancouver Whitecaps did not qualify for the playoffs. The following teams clinched playoff berths: Eastern Conference — Washington Freedom, Jersey Sky Blue, Northern Virginia Majestics, Ottawa Fury, Toronto Lady Lynx, Laval Comets; Central Conference — Atlanta Silverbacks, Richmond Kickers Destiny, Minnesota Lightning, Michigan Hawks; Western Conference — San Diego Sunwaves, Seattle Sounders.

Former Portland Timber forward Byron Alvarez helped the Charleston Battery end USL First Division leader Portland’s seven-game winning streak as the Timbers fell 2-0 to the Battery Sunday night at Blackbaud Stadium. The Richmond Kickers became the first team to clinch a playoff berth in the USL-2. For complete results and goalscorers …

[PDL RESULTS] BYU, the only college team represented in the PDL, improved to 12-1-1 with a 2-1 win over Northwest Division rival Ogden on goals by Tyson Miller and William Fellows on Saturday. The Cougars lead second-place Tacoma by eight points. For complete PDL results and goalscorers …

[W-LEAGUE RESULTS] The Minnesota Lightning remained unbeaten with road wins over the Chicago Gaels (2-1) and West Michigan Firewomen (1-0) over the weekend. Kelsey Hans had the winning goal in the win over West Michigan, her sixth goal in six games. For complete PDL results and goalscorers …

Forward David Hague recorded Portland’s first hat trick of the season in a 4-1 over the California Victory on Sunday. The win puts the Timbers into sole possession of first place in the USL First Division with a record of 9-2-3. Two days earlier, rookie forward Bryan Jordan scored his fourth goal of the season as the Timbers defeated the Victory, 1-0, in front of 6,332 at PGE Park. Portland recorded its fourth consecutive shutout matching a franchise record set earlier in the season. For complete USL results and goalscorers …