Laredo Heat

Fresh from the Heat offices

2010-06-23T18:04:00.002-05:00

The Laredo Heat (5 – 3 – 0 / 15 points) are set to welcome the DFW Tornados (5 – 2 – 2 / 17 points) to the Texas A&M International University Soccer Complex on Thursday, June 24^th. Kick-off for the Premier Development League (PDL) Mid-South Division showdown is set for 8:00 PM.

The DFW Tornados are currently sitting in first place in the Mid-South Division of the PDL’s Southern Conference just ahead of the West Texas United (Midland) Sockers and the third place Heat. This is the only visit to Laredo this season by the North Texas soccer team.

Just last week, the DFW Tornados represented the Mid-South Division in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Tournament versus the United States Soccer Federation Division Second Division Austin Aztex, a game which the Tornados dropped 3 – 0 (on Wednesday evening June 23^rd, the Aztex advanced into the Third Round of the U.S. Open Cup and will be facing Chivas USA of the MLS).

“This is a very critical time of the season for all the teams in the PDL as most everyone has already completed fifty percent of their regular season schedule and for us; four of our next five games will be at home with the only exception being that we will be heading to Brownsville for a game on Saturday, July 3^rd to take on the RGV Bravos.” said Heat General Manager J.J. Vela.

“After that, we finish on the road in Houston and El Paso so taking care of our games during the next four weeks will be very important if we want to continue our streak of playing in the post season.”

Vela added, “DFW will be our first priority and earlier this season they handed us our second consecutive loss of the season so we know that Coach Robinson and his players will be bringing their A game to Laredo in the hopes of staying on top of the division.”

“The game should be exciting for our fans to watch as DFW has a very contrasting style of play compared to us. They play a more European

Plenty of shade

2010-06-23T17:13:00.002-05:00

The Tornados are coming to town and with them comes a natural advantage.
The Tornados bring a club that is taller and stronger than most of the Heat players and you'll get to see that play a key role in the contest tonight (Thursday).
The good thing is that the Heat is used to playing against taller opponents and they have a few imposing players of their own.
The bad thing is that if Greg Mulamba can't go, they'll need to find another physical player to wear the Tornados players down in the middle.
In the backfield, Angel Hernandez has his work cut out for him, but he should be well rested after sitting out the past game.
Up front the club is hoping to get Felix Garcia back, who's nursing a sore hamstring, his size adds an extra dimension to the attack.

The ebb and flow of a season

2010-06-14T15:46:00.002-05:00

A couple of days removed from a great performance against the Houston Dynamos the Laredo Heat finds itself today very much aware that soccer is anything if unpredictable.
The Heat has forever become an important footnote for the Leones, as they became their first ever victory.
While the club was well aware that the Leones wasn't a club to be taken lightly, it seemed that Saturday in a matter of minutes lady luck was on the Houston side.
How much the emotional contest against the Dynamo and the nearly back-to-back road trip affected the club is up for debate.
To a man every Heat player was well aware that despite the opportunity to take on the Dynamo their real goal remained the PDL.
That topic was even touched upon by head coach Israel Collazo in the team's pre-game speech against the Dynamo.
It just goes to show that sometimes things just don't go your way.
It's back to the basics for the club and the near future looks bright, since they play five of their next six games at home where they have had quite a bit of luck.
The club currently trails West Texas and Dallas, but they have played one less game on the season.
Come this time next week a new and tentative picture is going to be on display in the PDL standings.
It all starts again on Friday when the Patriots come to town, in a game that has been termed a classic by several Heat players.
The Patriots look to avenge a 6-0 loss the last time they played the Heat at home this season.

Wasting little time

2010-05-25T22:00:00.003-05:00

The Bravos didn't take long to unveil their new coaching staff

Things look to get back to normal, as another PDL weekend comes and goes.
The Heat are still welcoming new faces to the club and coach Israel Collazo is still make some tweaks here and there.

Shaking things up

2010-05-24T20:51:00.004-05:00

The Rio Grande Valley Bravos made some drastic changes coming into their second season. The biggest being that there actually is a second season, after last year's owners weren't going to bring the club back.
The Bravos franchise was saved by new owner Kru Kayan Sitsanthaparn, but his first major change to the club was making the Bravos an amateur team.
Meaning that the players were no longer going to be paid for their services, which was reported to be around $600 a month for some.
That had a ripple effect in bringing back last year's team, especially their current star player Salvador Luna. It appears though that Luna signed a contract for $0 and is obligated to stay with the club, despite his attempts to leave and play for another team, which would be the Laredo Heat who would welcome a player of that caliber to Laredo.
The ripple effect didn't stop there as last week its entire coaching staff and general manager decided to leave the club.
Read about it here

Despite the sudden vacancies, club owner Kayan is adament that the season will continue.

Things are certainly interesting in the Valley, while in Laredo the biggest news is that the club has dropped two consecutive losses after not losing once all last season (regular).
The losses also forces the Heat to bow out from the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.
And if there is any surprise to this young season is that the Tornados appear to be a legit club, after a strong second half last year. The club has won twice and tied once.

The Race for the Cup and other things

2010-05-14T21:48:00.008-05:00

While we all know that in a 16 game season, every game counts. Imagine the initial pressure to win your first two home and road games for a chance to qualify in the oldest running tournament in the nation in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.
Things looked good for the Heat in their home Opener with a 3-1 rout of the Bravos. Their second game didn't count, since they played the same team.
Their third contest against the West Texas Sockers didn't quite go as planned as the club lost and to add insult to injury are going to be without the services of Greg Mulamba who was red carded for a strong tackle.
That makes two starters that aren't going to be with the club early on with the season ending injury to Hector Vallejo and now a one-game mandatory sit down for Mulamba.
The Heat was without goalie Rodrigo Avila, who started the previous two games.
Leaving Raul Herrera to make his first start and first defeat of the PDL season. Things are sure to get better for the first-year keeper as the season progresses.

TAKING A TEMPORARY BREAK?
While the Aztex U-23 were successful from the start, the organization decided not to field a team this season in order to concentrate on their Division one club. This is what they have on their webiste.
Just in case you were wondering what happened to the Aztex.

"The Austin Aztex thank you for your past support of our U23 team. Rather than sponsoring a U23 team in Austin during the 2010 season, we will be forming affiliations with other PDL clubs across the US and Canada. We believe this will allow us to focus the use of our resources, and will provide a broader scouting network for our USL1 team."

I'm sure the Heat isn't shedding many tears, although they will be missed since they provided an excellent and quality opponent.

And for even more from the Aztex you can read what a loyal fan had to say here

OPEN CUP STANDINGS
The best team in each PDL division gets an invitation to the Open Cup tournament and so far this are the standings.

1. DFW, four points, two games to go and a 4-1 goal aggregate
2. El Paso, four points with a 1-2 aggregate score and two games to go.
3. Heat, three points with a 3-1 aggregate and two games to go against Dallas and El Paso.
4. Sockers, three points and a 2-5 aggregate score with one game to go.
5. Bravos 0 points, with two games to go.
6. Houston has yet to play a game this season.

