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.