Closer look

THE OPENING TWENTY MINUTES
The Heat opened the game strong, as the Chill needed 20 minutes to settle into its game plan. In that span, the Heat pressed offensively, but all of its shots were blocked by the well-placed Chill defense.
The Heat’s Raul Quinones figured big in the opening minutes of the contest. The Chill’s ScottMilroth saved his first shot on goal before it crossed the goal line in the seventh minute. In the twelfth Quinones was a couple of inches short from redirecting a Cruz centering pass into the back of the net. His final attempt came in the closing minute of the first half, after Ibarra air mailed a pass as he ran into the area. This time the Chill’s Stephen Patterson saved his shot with his stomach, as he dove in the middle of the box. The Chill's only threat on goal came on a counter attack around the 16th minute when Brandon Swartzendruber broke free and found a streaking Jeremy Gold down the right side, the Heat’s Ryan Cooper saved Gold’s shot.

MINUTES 20 to 30
The Heat and Chill traded shots on goal with the Heat sending a free kick to the keepers hands in the 20th and the Chill creating a shot in the 23rd. The game began leveling out as the Chill became more aggressive. The team's traded some shots on goal, but the game itself took on a more physical tone which was the overriding theme along with good defensive play.

MINUTES 30-45
The first yellow card of the night was given to the Heat's Leone Cruz. The second came a minute later, given to the Chill's Anthony Putrus. (In all, there were ten yellows, one player earned two to get ejected). The stout defensive play by both teams continued.


SECOND HALF
Things started great for the Heat, as they scored the opening goal in the first minute of the second half, but things couldn't of ended worse.
The scoring play began innocently enough, until Leone Cruz spotted Felix Garcia moving down the left area and sent a well placed pass that was chested down perfectly by Garcia. Who unleashed a blast that ricocheted off the cross bar and landed in front of him again. This time the shot was misplayed by the goalie and Juan Dios Ibarra capitalized. For the next series of plays the Heat looked to ride the momentum swing and were hoping to take control of the contest, but the momentum came to a halt in the 51st minute when the Chill's Robert Swann nearly knocked in the equalizer, his shot sailed just wide of the left post. At the 60^th minute Heat goalie Ryan Cooper made a good save off a Scott Milroth header, three minutes later though his luck would change. As sub and 2008 Championship MVP Gustavo Oliveira scored the equalizer with a lob over Cooper.The Heat’s Silas Blackwell had a solo effort in the 67^th minute, but his shot sailed safely into Patterson’s hands.

MAN ADVANTAGE

The Chill did a great job of minimizing the effect of being a man down, they stayed with eight men in their side of the field at all times. The Heat was able to create scoring chances, but the shots were either blocked or off target. Isaac Morales came close in the closing seconds where Paterson saved his mid range shot.

EXTRA TIME

The Chill’s game plan was simple, withstand the barrage until its time for penalty kicks. Laredo did not make it easy. Morales froze the crowd for a second time when his shot landed atop of the net, tricking some of the fans into thinking it was a goal. It was the second time that a Morales shot landed atop the net. Dionisio Infante came close to heading a pass in the 111^th minute when Silas found him in the far post. Felix closed the game with a shot that sailed over the cross bar.

PENALTY KICKS

The Chill's Stephen Paterson was the mind reader on Saturday. He missed Daniel Galvan's low liner to the left post. He made up for it by not biting on the double move that Carlos Ordaz tried and dove correctly to the left to block the shot.
Against Steve Su he managed to get a foot on Su's Roller as it rolled down the center.

The Heat's Ryan Cooper one year removed from his MVP performance in last year's championship game, had another outstanding year, but wasn't as fortunate this time. The penalties were knocked in by Gustavo Oliveira with a mid-line shot to the left. Brandon Swartzendruber followed with a liner to the right post. Casey Gold went back to the left and the cup clincher was knocked in by Nolan Intermoia who sent the ball down the left center.

If the Heat return most of their core group of players, they have an excellent shot at returning to the championship game. It'll be interesting where Cooper lands. He has the tools to be moving up the soccer ranks. Garcia is sure to be joining his Under-20 U.S. teamamtes in Florida some time soon. Most of the Heat players can be playing in higher level leagues this time next year.

HARD KNOCKS

The Chill's plan was simple, knock Felix Garcia off the ball at every turn. Garcia who was nursing a tender ankle was fouled at a minimum eight times. In fact the Chill weren't shy in creating contact as they racked up 26 fouls to Laredo's 12.
Considering Felix had a tough week with the birth of his daughter on Friday, playing 120 minutes was quite a feat for the 18 year-old phenom.

Heart breaking

There really is no other way to put it. The Laredo heat fought hard to get to this point and left their mark in the PDL history book by reaching the championship game three times, but defending the title would've been the perfect capper to a otherwise great season.
It wasn't for lack of trying, but they ran into a Thunder Bay team that had a remarkable run to the Championship, twice overcoming obstacles. The first came in their opening round versus Cleveland where they not only survived being two men down for the second half but scored the two winning goals and shut out the Internationals.
On Saturday the team was down a man for 14 regular time minutes, four compensation minutes and two 15 minute halves. While they didn't score and certainly didn't dominate, they did hold off a potent Heat offense and won Canada's first soccer championship.

The atmosphere was great as TAMIU was filled with about 3,430 Heat fans and 21 Chill fans.

Chill defeats Heat on penalty kicks in PDL Championship game

Thunder Bay coach Tony Colistro said on Thursday that he believes a team can, at times, play better being a man down.

On Saturday, his team set out to prove his point, withstanding a Heat offensive barrage for 48 minutes and winning the Premier Development League Championship 5-2 on penalty kicks at Dustdevil Field before a crowd of 3,451.

The Thunder Bay clamped down defensively in the final 18 minutes of the second half once Scott Milroth was ejected after his second yellow card for a foul on Daniel Galvan.

In the two 15-minute overtimes, the Chill just flooded the backfield and were able to hold the stalemate.

On the penalty kicks, Gustavo Oliveira, Brandon Swartzendruber, Casey Gold and Nolan Intermoia scored.

On the other side, Galvan knocked in the only penalty kick, as Carlos Ordaz and Steve Su were blocked by keeper Stephen Paterson.

Oliveira donned the hero’s cape for his club as it was his 63rd minute equalizer, after coming in as a sub in the 53rd, that helped bring Canada its first PDL championship.

Oliveira was questionalble coming into the game and was pressed into action after the Heat took a 1-0 advantage in the opening minute of the second half.

Juan De Dios Ibarra knocked in a blocked shot and lifted his team to the early lead.

The socre was made possible by heady play by defender Leone Cruz, who sent a long pass across the field to Felix Garcia, who controlled the ball beautifully with his chest.

He then let loose a blast that bounced of Patterson’s cross bar and landed again in Garcia’s path as his second shot wasn’t corraled by Patterson, and Ibarra was there for the score.

The momentum shifted in the Heat’s favor for the next six minutes before the game again settled into the defensive struggle that was the tone of the night.

The equalizer came off a break down the Heat’s right side in which Milroth, from the top of the key, found Oliveira on the corner of the goal area box.

Oliveira than lifted the ball over goalie Ryan Cooper as he charged to close the already tough angle.

The Heat opened the game strong as the Chill needed 20 mintues to settle into its game.

In that span, the Heat pressed offensively, but all of its shots were blocked by the well-placed Chill defense.

New arrival

The Heat's Felix Garcia and Rachel Carranza welcomed to the world their baby girl Milly, Friday morning. Both have garnered MVP prep honors and are ecstatic to have another potential soccer phenom. The birth of his baby girl has kept him occupied and sleepless, even so he says he's ready to play against the Thunder Bay Chill today for the Premier Development League championship. That's quite a handful for the young man who was also awarded with the PDL Under-19 player of the year and was named to the All-league team.

Both clubs met for the first time today at Myreida's reception hall in a meet-and-greet. For the story check out today's paper.
Even though the Chill if from Canada, the core group of players are from the United States.

Fox Soccer Channel set-up shop on Friday and is going to air the game live on Fox Soccer Channel. The kick off is at 8 p.m.

Team effort boosts Heat

Here's Nino Cardenas' Heat story that ran in today's paper. Unlike the Broncos, the Heat's team effort has been the catalyst to their third championship game in as many years.

Also, a reminder about ticket info: General admission is $10 with VIP seating $20. Kids 12-and-under get in free.

Tickets will be available at Palenque Grill, all Taco Palenque locations, Talk Time and Gametronics. Tickets will be in sale at those locations until Saturday and at the gate on game day.

Early bird special

For those following the U.S. team in the olympics, soccer gets a start before the ceremony.

The U.S. Men’s Olympic Team is ready to kick off its campaign at the 2008 Olympic Games, taking on Japan in the Group B opener on Thursday, Aug. 7, at 5 p.m. local time (5 a.m. ET) from Tianjin Olympic Sport Stadium in Tianjin, China. The game, one day before the Opening Ceremonies in Beijing, will be shown live on MSNBC, the NBC Olympic Soccer Channel and Universal HD.

Lights, Camera, more lights and action

The game is staying put at TAMIU, the main concern was the lights. The SAC provides better lighting and the Fox Soccer Channel crew was already familiar with the facility. At TAMIU the stands might be too dark for the TVs liking and in an effort to squeeze in a little more light the game was moved to 7:45 p.m. The Laredo Heat (the actual weather) still plays a factor in game time.
Also for the second time in Laredo History a sporting event is going to be broadcast LIVE nationally by a network. The first was the Orlando Canizales fight at the Civic Center on CBS.
The Chill don't get into town until Thursday, but in the meantime you can read some basic information about the club in general in Tuesday's article.