Speedy recovery and good luck

2010-05-11T21:00:00.003-05:00

I ran into the Heat's Hector "Gota" Vallejo earlier today and for a man just coming of an unfortunate injury, he was in pretty good spirits.
I have covered the Heat since it's inception and Vallejo has always been a professional off and on the field. ON Tuesday, he took the time to talk to me despite both off us not officially being on the job and he was holding his weight on his crutches, not exactly comfortable.
His playmaking abilities and leadership skills are going to be sorely missed by the club, as they look to fill the void.
Replacing what Vallejo brought to the table isn't likely, but the club has a number of players that can step up and do an admirable job.
Vallejo was getting ready to go back home to Monterrey, to join his wife and family, and prepare for surgery on Wednesday.
Gone with Vallejo are years of soccer experience and great leadership ability. His return was felt immediately and things looked extremely bright.
That experience with the game is the one that makes him take his recent injury with stride (at least as much as you can), "I know he didn't mean to do this ... it can be part of the game," Vallejo said in Spanish about the tackle.
He's hoping that with the proper training and rehabilitation, he can be ready to train with his indoor team in Monterrey come the season opener November.
Here's wishing the best and hope to see you with the Heat come next season.

And so it begins....

2010-05-01T01:55:00.002-05:00

The Laredo Heat looked a lot more polished than the Rio Grande Valley Bravos on Friday and the end result showed it as they won their first game of the season in front of 950 fans.
FAMILIAR SCENE
Felix Garcia wasted no time finding the back of the net with his first score of the season. Overall the striker looks to only get better as he shakes off the rust, which could've been part of the reason why he failed to beat the goalie on a one-on-one attempt in the second half, in which he failed to put any lift to the ball as the keeper closed out the angle. Or he could have been tired as he gets his legs back.
He did demonstrate a great feel for his surroundings as he made several perfect set-up passes to his teammates. It won't be surprising if he becomes a bit more assertive down the line and adds a handful of assists.
With the game finishing past 10:20 there was no time to get the team's reaction to the victory, but keep an eye out for quotes in the Laredo Morning Times this upcoming week.
LOOKING GOOD
While it's way too early to get a feel for the club, there is no doubt that this club promises to be a strong contender this sesson, barring injuries.
While the Heat has always been middle and back heavy, the addition of Garcia and Hector "Gota" Vallejo has helped the team's creative offensive flow get going. While I can be making this up, I believe the reason Valeljo has the nickname Gota (drop) is because of his smooth and slick dribbling abilities. As for why new player Jose Angel "Bambi" Hernandez (who also scored) is called Bambi is yet to be determined.

PAIRING UP
While Garcia manned the point solo for alot of the game, he did have company at times in newcomer Michael Abalos who has PDL experience, having played with the West Texas Sockers last season.
Abalos, though, spent most of his time opposite Vallejo. For those fans that have followed the Heat since it's inception might have felt some nostalgia seeing Vallejo and Ibarra work well together for another season.
Raul Quinones continued his usual role of running up and down the wing in an effort to jump start the counter attack or shutdown a speedy midfielder.
Greg Mulamba continues to be a physical force down the middle for the club and Daniel Galvan and Carlos Ordaz were steady contribitors.
GRASS ROOTS BEGININGS
The Heat for the first time began the season with a former local high school player and Heat youth player in Rodrigo "Roro" Avila.
Also playing in the game and from Laredo and the Heat youth teams were Daniel Garza and Jose "Wayo" Gonzalez. Garza is set to graduate from United and has signed to play with TAMIU and Wayo is an Alexander graduate.

WAITING QUITE A LONG TIME
Nobody is as eager to get back on the field after the season opener as defender Joel Perez who had to sit out the opener because of a red card handed out in the postseason last year.

Heat's season far from a failure

2009-08-04T00:42:00.001-05:00

By NINO CARDENAS
LAREDO MORNING TIMES

The Heat isn’t accustomed to early exits in the Premier Development League playoffs.
So it was a bit surprised when it bowed out in the semifinals this time around.

“As I have said all along, you have to measure your success in the regular season and not necessarily the playoffs,” Heat owner Shashi Vaswani said. “The playoffs are one game, do-or-die and more often than not, especially in the game of soccer, the best team does not win.

“So the playoffs have a lot to do with one team being more fortunate than the other. The past three years, we have been fortunate enough to pass through to the finals.”

The Bradenton Academics gave the Heat an early exit last weekend, before losing to the Ventura County Fusion.

The Fusion takes on the Chicago Fire on Saturday for the PDL championship.

“Nature will always find a way to eventually balance things out, and I guess this was the year that the universe decided to balance the scales,” Vaswani said.

Odds are that the majority of the Heat players and personnel will be glued to the TV watching the contest live via the Fox Sports Soccer channel.

The Heat had an injury-plagued season, which continued to its last game, in which the club lost its two central defenders in Carlos Ordaz (torn ACL) and Pedro Ramos (groin pull).

In its playoff opener, the Heat lost midfielder Alex Hergert to an ACL tear.

“You will be hard-pressed to find similar events to those, but then again you will also be hard pressed to find a relatively new franchise that has reached the championship stage three times consecutively in a league with more than 60 teams,” Vaswani said.

This time around, things didn’t go quite the Heat’s way. Still, the club added another Mid-South divisional title and set foot in the playoffs for the fifth consecutive year.

“The season, because we have made the finals three years in a row and are spoiled to a certain extent, is obviously a disappointment at first sight,” Vaswani said. “But when you sit back and really analyze the whole season closely, you realize that we have to be thankful for the season we had. Struggling with injuries all season and still managing to become Mid-South division champions is a feat to be proud of.”

Overall, the team finished 8-2-8 and heads into the offseason as one of the PDL favorites come next year.

As is the case every year, the Heat is sure to go through some changes in personnel.
While the club is likely to return the core group of players, nothing is certain.

The Heat is sure to welcome back many of its young players that have grown up in its youth camp system.

Several of the youth players played integral roles in the team’s success this season. The most recent example was its opening-round playoff win against the West Texas Sockers in which Alfredo Ramos scored the lone goal. The former St. Augustine student spent time with the youth team.

“That experience in a big game is exactly what we strive to accomplish, and that makes the season worthwhile no matter where we finish,” Vaswani said.

The one constant in the PDL is that the level of play in the Mid-South division has been improving year after year.

“Working harder than usual in order to keep up is no secret, and we will definitely have our work cut for us,” Vaswani said. “In the meantime, we will work diligently within our youth program to develop as many players as possible.”

The latest teams to join the division have made sure that each season is going to be exciting.

In turn, the Heat has learned that if it’s going to stay atop the division, it needs to keep up its level of play year in and year out.

“I think all of us involved have learned an important lesson: we cannot be lax and expect to coast through to the finals every year,” Vaswani said. “I think it will make us all work harder throughout the offseason and into next year’s campaign.

“In other words, after a storybook ride for three years, we are brought back down to earth, which is not necessarily a bad thing.”

Heat hosts playoffs, boost local economy

2009-07-30T22:31:00.000-05:00

For the fifth consecutive season, the Laredo Heat Soccer Club is hosting portions of the Premier Development League playoffs, continuing this weekend with the PDL quarter- and semifinals at the Texas A&M International University Soccer Complex.

The Heat itself plays Bradenton Academics of Florida Friday at 8:30 p.m.

Teams are coming from California, Florida and Washington state, bringing players, staff members and various other supporters to Laredo, where they will do much more than put on a soccer show.

“Any sort of recreational sporting event that draws athletes, spectators and family has a strong economic and collateral impact on the hotel/motel and retail industries, as well as service providers,” said Timothy Franciscus-Timm, industrial development specialist for the Laredo Development Foundation. “It’s a huge positive. They aren’t coming to invest, but they are spending their disposable income that they otherwise would have spent elsewhere.”

Added Miguel Conchas, President and CEO of the Laredo Chamber of Commerce, “It’s extremely positive. We welcome anything and any organization, whether it be a private group or a city organization, that brings in visitors. It has a tremendous impact on the economy. We have a number of sports events here throughout the year, and the Heat is certainly doing its share.”

But the benefits of the Heat’s hosting duties don’t end with economic impact.

“We’ve inherited this very negative image that is really unfair,” Conchas explained. “There was some violence in Nuevo Laredo years ago that has moved on, but the stigma remained. Any time visitors come to the city and see that it is not a city of crime, that it’s actually a very hospitable city… I think it’s a very good thing.”

Franciscus-Timm agreed.

“People who would not normally come to Laredo will take this opportunity to visit and hopefully leave with a positive image,” he said.

That positive image is something the Heat is happy to portray to the league and those who follow teams to Laredo.

“We call Laredo home, and we want to introduce people to the city,” said President Shashi Vaswani. “We had to supercede what other teams have to offer, and this was the toughest year to bring to bring it here. We had to make them an offer they couldn’t refuse.

“We tend to play better on the road, but bringing people to our city is a great thing. We want to put it on the map.”

More Heat info

2009-07-26T22:32:00.000-05:00

It took the Laredo Heat 120 minutes, plus an additional five minutes of compensation time, to finally get past a determined West Texas United Sockers team on Saturday night at the Texas A&M International University Soccer Complex.

The 1-0 win gave the Gateway City club its third Mid-South Division title in the last five years.
Not only did the Heat faithful see a hard fought match played by two equally talented teams, they also witnessed seldom-used reserve, 18-year-old Alfredo Ramos, a recent graduate of St. Augustine High School, laser a shot from about 22 yards in the game’s 109th minute to seal the victory.

Ramos entered the game at the 103rd minute when he was substituted in for veteran player Greg Mulamba.

The win advanced the Heat into the Premier Development League quarterfinal/semifinal tournament – the Elite Eight – next weekend.

“We received word (on Friday) from our League Director Lee Cohen that we were the frontrunners to host one of the two Elite Eight tournaments; however, all we needed to do was beat West Texas,” Heat General Manager J.J. Vela said.

“I told him that is a lot easier said than done.”

The Heat, though, got the job done, and playoff soccer will return to Laredo next weekend.

“At this point, we are very excited to once again showcase Laredo to the rest of the United Soccer Leagues soccer members spread throughout the United States and Canada,” Vela said. “Sixty-eight teams started this PDL season back in May and now only eight remain.

“We are going to have a great soccer event this coming weekend with teams coming to Laredo from Florida, California and Washington. We are inviting all the soccer and sports fans to start making plans to come out, and not only support us but the visiting teams as well.”

The three teams coming to Laredo are:

 Southeast Division Champions: Bradenton (Florida) Academics.
 Southwest Division Champions: Ventura County (California) Fusion.
 Northwest Division Champions: Kitsap (Washington) Pumas.

The tournament schedule is as follows:

 Friday, game one: at 5:30 p.m., Kitsap Pumas vs. the Ventura County Fusion.
 Friday, game two: at 8:30 p.m., Bradenton Academics vs. the Laredo Heat.

On Saturday will be the PDL semifinal pitting the winner of game one versus the winner of game two.

The winner of Saturday’s match will play the winner of the other PDL quarterfinal/semifinal tournament between the following four teams: the Des Moines (Iowa) Menace, the Ocean City (New Jersey) Barons, the Chicago Fire and the Cary (North Carolina) Clarets.

The United Soccer Leagues Premier Development Championship game will be on Saturday, Aug. 8.

Heat capture division title

2009-07-25T23:48:00.000-05:00

For the third time in five seasons, the Laredo Heat Soccer Club is the Premier Development League’s Mid South Division champion.

The Heat (8-1-8) defeated the West Texas United Sockers 1-0 in extra time on Saturday night at the Texas A&M International University Soccer Complex to continue its quest for a fourth straight PDL championship berth.

A goal by Alfredo Ramos in the game’s 119th minute undid all the hard work the expansion Sockers (8-6-3) had put into keeping the game scoreless through regulation and one period of extra time.

Ramos sent the ball from just inside midfield to the West Texas goal, where it bounced off the post before flying into the net and setting the crowd of 1,425 into a frenzy.

With the win, the Heat clinched the right to host the Southern/Western Conference portion of the PDL’s Elite Eight tournament next weekend.

Semifinal games will be played on Friday at 5:30 and 8:30 p.m. with the final scheduled for Saturday at 8:15 p.m.

Laredo will face the Bradenton Academics in the later semifinal, while the Ventura County Fusion will face the winner of Saturday’s game between the Seattle Fusion and Kitsap Pumas in the early game.

The Playoffs are set

2009-07-19T21:53:00.002-05:00

The Laredo Heat now know who their potential opponent is going to be next Saturday for the divisional championship.
The West Texas Sockers beat Rio Grande 3-1 on Sunday and clinched the division's second seed.
In third are the Austin Aztex, who edged out the El Paso Patriots due to their head-to-head games.

The Sockers have the option to host the Aztex on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday.

Getting to know them

2009-07-16T18:14:00.003-05:00

Well the initial idea was to make this part of the story, but apparently I couldn't use up a whole page.
So just in case you actually want to read a bit more here is a capsule look at each of the core players

Dionisio “Nicho Infante: While some of the players have been there for only a couple of season. Infante is the only player to have e been there since the team’s inception in 2004.
“Nicho” has been key to the team with his versatility on the field. He has played as a forward and a defender in all his season.
In 2005 he scored eight goals and had one assist. In the postseason he scored once.
In 2006 he added one goal and one assist. In the postseason he repeated the feat with one goal and one assist.
In 2007 he scored three times. In the post season he had one assist. In 2008 he only had one assist.
This season he has shouldered the offensive load, scoring four goals and adding one assist.
In his career he has 16 goals and three assists in the regular season. Combined with the postseason he has 18 goals and six assists. He averages 3.2 goals per season.

Juan de Dios Ibarra: Ibarra has been an integral piece in the middle for the Heat. The offensive minded midfielder has proven to be equally dangerous as a scorer and a passer. The ultimate team player Ibarra is the club career leader in goals and assists.
In 2005 Ibarra tallied seven goals and five assists. In 2006 he scored six times and had one assist. In 2007 he scored five times and had five assists. In 2008 he had five goals and eight assists.
This season he has two goals and four assists.
In total he has scored 25 goals and 23 assists. Including the postseason he has 28 goals 29 assists. He averages five goals per game and 4.6 assists per season.

Daniel Galvan: Galvan has worn the label of Captain for several seasons. He’s a force as a midfielder and has provided some help offensively and defensively for the team.
In 2006 he had 3 goals and two assists. In 2007 he had one goal. In 2008 he had added another goal.
This season he has one goal and one assist.
In total he has 6 goals and 3 assists. Including the postseason he has 8 goals.

Carlos Ordaz: The team’s ironman in the defense. He hasn’t missed a game since last season. Ordaz is the clubs most dependable back and has formed a formidable duo with Ramos.
Ordaz added his only career goal this season. That scored placed Ordaz in the All PDL team for this past week.

Raul Quiñones: Quiñones can be seen providing lateral help game-in and game-out. The speedster helps the Heat offense begin its counterattacks.
In 2006 he had one goal and three assists. In 2007 he had one goal in the postseason
In 2008 he had two goals and one assist.
This season he has one assist.
In total he has three goals and five assists. Including playoffs he has four goals, five assists.