Made for TV

The Laredo Heat versus Thunder Bay Chill game took an interesting twist as the game site is going to be determined by Tuesday. With Fox Soccer Channel broadcasting the game nationally, they had become accustomed to the Heat's fine accommodations at the Student Activity Complex.
The layout at TAMIU is yet to be deemed fit to be able to accommodate the broadcast team that'll be making its way to Laredo.
If the Heat plays in the SAC, it means artificial turf and a roomier venue for fans. Most of the team's players played at the SAC last season and they'll have the ability to attract a much larger number of fans. So the drawback is minimal. All in all the club prefers to play at TAMIU. If words comes down that it'll be at the SAC the team will have the opportunity to practice there on Wednesday.

"Just how soft are these guys?"

That quote is not directed at the family of the Pillsburry Doughboy.
After a series of fouls on several Heat players sent them to the ground, the Rage coach found himself screaming at the side judge "Just how soft are these guys?" The coach said these words after Captain Daniel Galvan crashed to the ground after being clocked in the nose. Not knowing the severity or that Galvan was actually hit and would sit out the next 20 or so minutes due to a bloody nose. While soccer lends itself to the acting world when it comes to fouls and brings out the Hamlet out of some players, that was a legit reason to fall.
The momentum clearly swung as the Heat managed to control the ball and knock in the game winner while being a man down. OF NOTE: The Thunder Bay Chill, their opponent in the championship won 2-0 despite playing with two men down in the second half in their postseason opener.

OHH THE MISSED OPPORTUNITIES...The Heat straightened out the ship just in time for this playoff run, but this game had its share of what if's, that never came to be, since they won...
The first was in the 16th minute when Garcia kicked the ball past the goalie and watched it get blocked by defender Scott Rowling in the goal line, Mr. Right place right time. That label though was later claimed by the Heat's Pedro Ramos who's first goal as a Heat came at the perfect time. He was johnny on the spot, after several bounces the ball landed on his feet and he sent it on its way to the back of the net.
Garcia again almost scored the opening goal in the 30th minute in which the Rage’s Marc Benson nearly paid dearly for his mental mistake. Benson with Garcia bearing down on him decided to send the ball back to his goalie, but failed to add the necessary oomph to get it there, Garcia sped past Benson and intercepted the attempt. His shot though was slightly off target as it just missed the left side post.
From the 16th minute on the Heat took the offensive. The first 15 minutes of the game was a toe dipping water tempature taking kind've affair.

UP NEXT
The fun begins again next Saturday... In the meantime, some quick facts about the Central Conference Champs Thunder Bay Chill: They're 16-2-1 so far this season and have scored 50 goals and allowed only 18. They have posted two shutouts this postseason, and the club has been in the playoffs twice in nine years. They lost in their opener last season. On the road the team went 7-1-0. This is no doubt the Canadian team's longest road trip.
'Till next time.

Heat wins to advance to championship

The Heat shutout the Rage to advance to the PDL championship game next weekend.

Laredo claimed a 2-0 win before a crowd of 1,693 at the TAMIU Soccer Complex.

The Heat will play the Thunder Bay Chill next Saturday at the soccer complex. Kickoff is slated for 8:15 p.m.

Game day

It's game time.

Laredo Heat vs. Reading Rage in the PDL Semifinals with a championship berth on the line.

Need more?

Here you go.

Almost game time

We're one day away from the Heat hosting the Rage for a chance at another PDL championship berth.

Nino Cardenas will have a preview story for tomorrow's paper. Here's the story that ran in Thursday's Times.

The Heat will also have an advertorial page in Saturday's Sports section so Heat loyalists can look forward to that as well.

The Heat and Rage held a press conference at La Quinta today. Not much was said since neither team has seen the other play.

It was basically an opportunity to exchange pleasantries and build the hype for tomorrow's contest.

Heat prepare for semifinals

While the city goes about its everyday business looking for something to do in order to break from the monotony of the workweek and nightlife there is a select group of indivduals awaiting, yet again, an opportunity of a lifetime.

Laredo gets a sports treat as its very own Laredo Heat (10-4-4) venture into the Premier Development League semifinals for the third time in a row and are on the verge of further adding to their rich playoff history if they advance to the championships.

No team in the PDL or any of the nation’s other professional soccer leagues have seen the same club set foot in the championship game.

Saturday, the Southern Conference champ Heat hosts Eastern Conference champ Reading Rage (13-3-2) at the Texas A&M International soccer grounds.

“This team (Heat) plays with soul and heart, and they leave it all on the field. We’re hoping the city comes out and supports us,” Heat coach Israel Collazo said.

Earlier in the month, with the Heat’s chances of clinching a playoff spot on the line, the club switched gears and steamrolled into the playoffs. It isn’t planning on easing up any time soon.

“As the Houston Leones game was coming up, I told the guys that we have seven games left to play in the season. This game is the beginning of our championship run, and I firmly believed the team has it in them,” Collazo said.

Three crucial regular season games and two postseason games later the Heat is looking to prove Collazo a seer as the final two games approach.

“It’s as I’ve said before, its not about getting their first, but about knowing how it is you got there,” Collazo said.

With players’ mindsets in high gear and stress and pressure increasing at every turn, the club’s previous playoff history has been the calming force they’ve needed.

“The last three regular season games were essentially like gasoline for us in that they became the driving force which we are riding at the moment,” Collazo said.

The Heat’s five game winning streak began with a goal barrage against the Leones, 7-0. It was followed by a crucial win over bitter rival El Paso (3-1) and a easy shutout over a deflated New Orleans team (4-0) to close out the regular season.

The Heat crashed a party in Florida by defeating the host Central Florida Kraze in a nerve racking 2-1 win and finally plucked the thorn from their side by beating the Austin Aztex 3-1 in their third attempt.

“The party was set in anticipation of a Florida win, and unfortunately they ran into us and we had enough to win,” Collazo said.

“We were up 2-1 and controlled the game up to the 80th minute, then with their backs against the wall they began to control the pace and it proved to be a difficult and tiring game,” he added.
The Kraze had the benefit of nine minutes of compensation time, but still fell short of knocking in the tying score.

The following day versus Austin things began as they did before with Laredo trailing, but ended with a much different outcome.

“Austin in the first 25 minutes ran over us with quality football, but after that we took control of the game and the ejection of one of their players in the 42nd minute also helped,” Collazo said.
The Heat was spurred by its offensive weapon, Felix Garcia, who collected three goals in the games. While Felix adding to his goal tally doesn’t come as a surprise, the two goals Greg Mulamba scored were a welcome sight.

“Mulamba to me has been the team MVP. I mean, yes, the whole team has been outstanding, but he’s a player that plays in a position that doesn’t lend itself to attention from the fans. He has been stealing and passing and basically helping stabilize the midfield all season,” Collazo said.

Mulamba has three goals on the season and Felix has scored 14 goals.

Semifinals Set

As previously stated, the Heat will face the Reading Rage in one PDL Semifinal. A few hours ago, the Vancouver Whitecaps defeated the Tacoma Tide 4-1 to earn a meeting with the Thunder Bay Chill in the other semifinal, which will a Canadian affair.

Both games will be played on Saturday, Aug. 2, and the winners will meet in the PDL Finals on Saturday, Aug. 9. The Heat will be looking for its third straight trip to the title game.

Heat PDL Semifinal

It was announced today that the Heat will face the Reading Rage in the PDL Semifinals at the Texas A&M International Soccer Complex on Saturday, Aug. 2, at 8 p.m.

The other semifinal has yet to be determined, as the Vancouver Whitecaps and Tacoma Tide are still battling it out for the Western Conference title.

Conference Finals photos

Randy Van Cleave was kind enough to send us some photos from the Heat's conference final win over the Aztex. One of these pictures is in today's paper, but here it is again, along with another:




Thanks again to Randy; we also have one more photo from the game that we will be using this week.

Heat defends Southern Conference Title

The Heat did what they hadn't been able to do all season on Saturday, July 26, defeating the Austin Aztex 3-1 to win the Southern Conference for the second straight year.

Felix Garcia scored twice and Gregory Mulamba once for the Heat, with all three goals coming in the second half. Jamie Watson scored for the Aztex in the first half.

Match statistics can be found here, and the game story is here.

The Heat will now host a PDL Semifinal game this Saturday at the TAMIU Soccer Complex. Time and opponent have yet to be announced, but check back here for that information.

Other PDL conference finals games are being played today, July 27, with the Brooklyn Knights and Reading Rage facing off in the East, the Kalamazoo Outrage and Thunder Bay Chill in the Central Conference and the Vancouver Whitecaps and Tacoma Tide in the West.

Pictures From Semifinal Game

Thanks to Central Florida photographer Randy Van Cleave, we were able to get a few pictures from the Heat's win over the Kraze in the Southern Conference Semis. However, the pictures did not get to us until after deadline, so they did not make into the paper. Here are the shots we received:




Thanks again to Randy Van Cleave for the photos.

Heat defeats Kraze

The Heat defeated the Central Florida Kraze 2-1 on Friday, July 25, to advance to the Southern Conference Finals for the third straight year.

Felix Garcia and Gregory Mulamba were the goal scorers for Laredo, while Tanner Wolfe had the lone goal for Central Florida. Garcia scored in the 52nd minute, Wolfe scored in the 54th and Mulamba netted the game-winner in the 63rd.

Full stats for the match can be found here, while the game story from the Times is here.

Heat-Kraze Preview

The Heat faced the Central Florida Kraze in the Southern Conference semifinals. Here is a preview for that game.

Heading into the game, Laredo was 8-4-4, while Southeast Division champ was 11-3-2.

In the teams' only previous meeting, the Heat defeated the Kraze 4-0 in Laredo in the 2007 Southern Conference Semifinals.