Ryan Cooper: Cooper picked up where Ryan Shaughnessy left off and has provided some stellar goal keeping in his season’s with the club.
In 2007 he played in 15 games and allowed 11 goals, posting a .756 goals against average. His record was 9-2-3 with five shutouts.
In 2008 he played in 13 games and posted a .883 goals against average and allowed 11 goals. He had four shutouts and a 6-3-4 record.
This season he has a 6-1-7 record and has played in 14 games and a 1.071 GAA with three shutouts. He has allowed 15 goals
In total in the regular season he has a goals against average of .881 (37 goals allowed in 42 games). He has 12 shutouts. He has a record of 21-6-14.
He has been even dependable in the playoffs.
In the postseason in 2007 he had three shutouts and allowed one goals in four games. The Heat lost in penalty kicks. 3-1-0
In 2008 he allowed three goals in five games and had 2 shutouts. He went 5-0-0.
In total in the post season he has a 8-1-0 record. A goal against average of .444 and has five shutouts.

Greg Mulamba: Mulamba became a factor around the same time Felix Garcia did, in the 2008 playoff run. He has played himself into becoming a key member for the Heat.
In 2007 played in nine games, sparingly, picking up a few minutes here and there.
In 2008 he was in 14 games and had one goal in the regular season. In the postseason he had two goals and one assist.
This season he has four goals and two assists
In total he has five goals and two assists. Including the post season he has seven goals and three assists.

It's official: Heat is in the playoffs

2009-07-13T23:49:00.000-05:00

The Laredo Heat can stop worrying about making the playoffs, as the stars aligned for the club on Sunday when the Austin Aztex lost to the Dallas Fort Worth Tornados and the El Paso Patriots were tripped up by the West Texas Sockers.

With its fifth consecutive playoff birth in the books, Laredo can now turn its attention into locking up a third divisional title when the club closes out the season against the Sockers on Friday.

“We have been in the league five years, and five years we have made the playoffs,” Heat general manager J.J. Vela said. “This is something that we are very proud of as an organization.
“However, this is just the first step for us in the bigger picture this year. We are excited about making the playoffs and the opportunity that brings to give our region of the United States continued soccer notoriety.”

If the Heat (6-1-8, 26 points) wins, the club will have 29 points and clinch the Mid South Division, as no other team can total more than 28 points. Additionally, Laredo owns the tiebreaker against all teams except West Texas, which was the only Mid South team to beat the Heat this season.

Making the three points all the more important is that home field advantage is on the line; the divisional winner gets to host the divisional playoffs the weekend of July 24-26.

“The Mid South Division regular season title is still there for us,” Vela said. “The importance it brings to us is hosting the divisional championship tournament next weekend in Laredo… that would be huge for us, plus it gives us more time to rest.”

With a Laredo victory, the club would welcome the two survivors among the Aztex (7-4-4, 25), Sockers (7-4-3, 24), Patriots (7-6-1, 22) and Rio Grande Bravos (5-4-5, 20).

The second and third seeded teams would face off first, with the winner playing the Heat for the right to move on to the Elite 8 the following weekend.

The two conference winners play in the championship on Saturday, Aug. 8.

If Laredo ties against West Texas, then the door is left wide open for the divisional title. But at 27 points, the Heat could still win the divisional title if things fell its way again.

The club is optimistic that the injured Greg Mulamba and Danny Galvan could be available for the contest. Their services would be welcomed, especially since the club is going to be without Dionisio “Nicho” Infante and Esteban Bayona.

Infnate is suspended due to yellow card accumulation and Bayona received a red card in the last match.

On Monday the Premier Development League mandated that all teams freeze their rosters at 26 players with no more signings allowed.

The Heat got a break with the the number of foreign players they can carry as Juan De Dios Ibarra received his Resident Card on Monday and is now classified as domestic.

That allowed the team to keep Luis Reyes, who was on the bubble due to a high-ankle sprain, on the roster.
One player whose injuries played a part in him not the final cut was Esteban Bayona,w ho despite leading the team in goals was the odd man out because of the over-23 limit.

Bayona had returned from his injury but was less then 100 percent and apparently more injured than suspected.

The postseason roster is made up of Erick Acevedo, Rodrio Avila, Soamy Bautista, Theo Browne, Ryan Cooper, Alejandro De La Fuente, Lucas Dyer, Albert Escovar, Danny Galvan, Eusebio Garcia, Wayo Gonzalez, Alex Hergert, Ibarra, Dionisio Infante, Adam Kelemet, Frank Lara, Juan Lara, Reyes, Josh Maley, Mulamba, Carlos Ordaz, Joel Perez, Raul Quiñones, Alfredo Ramos and Pedro Ramos.

Heat loses opportunity, ties Bravos

2009-07-09T23:13:00.001-05:00

Defenseman Carlos Ordaz, normally a stout presence in the backfield, salvaged a point for the Laredo Heat Thursday night at the Texas A&M Soccer Complex.

Ordaz received a perfectly timed pass from Joel Perez off a free kick, as he entered the area and wrapped the ball in the netting in the 90th minute to tie the contest 2-2, the eventual score.

Ordaz spoiled a beautiful play for a goal by the Bravos’ Salvador Luna. Luna’s 13th goal of the season was a waltz that started off an inbound pass from the left side of the field.

He faked and dribbled past several Heat defenders before sliding in the area to best the Heat’s Ryan Cooper in the 69th minute.

The Heat’s Josh Maley had the game’s final opportunity to give his team the win in compensation time.

Much to his dismay, however, he whiffed on a pass facing an empty net.

The tie comes as a bittersweet pill to swallow for Laredo. The Heat (6-1-8, 26 points) had a chance to practically cement its postseason classification with a win.

The Heat is no longer the frontrunners for the Mid-South Division title and must now win its final contest against the West Texas Sockers on July 17.

The Bravos (5-4-5, 20) still have an outside shot of making the playoffs, if they win their final two gamse of the season.

The Heat and Bravos both had opportunities to add to the score.

The Heat sorely missed the presence of captain and midfielder Daniel Galvan, and midfielder Greg Mulamba.

The Heat trailed early, after a well-placed shot from the Bravos’ Kendor Vasquez in the sixth minute lifted his team to a 1-0 lead.

The momentum then swung in the Heat’s favor when the Bravos’ Enrique Quintero was awarded his second yellow card of the game in the 25th minute.

The man advantage allowed the Heat to equalize the game in the 36th minute when Dionisio “Nicho” Infante knocked in his fourth goal of the contest from point-blank range.

The goal came about after a corner by Juan de Dios Ibarra to the far post was redirected to Infante.

The Heat’s Esteban Bayona, its leading goal scorer, was forced into action in the 20th minute after Luis Reyes was injured.

Bayona wasn’t 100 percent, coming off an injured ankle, and it showed as the striker couldn’t knock in a relative easy opportunity in the 38th minute on a Raul Quiñones set-up.

Four minutes later, Bayona found himself on a one-on-one against the Bravos’ goalie Juan Garcia, but Bayona put too much force on his last touch that forced him to take an off-angled shot that bounced off the side netting.

Big games looming for Heat

2009-07-08T22:46:00.000-05:00

The Premier Development League season is nearly over and the Laredo Heat is in control of its own destiny.

Not only is a playoff berth a very real possibility, but the club can also win its third Mid-South divisional title.

The Heat (6-1-7, 25 points) can practically assure itself a spot in the postseason with a win over the Rio Grande Valley Bravos (5-4-4, 19) tonight at the Texas A&M International soccer complex.

“In all honesty, what better way to finish out the regular season than playing two teams (Bravos and Sockers) that are in playoff contention, at home, and the results of those games will have implications as to the future of all the teams involved,” Heat General Manager J.J. Vela said. “Talk about controlling your destiny.”

If the Heat beats the Bravos, then the Valley team becomes the club’s third swept team for the season.

Laredo already holds the tiebreakers against the Austin Aztex (6-3-4, 22) and the El Paso Patriots (7-5-1, 22).

Both the Aztex and Patriots would have to win two and tie once, or win out, and hope the Heat loses one of its next two games, to get ahead of the Heat in the standings.

The Aztex take on the Patriots in their season finale, so only one can actually win out.

If the Heat beats the Bravos, the Valley team’s slim playoff hopes practically evaporate and they’re left on the outside looking in.

The other team in contention is the West Texas Sockers (6-3-3, 21). The Sockers have the inside track on the division, as they can amass 33 points if they win their final four games.

The Heat and the Bravos have played three times on the season, with Laredo winning once and tying twice.

Two of the three matches have had suspensions on both sides, with the latest game a 4-2 win by Laredo.

The Heat is without an important midfield presence in Greg Mulamba, who is day-to-day with a knee injury.

Danny Galvan is also a game-time decision for tonight.

The team had played with all their players for the first time since the opening game last weekend against Dallas before Mulamba went down later in that contest.

Returning to add some offensive spark was Esteban Bayona, who knocked in his sixth goal of the season against the Tornados.

“While we are glad that we finish off the regular season at home, we are aware that we will need to defend our turf versus two quality expansion teams,” Vela said.

The Heat finishes the season against West Texas on July 17.

“First thing’s first, we need to get three points versus the Bravos (tonight) in order to create some distance in the standings and then prepare for our final game of the season next week versus the West Texas United Sockers,” Vela said.

Austin plays twice this weekend, with the first contest against the winless Houston Leones (0-10-3, 3) at home on Friday; and the second at Dallas Fort Worth (2-6-4, 10) on Sunday.

The Aztex wrap up the season hosting the El Paso Patriots on July 17.

The Aztex can finish with a maximum of 31 points.

The Patriots can also total 31 points if they win out in their final three games.

They have a tougher schedule than Austin, since, besides playing the Aztex, they take on the Sockers on Sunday.

It won’t be easy; all their games are on the road against Dallas and El Paso over the weekend.

They close out the season against Laredo and Rio Grande Valley.

The Bravos (5-4-4, 19) can collect 28 points if they win their final three games.

Two games remain as Heat stay atop Mid-South

2009-07-06T18:08:00.001-05:00

The Dallas Fort Worth Tornados might not prove daunting for the majority of the Mid-South Division, but to the Laredo Heat, they have been anything but pushovers.

Once again the Heat rallied from an early deficit and managed to tie Sunday's game, 2-2, for the all-important one point.

The Tornados are 1-2-3 on the season at home and 2-6-4 overall.

The Heat (6-1-7, 25) fell into a 2-0 hole quickly before a red card to the Tornados’ Taylor Brice in the 44th minute swung the momentum tin its favor.

The second half, with the man advantage, belonged to the Heat as Esteban Bayona and Greg Mulamba scored to give the club its seventh tie of the season.

The Heat welcomed back Bayona, who quickly added to his team-leading goal total, which now stands at six. Bayona was in his second game back with the team, after recovering from an ankle injury. He cut the deficit in half in the 58th minute with an unassisted goal.

Mulamba,, on the other hand continued with his offensive surge and now has four goals on the year. His equalizing goal came in the 75th minute off a pass from Juan De Dios Ibarra.

Mulamba has proven to be the Heat’s ace in the hole late in the contests. All his goals have been of the game-tying variety.

The Heat snapped a two game winning streak, but still sit atop the division with 25 points.

Right behind the club is the Austin Aztex Austin (6-3-4, 22), El Paso Patriots (7-5-1, 22), West Texas Sockers (6-3-3, 21) and Rio Grande Valley Bravos (5-4-4, 19). The Sockers beat El Paso 2-1 on Saturday to stay in contention.

Laredo finishes its road portion of the season schedule with a 3-1-4 record. It closes out the regular season at home against the Bravos (July 9) and West Texas (July 17).

Pivotal games remain for Heat

2009-07-02T23:21:00.000-05:00

The final month of Premier Development League play is here for many teams.

With the playoffs looming on the horizon, the Laredo Heat is hoping that it gets another chance to extend its season into August.

The Heat’s no stranger to the pressures that go hand-in-hand with the final month of action. It just hopes that its experience and knowledge can guide it back into the playoffs for the fifth consecutive year.

The Heat finds itself in the same five-way Mid-South Division battle that began two months ago.
The Heat (5-1-6, 21 points) trails co-division leaders Austin Aztex (6-2-4, 22) and El Paso Patriots (7-4-1, 22) by one point.

Behind Laredo is Rio Grande Valley Bravos (5-4-4-, 19) and the West Texas Sockers (4-3-3, 15).
The Heat takes on the Aztex in Austin tonight and then plays the Dallas-Fort Worth Tornados on Sunday.

Heat coach Israel Collazo is suspended for tonight’s game after being ejected in the team’s last contest against the Bravos.

“Austin’s a well-coached and organized team,” Collazo said. “They have players that are not only quick, but strong. They can turn it on at any moment offensively, but like always we are planning to play our game.”

The Heat is coming of its first victory in nearly three weeks with a 4-2 win over the Bravos.
It was a game in which defender Soamy Bautista knocked in two goals to become the team’s first player to be named to the PDL Team of the Week.

“I had no idea,” Bautista said about the honors. “Well that’s new, I’ve never made it to anything like that before, but, hey, if it happens, it happens. What I want to do is take care of business and do what I can.”

Another thing that Bautista had never done in his two years as a starter for Texas A&M International was score a goal.

He is currently tied with Greg Mulamba in second place for the team lead in goals scored.
“It’s a surprise,” Bautista said about the goals. “I mean, I haven’t scored in two years with TAMIU, but yeah, it goes to show the nature of the game.”

The club’s leader in goals Esteban Bayona (five goals) is going to suit up, but his chances of playing depend on the situation on the field.

He is coming off an ankle sprain suffered against the Tornados back on June 18.

The club is hoping its recent offensive outburst against the Bravos continues. Before that game, it had scored seven goals in six games, five of those games ending in ties.

Bautista, who is going to be a junior for the Dustdevils next season, made a quick impact with the Heat by scoring his first goal in its season opener against the Aztex.

The defender then settled into his role for the next six games, before an injury sidelined him for the next four, in which the team went 1-0-3.

He’s still not at 100 percent, but he concedes that he probably won’t be at top form anytime soon.

This season would be Bautista’s second with the Heat if it wasn’t for a reality show that he appeared in last summer.

“It was an opportunity (the TV show) that I couldn’t pass up, you know,” he said. “So I was approached again this year, and I had nothing else going on so I couldn’t pass up a great opportunity (playing for the Heat) like this.”

Meanwhile, Bayona’s return to the team came at a perfect time, with the team battling for a playoff spot and with the roster freeze coming up on July 16.