Heat ready for postseason trek as underdog

By JOY LINDSAY
LAREDO MORNING TIMES

The Laredo Heat Soccer Club takes its United Soccer Leagues Premier Development League title defense into the postseason on Friday when it takes on the Central Florida Kraze at 7:30 p.m.

Laredo (8-3-4, 28 points) captured the second seed for the Mid South Division with a 4-0 win over the New Orleans Shell Shockers on Saturday, while Central Florida (11-3-2, 35 pts.) clinched a playoff birth on July 11 and the Southeast Division title on July 13.

As the top-seeded team in the Southern Conference playoffs, the Kraze will enjoy home-field advantage this weekend as it hosts the three games that will determine the Southern Conference champion.

These games will be played at Seminole Soccer Complex in Sanford, Flor., just outside of Orlando.

In the other Southern Conference semifinal game, the Mid South Division champion Austin Aztex (10-5-1, 31 pts.) will take on the Bradenton Academics (10-2-4, 34 pts.). That game is slated for a 5 p.m. start.

The winners of Friday’s games will face off in the Southern Conference final on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.

Last year, the Heat faced the Kraze in the same round but a very different situation. As the top seed, Laredo hosted the semifinal match and won 4-0.

Though the club hopes for similar results this season, everyone knows things won’t be exactly the same.

“I think it will be a lot different,” goalkeeper Ryan Cooper said. “No. 1, they’re on they’re home turf and No. 2, they’re out for revenge, out to get us back for last year. We’re definitely ready for that, and we expect a fight.”

Heat Head Coach Israel believes the field itself and crowd support will be the two biggest advantages for Central Florida this weekend.

“It’s very important for a team to know a field,” he said. “Here, we know the good parts and the bad parts, where the ball will roll. They know their field; they know where the ball will bounce more. And here at home, with your fans, the motivation is different. That is big.”

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

Collazo is making sure his players get as much practice time as possible before leaving for Florida at 6 a.m. on Thursday.

The team stayed at the United Day School soccer fields long after the sun had set Monday, and more of the same was planned for Tuesday and today.

“We’re trying to work hard all week so we can win the big games,” Collazo explained.
Something that could thwart the team’s efforts is Hurricane Dolly, which could reach Laredo before the team’s final home practice.

Collazo still expects his team to take the field no matter what the weather is like, and he has the same attitude toward the impending storm as he does toward the humidity and chance for rain in Florida.

“This is something we can’t control,” he said. “We’d prefer to play on a good field, but if it’s raining, we’re prepared for that. I told my keepers and I told my players about that.

“If the weather conditions are good, we need to be 100 percent focused. If it’s not good, we need 150 percent focus.”

The idea of focus is something defender Leone Cruz elaborated on, as he feels the time off between the Heat’s last game and Friday’s contest gives the players the opportunity to work on that.

“I think resting up, because we have a week of rest, traveling and just preparing mentally and tactically (are the biggest things we have left to do),” he said

FINAL ROSTER

The Heat made some changes to its roster before it was frozen last week, and 25 players will be a part of the team’s playoff lineup.

Of those 25, only 18 will travel to the Seminole Soccer Complex to participate in this weekend’s playoff action.

The remaining seven players are still eligible to compete should Laredo advance past the Southern Conference playoffs.

Silas Blackwell and Garcia are the two forwards making the trip; Charles “Theo” Browne, Daniel Galvan Barbosa, Robin Humphrey, Juan Ibarra Treviño, Francisco Lara, Isaac Morales Dominguez, Gregory Mulamba, Averil Ringheim and Steve Su are the midfielders.

The Heat’s defense in Florida will be comprised of Cruz, Dionisio “Nicho” Infante Aragon III, Carlos Ordaz, Raul Quinones, Pedro Alberto Ramos Del Llano and goalkeepers Cooper and Jorge Muñiz.

The seven players not traveling to Florida but still eligible for postseason play are forwards Stiven Ospina Atheortua and Arnoldo Presas-Delgado, midfielders Alexander Hergert, Christian Alexis Salazar, Julio Cesar Vasquez and Adan Villavicencio and goalkeeper Jorge Zamora.

Heat rout Shockers to earn playoff berth

By JOY LINDSAY
LAREDO MORNING TIMES

After weeks of worrying that its season would end before the playoffs began, the Laredo Heat Soccer Club assured itself a postseason slot with a dominant 4-0 win over the New Orleans Shell Shockers on Saturday.

“I think the players are ecstatic, the coaching staff is ecstatic,” Heat Owner Shashi Vaswani said after the game. “It was a big sigh of relief to get into the playoffs, and I like the way we did it with two very strong wins against two very good teams.
“You always want to go into the postseason playing your best, and I think we’re peaking at the right time.”

Felix Garcia scored three goals for the Heat to help lead the club to the biggest win of its season, pushing Laredo into the playoffs once again.

The Heat will now defend its United Soccer Leagues Premier Development League title against the Central Florida Kraze, who host this year’s Southern Conference playoffs.

Laredo headed into Saturday night’s contest neck-and-neck with the El Paso Patriots in a fight for the Mid-South Division’s second and final playoff spot.

The Patriots also earned a win on Saturday in a 3-1 game against the Mid-South champion Austin Aztex but finished the regular season one crucial point behind the Heat thanks to Laredo’s 3-1 win over El Paso earlier this week.

Saturday night’s win improved the Heat’s regular season record to 8-3-4 (28 points), and Laredo ended the regular season with a division-best 33 goals scored.

Central Florida, the Southeast Division champion, finished its season at 11-3-2 (35 points) with 38 goals scored.

On Saturday, the Heat and Shell Shockers held each other scoreless in the first half in spite of Vaswani called “dangerous chances” for both teams.

Laredo was at a disadvantage getting acclimated to the field in New Orleans, which is only 56 feet wide.

Garcia got a big scoring chance as the first half expired, running in one-on-one against the New Orleans goalkeeper, but he was tripped up in a play that earned the goalie a red card.

Danny Galvan took the Heat’s penalty shot, but it was saved by the Shell Shockers’ backup goalie to keep the game 0-0 headed into the half.

Going a man up was all Laredo needed to explode offensively, with Garcia netting the Heat’s first goal in the 48th minute on an assist from Isaac Morales.

Garcia scored again in the 65th minute on an assist from Juan de Dios Ibarra, then Raul Quinones made it 3-0 in the 75th minute on another assist from Morales.

In the 77th minute, Garcia scored his third and the Heat’s fourth goal of the game on an assist from Juan de Dios Ibarra.

The Southern Conference playoffs will be held July 25-27 in Sanford, Flor., just outside of Orlando.

First-round action will pit the 2007 PDL champion Heat against the 2004 PDL champion Kraze on Friday for the second time in the teams’ history.

Laredo won the first meeting 4-0 at home in 2007.

The Aztex will face the yet-to-be-determined second seed from the Southeast Division in Friday’s other game. The winners of those games will face each other on Saturday.

Heat roll Patriots to avoid postseason elimination

By NINO CARDENAS
LAREDO MORNING TIMES

You couldn’t ask for more drama on Wednesday night at the Texas A&M International Soccer complex as the Laredo Heat fought the El Paso Patriots for the right to take the driver’s seat for the 2008 Premier Development League playoffs.

In the end, after falling behind, the Heat stormed back and defeated its rivals 3-1, and as a reward took over second place of the Mid-South Division, before a frenzied crowd of 1,125.

The Heat (7-4-4, 25 points) need a win against New Orleans on Saturday and then it’ll be on its way to defending its championship.

The Patriots (7-5-3, 24) need a Heat tie and a victory over the Aztex in El Paso to claim the second and final berth.

In a classic example of saving the best for last, the Heat’s constant barrage and relentless attack finally broke through the Patriots defense and goal keeper Sebastian Narvaez.

El Paso tok a 1-0 lead in the 57th minute when Michael Giego got in front of Heat goalie Jorge Muniz for a header, despite being outplayed by the hometown club.

Instead of deflating the Heat’s offense, the club kept on adding up the shots on goal before Isaac Morales took center stage when he evened the score in the 72nd minute on a beautifully taken left-footed free kick that he curved from 33 yards out to the far post.

Morales wasn’t done yet, as a tie still gave the Patriots the advantage for a playoff bid.

In the 84th minute, Morales and fellow lefty Felix Garcia broke through down the left side.

Morales fed Garcia who worked his way down the box, baited the goalie and kicked in the go-ahead goal.

“We just never gave up,” Garcia said in spanish. “This team is humble, we knew the time would come and in the end we got the result we wanted.

“I had faith that the team was going to come out on top, and as I’ve said before, if it wasn’t because of the support of my teammates, I would never have gotten the chances to score goals.”

Theo Browne added the cushion in extra time to cap the scoring.

Both clubs knew what was at stake and what needed to be done.

The Heat provided the offense, outshooting the Pats 25-6, while the Patriots flooded the backfield and surprised Laredo with their one goal.

Down 1-0 late in the second half, it looked as if the Heat’s inability to capitalize on goal was still rearing its ugly head.

Not helping much was the handful of great saves by Narvaez.

In the 49th minute, the Patriots had a goal disallowed due to the player being called for hand on ball, allowing the fans to exale in relief.

After Morales scored the equalizer, the team went into overdrive and kept applying pressure on the Pats’ defense and goalie.

Morales again came into the picture with another flashy display of ball control in which he shook off two more defenders before having his top bar shot barely saved by Narvaez for a corner.

Morales got under the Patriots skin and was taken down inside the box in the 79th minute on a no-call by the referee.

Then came an unbelievable series of events in the 80th when Morales sent a corner into the box, where the ball bounced wildly in the area as a scrum formed. With the goalie out of the way ,the Patriots defneders somehow managed to block several shots and clear the ball.