If the Heat’s going to make it to its fifth consecutive playoffs in a row, now is the time where the players that plan to lead the team have to stand out.

“We know what we gotta do to win,” Bautista said. “We have tied plenty of games, but we haven’t lost and that’s big. We know we have gotten by with ties, but we have to grow as a team.”

The Aztex and Heat have met twice before, both in Laredo. The Heat won their first meeting, 3-1, and tied the second, 1-1.

Still, the Aztex have yet to lose at home, going 4-0-1 and outscoring teams 16-5.

“If the players execute our game plan and everything works out for us as we hope, our playoff destiny will rest solely in our hands, and, from experience, that is a good thing to have on our side,” Vela said.

Tonight, the Heat welcomes the return of Mulamba, Erick Acevedo and Alejandro de la Fuente. All three were suspended for the Bravos game.

USL hands out fines, suspensions for Heat, Bravos

2009-06-27T16:23:00.000-05:00

The United Soccer League has laid down the law, regarding the extracurricular activities between the Laredo Heat and the Rio Grande Valley Bravos that took place last week.

As far as the league is concerned, it has washed its hands of the mess and strongly urged for both teams to do the same.

Especially since the two clubs meet again tonight in Hidalgo, and once more in Laredo on July 9.

The activities came about after the Heat and Bravos’ last game in which Bravos coach Ismael “Moreira” Braga went over to the Heat bench and issued some words to the Heat’s Greg Mulamba.

A shoving match ensued and the league handed out suspension and fines after reviewing the video.

The coach was mad because he felt the tackle Mulamba had on Jesus Mireles, which broke his fibula was dirty. Mulamba was cleared of any wrongdoing by the league.

The Heat’s (4-1-6, 18 points) Mulamba, Eric Acevedo and Alejandro de La Fuente were suspended for tonight’s game and fined $25 each.

For the Bravos (4-3-4, 16), Braga is suspended three games and fined $150.

Back-up goalie Eric Chapa is suspended two games and fined $50.

The league also fined each team $250.

“Honestly, while I might not agree with all their decisions, it’s time to move on. I have to focus on preparing the team and look for solutions in how we can win tonight with the players we do have,” Heat coach Israel Collazo said.

“It will be a highly contested game, but I don’t think it will or should go beyond that. We are going to go out and play and be respectful.”

Fines were also handed out to Laredo’s Juan de Dios Ibarra ($50) and Esteban Bayona ($50).
Ibarra was fined for throwing a water bottle, while Bayona, who was on crutches, shouldn’t have been on the field at all, but still was.

In the Bravos corner, Alfonso Cavaso was fined $50, along with Edgar Cona, both for throwing water bottles.

Of note, is that the Bravos are a pay-for-play club, as they elected to pay their players for their services.

They’re the only team in the Mid-South Division to sign their players in exchange for money.

In their previous two games, the Heat has finished the contests with at least a man down. It has also rallied to tie the game in both matches.

Its first encounter was a 3-3 stalemate back in May, followed by the 1-1 tie two weeks ago.
While the Heat welcomes back defender Pedro Ramos and midfielder Luis Reyes, it loses a key figure in the midfield in Mulamba, who had emerged as the team’s go-to guy on offense, having scored three goals in the last three games.

Also missing the match is defender Acevedo.

The club is already without its top scorer in Bayona, leaving the offense a work in progress.

Helping alleviate the scoring woes is the return of Albert “Chiti” Escovar. Escovar logged some minutes in Friday’s contest, so his availability for a full game is still in question.

“It’s important to keep all your players on the field for continuity and familiarity’s sake, but you can’t predict this sort of thing. We have to adjust, adapt and look for what works for us,” Collazo said.

In its last game, the Heat moved Dionisio “Nicho” Infante back on top alongside Frank Lara.
Infante has some experience atop, so Escovar would be a welcome addition, being that he has played at the university level.

The more likely option is Luis Reyes as an offensive-minded midfielder, with Nicho alone at top.

Lara and Eusebio Garcia have seen some time at the forward position and should see some playing time.

Making an impact lately is midfielder Alex Hergert, who is likely going to called on again with Mulamba out.

The return of Ramos and Soamy Bautista allows for Danny Galvan to return to his natural position in the midfield.

“It’s going to be a difficult match and I expect a hostile welcome. It’s an extremely important match because we both need those three points that are up for grabs,” Collazo said.

The final verdict

2009-06-25T19:19:00.002-05:00

The USL reviewed the video evidence and handed down the suspensions on Thursday.
The Heat suffers the most with two starters out for their game against the Bravos on Sunday.

That left Heat owner Shashi Vaswani hoping that their game video ran a little bit longer than normal.

"The unfortunate part is we sent them the tape, but our camera man shutdown when the final whistle blew and he missed the first thirty to forty seconds where it showed how it began . We have to move forward, they made their decision and we just have to move on," Vaswani said.

More importantly, the league resolved the issue of whether or not the tackle on Jesus Mireles was anything out of the ordinary. The verdict absolves Mulamba of any malicious intent.

The following is the USL's response to the clubs.

Gregory Mulamba (Laredo Heat) – 1 game suspension & $25 fine (7/28 @ Rio Grande Valley)
Mr. Mulamba becomes involved as a reaction to the physical contact initiated by Mr. Chapa. While Mr. Mulamba may have been acting in defense of Mr. Chapa, the evidence leads us to believe his actions are responsible for the escalation of the altercation.
o We have reviewed the tackle that Mr. Mulamba committed in the 30th minute against Jesus Mireles (including consolation) with USSF, and we feel that the tackle doesn’t warrant any disciplinary action.

Alejandro De La Fuente (Laredo Heat) – 1 game suspension & $25 fine (7/28 @ Rio Grande Valley)
o Mr. De La Fuente is identified by multiple witnesses as attacking/striking a member of the Rio Grande Valley.

Erick Acevedo (Laredo Heat) – 1 game suspension & $25 fine (7/28 @ Rio Grande Valley)
o Mr. Acevedo is identified by multiple witnesses as attacking/striking a member of the Rio Grande Valley.

Rio Grande Valley Bravos:

Ismael “Moreira” Braga (Rio Grande Valley Bravos) – 3 game suspension & $150 fine ( 6/27 vs. Austin, 6/28 vs. Laredo, 7/9 @ Laredo)
It is our assessment that Mr. Braga was the instigator of this incident as he approached the Laredo Heat player Gregory Mulamba after the conclusion of the match. His actions fall far below the level of professionalism we expect for the Head Coach.
It is clear from the video that Mr. Braga attempted to strike a member of the Laredo Heat during the beginning of the confrontation. Whether this was in defense of oneself is irrelevant, these actions are not acceptable by the Head Coach.
Several times Mr. Braga continued to enflame the situation by continuing verbally provoke the Laredo Heat members. It is our expectation, Mr. Braga (or any coach) to act in the manner of trying to diffuse the situation and gain control of his team.

Eric Chapa – (Rio Grande Valley Bravos) – 2 game suspension & $50 fine (6/27 vs. Austin & 6/28 vs. Laredo)
Mr. Chapa initiated the physical contact between the two teams as he struck Mr. Mulamba. This action served as the precipitator for others to become physically involved and for the situation to quickly deteriorate.
Mr. Chapa involvement continued throughout the entire situation, and as both teams looked to be settling down, Mr. Chapa attempted to strike another member of the Laredo Heat, again causing the confrontation to re-escalate.