That would’ve been the cherry on the cake if it wasn’t for Morales’ and Garcia’s effort four minutes later.

Garcia made his presence felt early in the contest as he collected five shots in the first half alone.

HEAT NOTES: Goalie Ryan Cooper arrived late Wednesday and Collazo decided to go with Muniz. Also, Captain Daniel Galva was amongst those cut earlier in the week. Galva is nursing a knee injury that didn’t appear to be getting better anytime soon.

It's do-or-die time for Heat

By NINO CARDENAS
LAREDO MORNING TIMES

The Premier Development League’s Mid-South division is coming to an exciting finish this week, with the key contest being played today at the Texas A&M International Soccer Complex.

To defend its Premier Development League title, the Laredo Heat will have to beat the only club that has a winning record against it, the El Paso Patriots.

With that in mind, and to ease the financial burden, the Heat has opened the gates to the general public free of charge, while the VIP section ticket prices are reduced to $10.

Kick-off is set for 8:15 p.m.

The Patriots (7-4-3, 24 points) beat Laredo twice in El Paso this year, improving to 8-4 versus Laredo historically.

The Patriots have scored 26 goals to Laredo’s 13, but at home, the Heat (6-4-4, 22) lead the series 3-2 with a 6-5 goal advantage, including a shutout.

If the Patriots win, they clinch the final playoff berth; if Laredo wins, the team will need to defeat New Orleans on Saturday to make the playoffs.

If the teams tie, El Paso needs only to tie Austin at home on Saturday to move on.
Austin is in cruise control, having already clinched the division.

“El Paso comes in here knowing that a tie pretty much places them in the playoffs,” Heat Coach Israel Collazo said. “They’re an intelligent team with quality soccer. They won’t be looking to give us any freebies. In my opinion, we are the better team, but no matter who’s better it all comes down to who plays better Wednesday.”

If Laredo loses today, it’ll be the team’s first time missing the postseason since its inception in 2005.

The Patriots are sure to take a defensive approach to this game, but at this stage, the Heat has played most of its games versus opponents only looking for counter attack opportunities so it’s nothing the club hasn’t seen before.

Players will just need to tighten their aim and be opportunistic.

The Heat’s starting goalie, Ryan Cooper, is scheduled to arrive today from Honduras, but in case he’s late, the club’s second goalie, former Patriot Jorge Muniz, has been practicing as the starter.

It’s been a frustrating year for the Heat, which hasn’t been in this position before.
Interestingly enough, the Heat’s fortune changed after dropping the two games at El Paso earlier this season.

The Heat went to El Paso with the second-best record in the division at 5-1-3 for 18 points, while the Patriots had recently dismissed Coach Miguel Murillo after opening up the season 2-4-2 for nine points before flourishing under new coach Javier McDonald, winning five of their next six contests, with one tie.

The Heat’s next three games after the El Paso trip resulted in a tie, a loss and finally a win. Laredo tied and defeated the Houston Leones and lost to Austin.

The tie with Houston was following the Patriots game, and the Heat came home frustrated at the missed opportunities in the contest. The game at Austin was no better, as the Heat lost 3-1 and Collazo found himself ejected from the contest.

The following week allowed the Heat to relax and let go of some of those frustrations in its 3-0 loss to the Mexico U-20 national team.

With its back to the wall, and with the pressure mounting, including taking offense at the media’s view of the Mexico game, the team rallied and used the negativity positively by rebounding with a 7-0 beating of the Houston Leones.

The Heat, while wary not to get overconfident, got some of its mojo back with the win and is looking forward to taking control of its destiny against a Patriots team that for the time being has all the momentum.

“They’re very dangerous at the moment, having won five of six, including the two against us and against the division winner Aztex at Austin,” Collazo said. “That’s already in the past, though; yes, we had an advantage back then, and now we are two points behind. We are focused (on) the task at hand, and we know what’s at stake.”

Laredo, on the other hand, has to worry about a New Orleans team that, if it beats Baton Rouge today, will have an outside chance of making the playoffs if Laredo beats El Paso and New Orleans beats Laredo and Dallas.

HEAT NOTES: Also, Collazo has cut his roster to the league-mandated 26 players. He trimmed the list late Tuesday night. “It’s a moment in which you would prefer not to have to make that decision, but it’s my duty and responsibility, and it has to be done. I’m sure some players will be disappointed, but those are the rules,” Collazo said.

Heat scorch Leones 7-0

By NINO CARDENAS
LAREDO MORNING TIMES

The Laredo Heat made sure it collected the three vital points versus the Mid-South Division’s last place Houston Leones on Saturday night at the Texas A&M International soccer complex.

The Heat netted a franchise record seven goals, and backup goalie Jorge Muniz recorded his first shutout as a member of the black and red club, as Laredo earned a demonstrative 7-0 win.

It was a 180-degree turn in performance for the club that had tied the Leones 1-1 back in Houston earlier in the summer.

“We were able to finish off our opportunities,” Heat Coach Israel Collazo said. “We had the same options in Houston but we didn’t capitalize.”

Collazo served his suspension after being ejected from last week’s contest in Austin and watched Saturday’s game from the press box.

The Heat take on El Paso at TAMIU on Wednesday in the game that’ll determine who gets to advance to the postseason.

The Heat (6-4-4, 22 points) are chasing the Patriots (7-4-3, 24) for the second and final playoff spot. El Paso handed the Brilla their first franchise loss at home, ever, Saturday with a 3-2 victory.

The Austin Aztex (10-4-1, 31), with the division title already clinched, lost to New Orleans 1-0 on Saturday.

The Aztex get the benefit of trying out players without worry as the roster freeze approaches on Wednesday.

For Laredo, the Houston Leones game offered the opportunity for Collazo to get one final look at the players at his disposal before announcing the final 26.

One such player was Kian Sterling, who in his debut knocked in a goal and set-up another one to make his case.

The goal parade included two by Juan De Dios Ibarra and one by Felix Garcia in the first half.

The second half, with the Heat emptying its bench, scores came via Silas Blackwell, Sterling, and Averil Ringheim.

The Heat controlled the game from the start and moved the ball at will against a Leones team which looked as if it was going through the motions in anticipation of the offseason.

It took the Heat only eight minutes to get on the scoreboard when Isaac Morales hit Ibarra in stride with a perfect pass, which Ibarra capitalized on.

The Heat’s offense was relentless all night, out-shooting the Leones 21-3.

Garcia added to his goal tally after several close calls in the 22nd minute.

His goal came courtesy of a setup centering pass by Ibarra, who found the U.S. national team player for the 2-0 lead.

The third goal was also a team concoction as Leone Cruz set the wheels in motion by passing to Ibarra, who gave it to Garcia on top of the right box area. Garcia returned the ball to Ibarra, and the Monterrey product beat goalie Juan Carlos Hernandez with a far post shot in the 32nd.

With the game in control, the Heat went to try-out mode in the second half but the offensive onslaught didn’t slow down.

Blackwell, who is nicknamed “El Conejito”, sprinted from the left side of the box and picked his angle for the fourth score of the game in the 67th minute.

Blackwell then gift wrapped the fifth goal when he took a pass on the right side, worked his way into the box, baited the goalie out of position and served Sterling in the 74th minute.

The favor was returned in the 81st minute when Sterling set-up Blackwell, who managed to send the pass past the goalie despite having a defender draped over him.

Three minutes later, Ringheim scored his first goal of the season on an assist by Salazar.

Heat welcome Leones

The Laredo Heat, El Paso Patriots and Mississippi Brilla are the frontrunners for the second, and final, playoff spot in the Mid-South Division with only three games to play.

The Heat (5-4-4, 19 points) hosts the last-place Houston Leones (3-8-3, 11) today, and the Patriots (6-4-3, 21) travel to take on the Brilla (5-5-3, 18).

The Heat closes the season next week at home with a key contest against El Paso on Wednesday, and finally against the New Orleans Shell Shockers on Saturday in New Orleans.

The Leones managed to tie the Heat 1-1 in their last encounter two weeks ago in a game that featured what has been hounding the team all season.

“It’s not as if we’re panicking,” Heat Coach Israel Collazo said. “The only thing that we have been lacking is finishing off our opportunities, and sooner or later we will.”

On the other hand, the Heat feels that the few opportunities it gives its opponents are maximized.

“We controlled the flow of that game, but we failed to capitalize and on the one time we broke down, they scored,” Collazo said.

The screws are indeed tightening as the Premier Development League season is nearing the end.

“We are going to keep playing our style of game,” Collazo said. “There is no need for any radical changes. We just need to believe in ourselves. I have no doubt that we’ll qualify for the postseason.”

With Under-23 teams like the Heat, opportunity knocks for some of their players, and at times it can come at the wrong time.

“I have to think about the team, but I can’t be egotistical when it comes to some of the players having incredible opportunities elsewhere,” Collazo said.

Those golden opportunities came for starters Felix Garcia, Ryan Cooper and reserve Frank Lara.

Garcia and Lara both participated within the Heat’s friendly against Mexican U-20 team on Wednesday, and played as members of the U.S. U-20 team on Friday.

The good news is that both will be available on Saturday, and they’re at the peak of their conditioning, which is surely to be tested.

As for Cooper, he has been trying out with the Honduras national team all week and is not going to play in today’s game.

Making his second start of the season is goalie Jorge Muniz, whose first start was a 2-1 loss to the El Paso Patriots.

Playing a team like the Leones presents a unique set of problems.

Is Houston going to be playing for pride, and therefore go all out and attack the Heat, or is it going through the motions as the season’s grinding comes to a close.

Collazo is hoping the Leones come looking for a victory at all costs.

The Heat has rarely seen an opponent play them with an offensive mindset. During the season, Laredo has been bogged down by teams relying on counterattacks against them.

It’s the little things that the club is looking to correct, and as for the playoffs, the team knows that all it has to do is win out in order to claim a berth.

“We’re going to surprise the people that have stopped believing in us,” Collazo said.

Heat welcome Mexico U-20 National Team

By NINO CARDENAS
LAREDO MORNING TIMES

The Laredo Heat get a day off from Premier Development League competition to welcome the Mexico Under-20 national team tonight at the Texas A&M International soccer complex.

The game is set for an 8:15 p.m. start.

The last time the Heat took on a national squad was in 2005, when it fell 4-1 to the U.S. Under 17 team.

Tickets can be purchased at the gate for $10 for adults, and $5 for children 12-and-under.

VIP seating is $20.

The friendly game offers a chance for the Heat to forget about its PDL worries for at least one day and a chance to measure itself against some of the best young talent its neighboring country has to offer.

The Mexican side arrived early Tuesday and had a light training session that night. Mexico, like the U.S. Under 20 squad, is gearing up for the 2009 World Cup taking place in Egypt.

The two sides play on Friday.

“It’s like the first game is a bonus because people get to see the Mexican National team twice,” Heat owner Shashi Vaswani said.

The Friday tickets are $35 for general admission and $50 for VIP seating. You can buy tickets tomorrow for $10 less by calling (956) 723-4700.

“We worked very hard in trying to bring these two events to Laredo,” Vaswani said. “Also not one, but two local Laredoans are on the USA roster, so when are we going to get a chance to see this again? It’ll be great to have the support of Laredo and have the teams leave with a positive experience.”

The Heat, on the other hand, not only get a chance to play for the love of the game, but a chance to let go of the mounting pressure of the Mid South Division.

The Heat returns to PDL play on Saturday when it hosts the Houston Leones. It’ll have two games remaining after Saturday.

All are must win contests.

The Heat (5-4-4, 19 points) trails El Paso (6-4-3, 21) and has a slim edge over the Mississippi Brilla (5-5-3, 18) for the second and final postseason spot.

Also on the radar is New Orleans (4-5-3, 15) and Baton Rouge (5-7-1, 16). The Austin Aztex (10-2-1, 31) clinched the championship last weekend with a win over Mississippi.

Mexican national youth coach Jesus “Chucho” Ramirez, whose tenure as interim coach for the Mexican national team recently came to an end, is going to be on the sidelines, but was not with the team on Tuesday evening during their light practice at TAMIU.

Ramirez returns to Mexico after coaching the team Wednesday and is scheduled to return for Friday’s game versus the U.S.

On Thursday, new Mexican national coach Sven-Goran Eriksson’s returns to Mexico to name his fellow staff members.

Ramirez turned down Eriksson’s proposal to stay on as an assistant in order to concentrate with his nation’s youth team and program.

On the sidelines are assistants Rafael Jardon and Cesar Vega Perrone.

The coaches are preparing to find the squad that’ll travel to Trinidad & Tobago for the CONCACAF Championships which are tentailvey set for January and February.

The top four finishers in the tourney earn a berth to the World Cup in Egypt.

The team flew in 22 youngsters, including goalies Alejandro Vela Gonzalez (Coatzacoalcos), Hugo Alfonso Gonzalez (America); defensemen Marco Antonio de Leon Almanza (Guadalajara), Daniel Carlos Montes Rodriguez (Guadalajar), Oswaldo Alanis Pantoja (U.A.G.), Kristian Omar Alvarez Nuno (Guadalajara), Ivan Islas Rodriguez (Monterrey), Juan Antonio Ocampo Silva (Guadalajara); midfielders Cesar Martinez Montalvo (Monterrey), Israel Sabdi Jimenez Nanez (Tigres), Homero Guajardo Parra (Monterrey), Alberto Soto Pacheco (Santos), Eduardo Arce Pena (Toluca), Francisco Javier Dorame Sasturain (Morelia); Forwards Americo Jonas Rodriguez Ramos (Tigres), Arnold Rivas Martinez (U.A.G.), Axel Velazquez Caballero (Atlas), Jose Guadalupe Garza Avila (Morelia), Ulises Alejandro Davila Plascencia (Guadalajara) and Moises Adrian Velasco Herrera (Toluca).

The Heat has its own national team member in Felix Garcia, who as a member of the U.S. Under 20 squad gets the privilege of facing the Mexican team twice.

Fellow Heat and high school (LBJ) teammate Frank Lara was invited to take part with the U.S. Under 20 team.

The only question for Laredo remains how Coach Israel Collazo is going to use Garcia, and potentially Lara, being that both play Friday and again on Saturday.

A chance to represent your country though, is an opportunity that could make that situation moot.

Heat optimistic heading into closing stretch of season

By NINO CARDENAS
LAREDO MORNING TIMES

With the playoffs rapidly approaching, it’s clear that the Laredo Heat can ill afford to stumble down the stretch.

The Heat (5-3-4, 19 points) is likely to be in a three or even four-way battle for the second and final playoff spot, as the Austin Aztex (8-2-1, 25) have what appears to be an insurmountable lead in the Mid South Division race.

Things don’t get any easier for Laredo as three of its final four games, including tonight’s match against division leader Austin, are against playoff contenders in the El Paso Patriots (6-4-3, 21 points) and the New Orleans Shell Shockers (4-5-3, 15).

The Heat plays Austin at 7:30 p.m. tonight in Round Rock.

“We’re not stressing out,” Heat head coach Israel Collazo said. “We’re working toward getting better. At the moment we are focused on Austin, a team that we are as good if not better then, things just haven’t gone our way lately.
“We are going to go and try to play our game, fundamentally sound and professionally and hopefully, God willing, we come out with a win.”

El Paso takes the weekend off at perhaps the wrong time. The Patriots were on a four-game winning streak in which they knocked off Austin and Laredo. They resume play against another surging team in the Mississippi Brilla (5-4-2, 17 points) next weekend.

The Brilla are playing two key games over the weekend at Houston (3-7-1, 10 points) and at Austin (8-2-1, 25).

New Orleans still has its name in the mix and plays its last four games in the comforts at home, starting Saturday versus Dallas-Fort Worth (4-7-3, 15).

The Tornados have only two games left in the season and are all but eliminated from playoff contention.

The Aztex have five games remaining with only two at home in which they can look to clinch the division by winning three of the last five games.

All signs point to Austin wrapping up the division in the upcoming weeks as El Paso and Laredo need to win out to have a chance.

The race is on for second place as the Patriots have three games remaining and all are against the top teams left in the Brilla, Laredo and Austin.

El Paso’s only chance to catch Austin is if the Patriots win out and the Aztex only manage one win in their final five games.

Laredo, on the other hand, needs to win out and have Austin win only twice more for the decision to go to goal differential between the two clubs if Laredo beats the Aztex at their house tonight.

Simply put, play your game and control your own destiny, Collazo said.

“The pressure is always going to be there, the thing is how one handles the pressure,” Collazo said. “Some people handle it well and others don’t. We know that we just have to continue playing our game and stay focused on us and what we can do, not what other’s need to do in order to help us.”

Helping the Heat’s chances of getting the always welcomed three points for a victory is the return of striker Felix Garcia, who leads the team with six goals, and defender Oliver Mulamba. Both players served a one-game suspension last week due to card infractions.

Sitting this one out, though, is the author of last week’s lone goal against Houston, Raul Quinones, who was red carded in the 90th minute.

In last week’s game, three new players dressed up for Laredo. Filling in from the practice squad were Pedro Ramos Del Llano, Raul Perreira and Kamah Duwana.

“We had to use their services and they played well,” Collazo said. “Everybody has to be at 100 percent because at any given moment you might be needed. If you show me that you’re better prepared than the next guy, then you’re playing. There is no seniority or guaranteed spots.”

The Heat is winless in its last three games, while the Aztex have won two of their last three. They lost for just the second time this season against El Paso 2-1 last week.

Finding ways to score against Austin isn’t an easy task, they have, by far, the best defense in the division and in the entire Premier Development League.

Their offense isn’t too shabby, either, with a division-leading 19 goals. At home in Dragon Stadium in Round Rock, the Aztex are 5-1-0 and have 12 of their 19 goals and allowed two of the four.

Laredo’s defense has been flimsy of late, allowing five goals in its last three games after allowing only six in nine previous contests. Offensively, the Heat has knocked in 18 goals total this season and three in the last three games.

“It is a 100 percent change from last year where at this stage we were thinking about who we would play in the playoffs,” Collazo said. “Now we are just thinking about qualifying and getting a chance, God willing, to defend our championship.

“We are going to go out there and play with our heart and soul. It’s not over yet; there are four games left.”

Heat falls to Leones

By J.J. VELA
SPECIAL TO THE TIMES

RICHMOND — On a hot and muggy East Texas afternoon, the Laredo Heat (5–3–4, 19 points) were not able to seal the deal and leave Houston with three much-needed points in the Mid-South Division playoff race.

A tough and resilient Houston Leones (3–7–1, 10 pts.) team tied the Heat in the 29th minute with a goal from Jay Ambrosy, just four minutes after the Heat’s Raul Quinones got the Gateway City club up 1 – 0 in the 25th minute.

With the tie in Houston, the Heat now fall into third place in the division behind the Austin Aztex (8–2–1, 25 pts.) and the El Paso Patriots (6–4–3, 21 pts.). The Mississippi Brilla (5–4–2, 17 pts.) are also gaining on the Heat as they sit in fourth place, just two points behind Laredo.