_________________________________________________________________

So there you have it.
Of note, Mulamba is one yellow card away from receiving another suspension. He has four on the year.
As for coach Braga, the USL took a much different apporach back in 2005 when the then coach Eleazer Jepsen was suspended for three months after deliberatley bumpbing into a referee. It seems Braga was lucky that he actually didn't hit anybody during the altercation.
For that incident the USL had this to say.

The USL says, any contact with a referee is seen as ref assault, regardless of the severity of the aggression which means consequences are mandatory.

"It was a deliberate action by the coach, and based on that we had to give a minimum of three months in accordance to the soccer rule book. He feels awful and we know he is a class act, but we can't overlook the fact that this happened. The rule is put in place to protect the refs," USL vice president Tim Holt said by phone out of his Florida office Wednesday.

Heat, Bravos at odds over altercation

2009-06-22T00:56:00.000-05:00

The Development tag for the Premier Development League isn't relegated only to the teams on the field.

At times, and more often than not, coaches and players take to heart the work, or lack thereof, from the referees calling the game.

Referees suffer the brunt of a team's and fan's aggression, and at times they might be right.

But what gets lost in translation is that officials often do a respectable job.

The simple truth, though, is that one wrong can outweigh five rights in the arena of athletics.

It all comes down to the eye of the beholder.

What the teams don't want to let happen, though, is for the league to become complacent if there is a real problem.

Friday's match between the Heat and Rio Grande Valley, which has been touted as a rivalry despite playing just twice, did have the ingredients necessary to actually turn the contest into a grudge match, similar to the rivalry between Laredo and El Paso.

"For a game to be a rivalry a classic, you have to actually play more then a couple of games.

Like the history we have with El Paso, we have four years playing against each other.

Right away they (Rio Grande) want to jump on board the rivalry angle.

If this is already a rivalry, then it seems we are setting quite a low standard for a match to be considered a rivalry," Heat head coach Israel Collazo said.

Making the Heat and Bravos contest interesting is that the Bravo fans actually make a difference since the drive to Laredo is not too lengthy, and on Saturday, there was a loud contingent supporting the club.

From a scene straight from a WWF script, soon after the Bravos got on the board first on a nice goal by Salvador Luna, Luna immediately went into the classic character and paraded around the field, milking every second for an in-your-face celebration.

All this tends to aid the rivalry angle, given time. What ensued after the quick goal was a frenetic and energetic game.

At first, the referee seemed content to let the clubs play.

Soon after, however, the fouls came at shorter intervals and tempers began to flare.

A ticking time bomb was lit midway though the first half when the Bravos' Jesus Mireles was fouled by the Heat's Greg Mulamba.

Mireles, a 17-year-old star from Class 5A state champ Hidalgo, is now, as a result, forced to watch the rest of the season from the sidelines with a broken leg.

What took place in that play is digitally recorded in the game video.

As of Sunday, no one had taken a look to clear the air.

In the Bravos' eyes, Mulamba, according to what was told to the McAllen Monitor, jumped on Mireles' back and tackled him to the ground.

"What bothers me is that the people that listen to their claims is going to believe that.

People have to be more responsible with what they write.

I saw that play unfold, and if Mulamba did go out of his way to hurt the player I would be the first to discipline him.

The fact of the matter is that Mulamba went for the ball and the players foot got his foot stuck on the field," Collazo said.

The snowball effect was in full force as the game took a more physical tone.

By the time the game finished, two Heat players, Pedro Ramos and Luis Reyes, were ejected, along with one Bravo, Adrian Vazquez.

There were a total of nine yellow cards handed out, five to the Bravos and the rest to the Heat.

Bravos coach Ismael Moreira Braga wasn't pleased with what happened and was less pleased with the work the referees had done.

The league is currently reviewing the postgame altercation that involved several Heat players and Bravos players, along with coach Braga, who can be cited for irresponsible behavior for allegedly talking to Mulamba after the game.

"Honestly, the league should address them.

They came unto the field to provoke us, starting with their coach.

I don't want to talk bad about anybody, but the league has suspended me for less.

The league has to take care of situations like this, but if they don't well there is nothing I or anyone else can do," Collazo said.

If the guillotine falls, it should be known today what actions are going to be taken.

The Heat is already hurting with Soamy Bautista and Albert Escovar out with injuries.

Now Ramos and Reyes are suspended for one game, and the club might find itself with fewer players if the league takes action.

Also up in the air is the health of its goal leader, Esteban Bayona, who was hurt in the game against Dallas Fort Worth on Friday.

All this only benefits the Austin Aztex (6-1-3, 21 points), who share the Mid-South Division lead with El Paso (7-4-0, 21). The Aztex travel to Laredo on Friday.

The Heat (4-1-5, 17) is currently in third place, one point ahead of Rio Grande (4-3-4, 16) and three in front of West Texas (4-3-2, 14).

Austin and Laredo have played only 10 games, while Rio Grande and El Paso have 11. West Texas has played only nine games.

Heat salvages a point against Tornados

2009-06-19T17:51:00.001-05:00

The Dallas Fort Worth Tornados didn't look like a team that came into Thursday night's contest struggling, while the Laredo Heat (4-1-4, 16 points) didn't offer its sharpest performance at home as

it salvaged a point with a 2-2 tie against the Tornados (1-5-3, 6) at the Texas A&M International University Soccer Complex.

The Tornados were seven minutes away, six compensation, from earning their second victory of the season.

Rescuing the Heat were the duo if Dionisio "Nicho" Infante and Greg Mulamba.

In the 89th minute, Infante, who had worked his way untouched down the midfield, placed a perfect pass to Mulamba just outside the box.

Mulamba then turned around and sent the ball past the Tornados goalie Maros Valko for the equalizer.

"This game was a must win for us, but we are appreciative of getting at least one point," Heat goalkeeper Ryan Cooper said.

The Heat stayed undefeated at home despite being out shot nine to seven and for the most part outplayed after a strong start to the contest in which the Heat dominated the first five minutes in which several shots on goals came and went.

The missed opportunities came back to haunt the club, no opportunity better then the one Esteban Bayona had in the opening minute.

After a miscue in the defense, Bayona intercepted the pass and raced towards the goalie for a one-on-one situation. His shot went just wide of the far left post.

The Tornados then shored up their defense and played the Heat evenly before Bayona finally managed to knock in the opening score in the 41 minute.

It was Bayona's fourth goal with the Heat.

Bayona left the after injuring his ankle late in the game, leaving the team thin at the forward's position.

His services for tonight's contest against the Rio Grande Bravos at TAMIU might not be available.

The Tornados controlled the contest in the second half, and Paulo Da Silva knocked in the equalizer in the 58th minute with a laser shot from a 25-yard free kick.

They added the go-ahead goal via another set play, this time on a corner kick in the 79th minute when Stephen McCarthy slid to knock in a goal from about three yards out.

"There was some miscommunication with the defenders, and nobody could clear it," Cooper explained.

The Tornado's corner came about after they nearly knocked in their second goal a couple of second earlier.

A Tornado player broke away in the seventh minute, but his shot bounced off the crossbar and just outside the goal line.

Note: The Heat will host the Bravos tonight at 8:15 p.m. at the TAMIU Soccer Complex.

Anyone who purchased a ticket for Thursday night's game gets in tonight for free.

Heat ready to host two pivotal games

2009-06-18T11:22:00.000-05:00

With only eight games remaining in the regular season, the Laredo Heat can no longer afford to let any more points slip away.