In the Premier Development League (PDL), the top two teams in each division advance into the playoffs. The Heat has been part of the PDL’s playoffs since their first year in the league in 2005, winning the league title just last year.

This three-year streak in now in danger of ending with only four league games left in the season. On the bright side of things, two of the four remaining games for the Heat will be versus Austin (Thursday, July 3 in Austin) and versus El Paso (Wednesday, July 16 in Laredo) and will give Laredo an opportunity to go out fighting and clawing for a playoff spot.

The Heat took on the Leones without the services of three of their regular starters in the lineup as Dany Galvan didn’t play due to an injury he has been nursing for about three weeks and Felix Garcia and Oliver Mulamba, both serving suspensions.

Garcia served his suspension for getting a red card last week in El Paso and Mulamba having accumulated five yellow caution cards, an automatic one game suspension.

Heat Notes: In its crucial game next week in Austin, the Heat will be playing without Raul Quinones who will serve a one game suspension for having received two yellow cards in Houston.

Heat to take on Leones

By NINO CARDENAS
LAREDO MORNING TIMES

Chances are either the Laredo Heat or Houston Leones will snap a losing streak today. A tie would benefit no one, as one club is fighting to stay in playoff contention and the other is playing for pride.The Heat (5-3-3, 18 points) experienced a setback last weekend with back-to-back losses to El Paso.

Laredo's road trip continues against Houston (3-7-0, 9 points), which has dropped its last two home games and four in a row overall, leaving the club winless in June.

The Heat will take the field either tied for second place with El Paso (5-4-2, 18) or in third, depending on the outcome of Friday's game between the Patriots and the Mid South Division-leading Austin Aztex (7-1-1, 22 points).

The Mississippi Brilla helped its cause by stringing a three-game win streak that catapulted the club up to the spot behind Laredo and El Paso with a 5-4-2 record and 17 points.

The Heat's road trip comes to a close next weekend when the club faces the Aztex in Austin before returning home for its final two games in Laredo. The season finishes July 19 with a trip to New Orleans.

"We only have five league matches left starting with this weekend trip to Houston," Heat owner Shashi Vaswani said. "Making the playoffs has become priority number one for us since we are the only ones who can control our destiny.
"As one can see, nothing will come easy for the team, coaching staff and administration if post season aspirations are to be in our plans."

Tonight's matchup with the Leones, currently in last place, is a must win game for a Laredo team that is not only looking to make the playoffs, but also to defend its championship.

Heat coach Israel Collazo had two things in mind this week during camp. First, find replacements for striker Felix Garcia and defender Oliver Mulamba, who are suspended for the game and second to acclimate his team for the 5 p.m. game versus Houston in what look to be hot and humid conditions.

With Garcia's absence Juan de Dios Ibarra is the team's main offensive weapon, he has three goals during this campaign.

After Ibarra and Isaac Morales the offensive experience takes turn downward. The Heat is counting on players like Silas Blackwell, Theo Browne, Gregory Mulamba and Stiven Ospina to pick up the slack. Each of these players has scored their first and only goal as a Heat player this month.

The loss of Mulamba in the backfield can be off set by the return of Leone Cruz.

The Heat's defense has been steady all season, but the club can ill afford another showing like the one it had in El Paso, where the Pats knocked in four goals in two games.

The recent slide for Houston has placed the club in the role of spoilers. That back against the wall mentality hasn't helped the Leones, who have been shutout three times and only scored one goal this month.

They have eight different players that have scored, but seven have only one goal, and the leader Fernando Benitez has two.

Houston will likely go with Juan Carlos Hernandez at the goalie position. He has posted a .54 goals-against average in his last four games.

The cost of keeping dreams alive

By NINO CARDENAS
LAREDO MORNING TIMES

The lifeblood of any sports franchise comes in the form of the ticket purchaser, simply known as the fan.While the Laredo Heat's players work for free, expenses still add up across the board from stadium fees to transportation and housing.

Since the Heat's inception, Laredoan Shashi Vaswani has absorbed the financial losses in order to provide the city with his dream of converting the busiest port in the nation into a booming soccer town.

"I would be lying if I say no to giving up the dream – me and my wife do say this sometimes because it has taken a lot out of us emotionally," Vaswani said. "The financial commitment is not to be disregarded, but when you give up your time and energy, something that cannot be replaced, it takes its toll. However, we hopefully will get to a stage where things get easier and that does not look like it can come soon enough."

The process has involved sanctioning the team's youth clubs with the South Texas Youth Soccer Association in an effort to coordinate and establish a linear soccer academy to bringing in Mexican professional teams to town in exhibition matches.

For Vaswani, the Heat is both a business and a vehicle to help the sport of soccer grow into a viable option for kids around Laredo. Both phases are still churning along. and each is expected to get better as time goes by.

"The business plan is still not on track," Vaswani said. "We need to get more people involved and more people believing that we are just not another entertainment sports franchise but actually are doing something worthwhile for the community.

"Once we get the masses to recognize this, we can have their support both emotionally and financially to help bring this organization to the next level. The personal Plan is achieving success at a faster pace than anticipated. To give our youth an opportunity to excel in this sport and use it for a vehicle to get an education or a sound career is illustrated already on various fronts. Felix (Garcia), Arnoldo (Presas) and Frank Lara are examples."

All three players are and were key reasons to their respective schools capturing the District 29-5A championships, Garcia and Lara at LBJ and Presas for United.

Vaswani has fed and kept his dream alive, and in the process, he managed to put together a Premier Development League team that has had the golden touch since its inception.

The Heat advanced to the Southern Conference finals in its first year and won the Mid South Division the two following years.

After earning its first division championship in 2006, the Heat fell to the Michigan Bucks in the PDL Championships.

The next season, the Heat took that bit of knowledge and experience and faced the Michigan Bucks again, this time succeeding and bringing Laredo its first soccer championship at the amateur level.

The national exposure not only placed the Laredo Heat on the map for soccer enthusiasts, but officially made the team household name in Laredo.

Gaining as much name and brand recognition as the Laredo Bucks and fellow newcomer the Laredo Broncos, the Heat has enjoyed a steady growth in fan attendance over the years.

"Fan support has increased 30 percent and we feel that slowly but surely everybody that goes out there returns and brings in new people," Vaswani said.

The Bucks are still the undisputed king when it comes to attendance, and it's likely to stay that way, but their season comes to an end just as the Heat's begins, offering Laredoans year-round professional sports along with the Broncos.

With the fans' wallets already stretched out, both the Heat and Broncos offer affordable pricing.

Helping the Heat garner the attention of more fans was not only the quality of soccer on the field, but the sale of alcohol and a move to a more soccer-friendly stadium.

The Heat attendance escalated from an average of 542.38 fans in 2005 in their eight home game schedule to 636.25 then 736 and finally the jolt to 960.17 (two home games are remaining).

Around the Mid South Division, the Heat ia a distant third from second place El Paso with 1,289 fans per game and leader Austin at 1,357, partially because Austin and El Paso more than triple the population of Laredo.

Laredo is estimated to have over 217,000 residents, while El Paso registers over 609,000 and Austin surpasses the 709,000 mark.

With that in mind, the Heat is doing better then its bigger brethren at capturing a higher percentage of its population, but it could be better.

"I see that fan attendance has grown somewhat, but we are not satisfied with the growth," Vaswani said. "We still feel that for this size city, 2,000 fans per game is what we would be happy with. The masses of the soccer community has disappointed me the most, as vocal as they are about wanting fields, one perfect way to make a statement is attending all our games."

Laredo's highest regular season attendance. In 2005 when the Heat played the Austin Lightning in the final season game there were 1,204 fans in attendance and this year when the Heat hosted the Baton Rouge Capitals two weekends ago they matched their franchise high.

The El Paso Patriots' high mark this season was 1,599 fans in last Friday's game versus the defending champion Heat. Their second highest total, interestingly enough, came in the following game with 1,473 fans in the stands.

The Heat also drew the Mississippi's Brilla highest attended home contest in which they had 1,127 fans in the stands. The Brilla average 889.83 fans per home contest.

The Baton Rouge Capitals, which average only 381.6 fans per game, had 372 onlookers when they hosted the Heat. Their highest total came against state rival New Orleans at 542 fans.

In Dallas, the Heat's presence did nothing to help out the 358.6 fan average but did bring in twenty more supporters at 378 fans that day.

Home or away, the Heat is bringing out the fans across the Mid South division. Laredo has yet to play Austin and Houston at home, and New Orleans had no information available as to what there fan attendance has been this season.

In the end, it looks as if the Heat is fittingly burning brighter and brighter. The potential is there, but plenty of good seats are still available at the Texas A&M International Soccer Complex, keep in mind that fans can be as fickle as the flames.

New Frontiers

The Laredo Heat got a pleasant surprise Monday with the return of Leone Cruz, who was in Monterrey trying out for the Tigres. Heat coach Israel Collazo had no set time table for his defender's return and it seemed he arived in the nick of time. With Oliver Mulamba suspended for one game, Cruz's presence is key for the backfield. It also helps free up Dionisio Infante, as he'll likely man the point alongside Isaac Morales, Theo Browne or Silas Blackwell now that Felix Garcia is serving a one-game suspension due to a red card last weekend at El Paso. In Leone's absence Collazo even used midfielder Steve Su as a defender to some success at home.
An interesting note for historical and stat buffs. The Laredo Heat have lost back-to-back games only twice before, after last weeks debacle against El Paso. The double dippers came back in 2005, the Heat's initial year in the PDL, and they were at the hands of New Olreans and, not surprisingly, rival El Paso Patriots. The Patrtiots have the bragging rights historically with 7 wins in 11 tries. Laredo did sweep the Pats in 2006, but El Paso has won every other series including their own sweep in 2005.
Winning a championship though makes that tolerable and Laredo can at least get the last laugh when they play the Patriots again on July 16.

Heat's resiliency put to the test after losses

By NINO CARDENAS
LAREDO MORNING TIMES

The season isn't going as smoothly as the Laredo Heat had hoped, but the club still finds itself very much alive in the running for a playoff spot and, with a little bit of luck, another Mid South Division title.

The Heat's current situation isn't sounding the panic alarms, but its current bump in the road came in the form of the El Paso Patriots.

The Patriots handed the Heat two 2-1 losses this weekend, making the bump one that could derail the hopes and shake the confidence of some teams.

Not so for the Laredo Heat whose head coach Israel Collazo sees this current situation as the perfect opportunity for his team to find its identity.

"This is the perfect time, the most difficult time, for us to show what we are made of," Collazo said.

There was no finger pointing going on after the weekend sweep at the hands, or feet, of the Patriots. If anything, Collazo prefers the digits to all point squarely at him.

The weekend was a case of missed opportunites and close calls, maybe even some bad ones.

A couple of inches here and there, and the team could've been contemplating catching up to the Austin Aztex and not looking to gather up the peices.

Instead, the reality of the sitatuion is that the Patrtiots got right back into the playoff mix and the Heat are looking to move on with a lesson in tow.

The Aztex (7-1-1, 22 points) have been given the divisional green light by Collazo as masters of their own destiny.

Austin sits four points atop Laredo (5-3-3, 18) with two less games in its pocket.

"I believe they have slipped out of reach," Collazo said. "They've had a great campaign at home and on the road."

Interestingly, this is the Aztex first year of existence, and experience would usually be seen as a positive when it comes to road games.

The difference between home games and away games wasn't as pronounced for Austin; it was all new to the team.

With time and with the strong fan support the Aztex have had in their first four home games is sure to change all that.

On the road, the team has gone 3-1-1 and has allowed its only goals against of the season.

ALWAYS ON MY MIND

Love-hate relationships are personafied in every sporting event across the world.

From the Broadway stage of professional sports to the little theater domain of minor league sports, these relationships exist between the coaches, players and fans and the man with the whistle.

Clarifying that he is far from using it as an excuse or a scapegoat, Collazo is getting increasingly frustrated with the discrepancy in calls, from referees seemingly favoring the home team, his side included, to the abuse of their powers.

"We depend on the decisions of the so-called authority," Collazo said. "They seem to not have the conviction and courage to make the right calls at times and when they make the wrong ones, 'in my opinion' they offer no explanation but laugh as if saying I'm in charge here.'"

Speaking out against the refs is a tricky sitaution, one that Collazo understands all too well. There is a fine line between whining and actually having a point and the PDL really wouldn't want to have its referee hiring process questioned.

The frustration boiled over against El Paso where Collazo's squad had three goals nullified because of offsides calls.

"Phantom calls or not, we'll never know. Sending tapes to the league and notifying them seems counterproductive," Collazo said.

"With all respect to El Paso they had a lot of luck," Collazo said. "From my point fo view we were infintely superior."

In the end somebody has to be held accountable, especially the people in charge of maintain the integrity of the sport.

The PDL only employs refs that are sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, and teams select available and qualified referess from the surrounding area.

VACANCY

The Heat will be without two key components on offense and defense for this weekend's game at Houston.

Striker and leading goal scorer Felix Garcia is serving a one-game suspension for his red card last weekend and defender Oliver Mulamba is also forced to sit out a game after accumulating five yellow cards.

Mulamba has developed into a key cog in the Heat's defensive machine.

The Heat welcome back Leone Cruz, whose timing couldn't've been better.

Cruz is looking to earn a spot with the Tigres of Monterrey and was with the club for three weeks. He returned to Laredo Monday and was with the team at the United Day practice fields.

Cruz missed six games with Laredo while he was out.

NATIONAL NEWS

The tickets for the USA Under-20 versus Mexico Under-20 game go on sale today.

The pre-sale general admission and VIP seating tickets will only be sold between today and Thursday at the following locations:

Palenque Grill on Loop 20, next to the La Quinta Inn and Suites. Talk Time (behind Starbucks at Del Mar Blvd. and McPherson). Gametronics (at Mall del Norte, next to Luby's). All Laredo Area Taco Palenque Locations Prices for Pre-Sale Tickets are:

General Admission (Pre-Sale): $25.00. VIP Seating (Pre-Sale): $40.00 If tickets are still available after the pre-sale, tickets will only be available at the gate on Game Day Friday at the following prices: General Admission (Game Day): $35.00. VIP Seating (Game Day): $50.00 For Group Pricing, please contact the Laredo Heat Soccer Club office at 723 – 4700.

Heat fall in second straight game to Patriots

By NINO CARDENAS
LAREDO MORNING TIMES

Things are getting hot in the Mid South Division and, appropriately, the Laredo Heat are the source.

The Heat assured that the Mid South is going to be up for grabs until the bitter end with a loss on Saturday night.

The Heat dropped their second game against the El Paso Patriots 2-1, allowing the border rival to tie them in the standings at 18 points for a share of second place.

The effects of the losses were evident on Heat’s head coach Israel Collazo’s voice via phone as he looked for the right words to say.

“We lost, we simply lost,” Collazo said. “Honestly I just can’t talk right now. It was two critical games, but even so we are tied for second place.”

The Mississippi Brilla (4-4-2, 14) jumped over New Orleans (3-4-3, 12) and Baton Rouge (9-4-6, 13) in the standings with two victories over Dallas (2-0) on Friday and New Orleans on Sunday (2-1).

Baton Rouge and Dallas (3-6-3, 12) finished in a scoreless stalemate Saturday.

Division leader Austin Aztex (7-1-1, 22 points) and Houston Leones (3-7-0, 9) were idle over the weekend.

Making the weekend losses tougher is the loss of top scorer Felix Garcia, who was red carded late in the contest and is going to miss the Heat’s road game versus the Leones next week.

Also missing the contest is Oliver Mulamba who received his fifth yellow card of the season automatically suspending him for one game.

Garcia ran into the Patriots goalie and got up favoring his right leg and walked gingerly off the field. The good news for Laredo is that Collazo indicated that his lefty striker was ok, as was everybody else on the team.

The Patriots took advantage of dead ball situations and scored both their goals via corner kicks.

The first in the 18th minute when Adam Hooi found Antonio Barrrera inside the box. Michael Greigo then scored his third goal in as many games in the 30th minute.

The Heat had several missed opportunities none bigger then Juan De Dios Ibarra’s penalty try in the 24th minute, which Patriot goalie Robert Fite saved.

Laredo mounted a late comeback attempt and was aided by the five minutes of compensation, but ultimately came short.

Laredo’s Stiven Ospina erased the shutout with a goal in the 84th minute.

He took advantage of a Fite miscue in which he let a Steve Su lob go through his legs and off the left post. Ospina raced towards the ball and beat out a diving Fite for his first goal as a member of the Heat.

Heat fall to Patriots, 2-1

LAREDO MORNING TIMES

The Laredo Heat (5-2-3, 18 points) fell to the El Paso Patriots (4-4-3, 15 points), 2-1, on Friday night at Patriots Stadium.

The two teams meet tonight in the second game of a doubleheader in El Paso.

“We were playing on their side most of the night and they played very defensive,” Heat Owner Shashi Vaswani said.

El Paso’s Jair Olivares single-handedly was responsible for the Patriots’ upset win in an intense contest that is surely to see a fitting end to its series today.

El Paso got on the scoreboard first on a goal by Olivares in the 12th minute.

Trailing 1-0 at the half, the Heat tied the game on Felix Garcia’s header on a nice cross from Steve Su in the 61st minute.

But Olivares struck again, this time on an assist by Mario Garcia, in the 66th minute to put the Patriots ahead to stay.

The Heat’s Isaac Morales received two yellow cards, one in stoppage time, and was ejected.

Silas Blackwell and Juan de dios Ibarra also received yellow cards for Laredo as tempers were testy for the Heat.

Prior to the loss, the Heat boasted a record of 3-0-1 over its last four games, having scored 12 goals during that stretch.

The Patriots and Heat will conclude their weekend series tonight at Patriots Stadium at 8:30 p.m. central time.

Heat preview: Laredo vs. El Paso doubleheader

By NINO CARDENAS
LAREDO MORNING TIMES

The Laredo Heat leaves the comforts of home and hits the road for its next four games.

Tonight and Saturday at El Paso, the club will get an idea if it brought its suddenly potent offense along for the trip.

The Heat (5-1-3, 18 points) knocked in four goals in their last four games, while the Patriots (3-4-3, 12) collected only three in their past four.

The Mid South Division title and two playoff spots are on the line heading into the second half of the season.

The Patriots, along with the Baton Rouge Capitals and New Orleans Shell Shockers are tied for third place and are six points behind Laredo and 10 behind division leader Austin Aztex (7-1-1, 22).

In an effort to salvage the season, the Patriots’ Miguel Murillo experiment came to a close as the coach was replaced by Javier McDonald last week.

The first move he made was to reacquire the services of Michael Greigo, who paid dividends by scoring two goals in the Patriots’ doubleheader versus the Dallas-Fort Worth Tornados last weekend. El Paso tied DFW in the first game and won Game 2 to move into the three-way tie.

The tradition-rich Patriots squad was the dominant team in the South before Laredo came into the picture. They uncharacteristically missed the playoffs in 2006 before regaining their form in 2007.

“They’re a relatively new team, but that makes them an enigma and therefore a dangerous team for us,” Heat coach Israel Collazo said.

That didn’t stop management from reshaping the team and hiring Murillo in an effort to establish a strong foundation from the youth teams up.

His youth influx resulted in a slow start for the Patriots as new faces dotted the field.

In McDonald’s first two games, he started five of last year’s players in Greigo, Antonio Barrera, Mario Garcia, Rodrigo Morin and Esteban Palacios.

“We realize that they did change dramatically, but they’re still a strong opponent and we can’t take them lightly,” Heat midfielder Juan de Dios Ibarra said.

Ibarra and Felix Garcia have been the two central figures in the Heat’s offensive revival. Garcia has knocked in five goals and Ibarra three.

The slow offensive start didn’t faze the team too much, Ibarra said, pointing to last year’s championship run when the Heat started by scoring eight goals in its first six games. This year the Heat has knocked in six goals in the first six games.

Besides Garcia and Ibarra, four other Heat players have one goal apiece and of those four, only Isaac Morales was a starter for the team last year.

Silas Blackwell, Greg and Oliver Mulamba and Theo Browne knocked in their first goal as a member of the Laredo Heat.

“It’s a difficult process, but we are working towards getting them better,” Collazo said. “Hopefully by the final games of the season we’ll be strong up front.”

U.S. versus Mexico highlight National games in July

By NINO CARDENAS
LAREDO MORNING TIMES

It’s time to break out those national soccer team jerseys and take a stand. When it comes to Mexico versus the United States, there is no middle ground.

From a game of marbles to the world’s biggest and most popular sport, pitting the U.S. and Mexico together provides a volatile and entertaining combination.

“This is one of the biggest rivalries in the world,” Laredo Heat owner Shashi Vaswani said. “Some of these kids are going on to Egypt (Under-20 World Cup) and in 2010 some might be in South Africa (World Cup).”

The Laredo Heat organization unveiled Wednesday at the La Quinta Inn that the U.S. Under-20 Men’s National team is paying a visit to the Gateway City to take on the Under-20 Mexico team on July 11 at the Texas A&M International soccer complex.

The Mexican squad is taking on the Laredo Heat two days prior to the historic match at TAMIU.

The match promises to be the beginning to what the Heat hopes is a constant stream of undeniable soccer talent to Laredo.

With national pride on the line, and Laredo a predominately Hispanic population, it will be interesting to see what shade dominates with the 4,000 fans in attendance.

The team originally wanted to hold the game at the Student Activity Center and its 8,000 capacity, but the SAC is under maintenance.

Only 3,250 general admission tickets are going to be sold and 750 VIP tickets for both games.

Tickets to the U.S. and Mexico game go on sale June 24 through July 10 and are available at Palenque Grill, Talk Time, Gametronics and all Taco Palenque locations, or by calling (956) 723-4700.

Pre-sale ticket prices are $25 and $40 for VIP seats, while game day tickets are $35 and $50 for VIP.

Laredo Heat versus Mexico game tickets can be acquired by calling the Heat office or purchasing the ticket at the gate the day of the game.

The prices are $10 for adults, kids five through 12 $5 and VIP seating at $20.
Both games are at 8 p.m.

“The U.S. is the home team and they do get part of the sponsorships and gate fees,” Vaswani said. “We are doing what we can to keep these prices down.”

Helping the U.S. case in attracting fans is that local striker Felix Garcia is suiting up the U.S. side.

“It’ll be the first time that my family and friends get to see me play with the National team,” said Garcia, who had a role in making the match happen.

“We mainly got this because of Garcia,” Vaswani said. “I don’t know how I would put it in words when you get to play with your national team.”

Joining Garcia at the press conference was midfielder Juan De Dios Ibarra.

“It’s extremely motivating to us, to all the Mexicans to be able to play against our own national team,” Ibarra said. “We are going to give it our all, but our main goal is to keep on focusing on defending the championship in the PDL.”

The 16-man rosters won’t be released until later, but odds are that some of the players are going to be representing their nation in the biggest stage of them all by 2010.

Both clubs are getting ready for the CONCACAF qualifying tournament, where the top teams earn a spot for the 2009 World Cup being held in Egypt.

The United Sates is coached by Thomas Rongen, who in a press release on his team’s website expressed the benefits that playing a club like Mexico brings to his team, especially with CONCACAF Qualifying around the corner.

Laredo Heat head coach Israel Collazo noted the unique opportunity that this game brings about, not only to him and his players, but to the city itself.

A successful turnout for both games lays out the foundation for more quality soccer games in Laredo.

“If the people want to see teams from Mexico’s first division, then we must show them that we are interested in seeing them,” Collazo said. “The impression that we give the teams is going to echo throughout once they leave Laredo.

“This is an important opportunity.”

As early as next year, the Laredo Heat might play a match against a Mexican “Primera Division” team and not the special reserves.

The Austin Aztex are hosting the Tigres “Primera Divison” team on June 29, as the Mexican team kicks of a slate of exhibition games before their season.

Heat score three goals for 4th consecutive game to earn 3rd consecutive win

The offensive problems seem a thing of the past, at least at home, as the Laredo Heat have strung together four straight games with three goals and have collected three wins along the way after routing Baton Rouge 3-0 before a crowd of 649 at the TAMIU Soccer Complex on Saturday night.Laredo top striker Felix Garcia has scored at least one goal in four straight contests.

The Heat (5-1-3, 18 points) now has a six point cushion over the Louisiana teams of Baton Rouge (4-5-0, 12) and New Orleans (3-3-3, 12) and are four points behind top place Austin (7-1-1-, 22).

The offensive surge helped the Heat capture 10 of the possible 12 points during their recent four game home streak as it travels to El Paso for a doubleheader next weekend.

They won't play in front of their fans again until July 12 when they host the Houston Leones.

The Baton Rouge Capitals found themselves in an early hole and were further kept off balance when they lost a man due to a red card in the 35th minute.

Laredo Captain Daniel Galvan knocked in his first goal of the season two minutes into the contest.

Galvan, standing at the right edge of the Capitals box, received a pass from Isaac Morales and calmly analyzed the situation.

He gathered the pass set-up his shot and ripped a liner to the far post out of the reach of Dustyn Brim.

It turned into a physical contest the rest of the way with the players seeing each other for the second time in as many days.The Heat collected four yellows and the Capitals three and a red card.

It was the physical play that the Capitals' Leonardo Barros failed to contain as he earned two yellows, thanks to Laredo's Ryan Cooper.

Barros' first yellow came in the 10th minute when he cut-off Cooper as he prepared to put the ball back in play, and 25 minutes later when he again had a run-in with Cooper.

Cooper only played the first half and had four saves, including a diving dandy in the 25th minute to keep the Heat atop 1-0.

With the Capitals already a man short, the sight of Garcia entering the field in the 38th minute was anything but welcomed.

Heat coach Collazo rested both of his top scorers in Garcia and Ibarra, with Ibarra not seeing the field until the second half.

Garcia needed six minutes to find the back of the net, when he corralled a Silas Blackwell pass and worked his way into the box before picking his spot, the lower right side of the net.

The LBJ junior managed to take six shots on goal despite the limited playing time.

Ex-El Paso player Jorge Muniz relieved Cooper in the second half and made two saves.

The final Heat goal came in the 85th minute on a corner kick that Garcia headed towards teammate Theo Browne, who gathered the header and slapped in his first goal for the club.

Heat dominate Capitals with 3-1 win

LAREDO MORNING TIMES

June 13.

With a win tonight, the Laredo Heat can earn six points in consecutive nights following Friday’s 3-1 win over the Baton Rouge Capitals before a crowd of 1,204 at the TAMIU Soccer Complex.

“We dominated the whole game,” Heat Owner Shashi Vaswani said. “What we don’t want is for our guys to be overconfident and suffer a letdown (tonight) because of how well they played.”

Isaac Morales got things started with a goal in the 22nd minute off an assist from Juan Ibarra.

Silas Blackwell scored off an assist from Stiven Ospina in the 82nd minute before Felix Garcia followed quickly in the following minute with a goal off Raul Quinones’ assist.

The Capitals’ goal came in the 90th minute off a goal from Gino Ray.

The two clubs finish their back-to-back set tonight. Kickoff is set for 8:15 p.m.

The Capitals (4-4-0, 12 points) entered Friday’s game with momentum and confidence after building a three-game winning streak.

All of those victories came at the confines of Olympia Stadium, where they have only lost once. Coincidentally, that loss was at the hands of the Heat in a 1-0 defeat.

But the Heat (4-1-3, 15 points) continued their offensive resurgence.

After a dormant start to the season offensively, the Heat have averaged three goals in their last three contests.

The loss leaves the Capitals still searching for a road win.

Of the eight games they have played this year, only three have been on the road.

The Heat is hoping they can capitalize on Baton Rouge’s road woes tonight.

Laredo managed to control the Capitals’ 1-2 punch of Tony Judice and Leonardo Barros on Friday, and also had no troubles with Capitals goalkeeper Dustyn Brim, who entered the game coming off a shutout and boasting a .86 goals-against average.

Both clubs are chasing the Austin Aztex (6-1-1, 19) who travel to Houston Saturday to take on the Leones.

At the moment, Laredo has snuck past Baton Rouge and New Orleans (3-3-3, 12 points), which won’t play again until next weekend, in the standings.

HEAT NOTES: This weekend the Heat and the South Texas Make-A-Wish Foundation are making local child Luis Flores wish come true. On Saturday, Heat staff will be distributing Heat logo decals prior to the game from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the TAMIU Soccer Complex Parking Lot.
All fans attending the games will be asked if a decal can be placed on their vehicles at no charge to them. The goal this year, as in years past, is to place 500 decals.
Flores, will be granted his wish at halftime of Saturday evenings match. The 16-year-old Flores has been diagnosed with leukemia and his wish is to have a full-blown entertainment system to enjoy movies and play video games.