Six potential points are up for grabs this week, as the Heat host the Dallas-Fort Worth Tornados tonight and the Rio Grande Valley Bravos on Friday.

Both games are at 8:15 p.m.

The club's veterans and rookies have now reached a point where their inexperience with one another is no longer a valid obstacle.

They've played and practiced long enough to finally begin showing signs of what the team can accomplish.

Essentially, it's the time of the season where every team hopes to begin ironing out the nuances as they strive to make a playoff run.

"There will always be things to tinker with here and there," Heat coach Israel Collazo said.

"What we need to do is make sure we stay the course for 90-plus minutes.

It does you no good to play 80 solid minutes and lose in the final ten.

"The new players are learning game by game.

You don't start off in this league knowing what you have to do or is expected of you."

The Heat (4-1-3, 15 points) looks to maintain its current course and stay in contention for another division title.

"These next two games at home are crucial, and we're striving for the six points," Collazo said.

The Tornados (1-5-2) come to town on Thursday when they'll look for their first win in over a month.

The Tornados' last victory came on May 16 against the Houston Leones.

Since then, the club has been on a downward spiral where they've been shut out three times and outscored 15-6.

On the road the Tornados are 1-3-0 and have been outscored 9-5.

The Heat, on the other hand, is perfect in three games at home and has scored five goals and allowed one.

The fact that the Tornados are playing poorly isn't offering the Heat any consolation as Laredo managed two ties and one win against the Houston Leones, the division's last place team.

The two ties were on the road.

"Playing at home is always an advantage since we know the ins and outs of the field," Collazo said.

"When we hit the road, the fans aren't really what worries us, but the referees since they tend to have a tendency to favor the home team."

The Tornados' leading player is Daniel Summers with three goals.

Their goalkeeper Janrai Gravely hasn't played too well, allowing 2.869 goals on average.

On Friday, the Heat host the Rio Grande Valley Bravos (3-3-3, 12) who are 2-2-2 on the road, but have scored 11 goals and allowed nine.

The Bravos have lost two of their past three games, with their last game being a 5-2 rout of Dallas.

Their top scorer is Salvador Luna with five goals followed by Jesus Mireles with two goals.

Their goalkeeper Juan Garcia has allowed 1.28 goals against per game.

Note: With the purchase of a ticket for tonight's game, fans will receive a ticket free of charge for Friday's game.

General admission tickets are $5.00 for adults, and kids 12 and under get in free.

VIP Area tickets are priced at $20.

Heat amidst many

2009-06-16T13:56:00.001-05:00

Laredo stands at the mid-point of the Premier Development League season and it finds itself amidst a bit of company.

The Heat is coming off a disappointing game against the winless Houston Leones, in which they tied 1-1.

"We're a little bit irked about it (tie). It was a very winnable match and a mental lapse late in the game cost us two points.

That's in the past now, what we gotta do now is focus on what lies ahead," Heat coach Israel Collazo said.

At the top of the division, for the moment, are the Austin Aztex (5-1-3, 18 points) who showed that West Texas (4-2-2, 14) wasn't the only team enjoying a non-loss streak in the Mid South division.

The Aztex club is on an eight game roll, after dropping its season opener against the Heat.

The Aztex won their last two games, first against the Sockers, ending their streak, and then against the El Paso Patriots (5-4-0, 15) to take over the top spot of the division.

The Heat (4-1-3, 15) finds itself in a tie with the Patriots for second place, but with a game in hand. They are on a six game streak without a loss.

Behind the Heat are the Sockers and the Rio Grande Valley Bravos (3-3-3, 12). All five teams are vying for three postseason spots.

The PDL changed its playoff format for the season.

Instead of the top two teams advancing, the top three move on, with the first place team hosting a mini tournament.

In which, the second and third place teams square off and the winner plays the first place team for the division title.

Then the Southern (where the Heat belong) and Western conference divisional winners play for the conference title and the winner faces the Northern and Eastern conference survivor in the Championship game.

Back in the Mid South division, the bottom two teams in the Dallas Forth Worth Tornados (1-5-2, 5) and the Houston Leones (0-6-3, 3) need a dramatic change of fortunes to at least dip a toe into postseason waters.

Laredo, West Texas and Dallas have the benefit of having played one less game than the rest of the division.

The Heat also has the fortune to play their next three games at home.

Where they have yet to lose a game in three tries and has knocked in five goals, while allowing only one.

Up first are back-to-back games, beginning on Thursday against Dallas and concluding on Friday against Rio Grande.

Heat Youth Soccer Club

2009-06-16T13:55:00.001-05:00

The Laredo Heat Soccer Club has announced their 2009 Summer Soccer Camp Dates.
Kids, this is your opportunity to improve your soccer skills, develop new techniques, make new friends and meet the Laredo Heat soccer players up close and personal.
Camp Details:
- Session Two: Monday, June 22, to Thursday, June 25, from 8:00 AM to 11:30 AM
Both sessions will take place at the St. Patrick’s Church soccer field and covered gym area. St. Patrick’s Church is located at 555 East Del Mar Blvd.
The cost for each session is $75.00 per camper and it will include soccer training sessions, a water bottle, a soccer ball and a camp T-shirt.
The soccer camp will be available to boys and girls who have reached the age of five prior to the start of the camps and not older than 12 years of age at the time of registration
For additional information on the Laredo Heat Soccer Club, please visit our website at www.laredoheatsc.com or call the Heat office at 723 – 4700.

Heat headed to Houston to take on the MLS Dynamo

2009-04-23T23:00:00.002-05:00

Via Laredo Heat press release:

The Laredo Heat will be concluding its preparation for the 2009 Premier Development League season with a visit to the Bayou City.

The Houston Dynamo organization will be providing the Heat with its toughest challenge of the preseason by giving the Heat a game on Saturday.

Kick-off is slated for 10 a.m. at Robertson Stadium, located on the campus of the University of Houston.

Since the game will be treated as a scrimmage for both teams, admission to the stadium will be free of charge.

The match, taking place just a week before the Heat’s regular season opener versus the expansion Rio Grande Valley Bravos, should give the players a great opportunity to play in a Major League Soccer stadium and should give them a great incentive to play well.

Additionally, for the younger players that have never had the opportunity to play against some of the best players in the United States, the game should give them a real test of how hard they need to train in order to reach the highest level of soccer in our country.

“This is very unique opportunity for our club,” Heat owner and president Shashi Vaswani said. “An opportunity that I hope will give our players and coaching staff an idea of what we are trying to strive for here in Laredo.

“We were able to form a working relationship with the Dynamo when we were both dealing with Felix Garcia’s transfer and future allocation to their organization. Since then, we have had open lines of communications with several key members of the Dynamo administration.

“I am just happy that the Dynamo accepted our request to play in Houston on one of their free weekends and that the game was a good fit for us. I think the players are really looking forward to the challenge and are looking forward to seeing how they stack up against one of the successful soccer organization in the United States.”

The Houston Dynamo is a two time Major League Soccer Champion, winning consecutive MLS Cup Championships in 2006 and 2007.

The Dynamo play in the Western Conference of Major League Soccer are currently in sixth place behind Chivas USA, the Seattle Sounders, the Colorado Rapids, Real Salt Lake and the San Jose Earthquakes.

The Dynamo has only played five games this season and is under the direction of Coach Dominic Kinnear.

Bravos drop Heat on penalty kicks

2009-04-23T23:00:00.001-05:00

The opening round of the LareDOS Cup Tournament went to the Nuevo Laredo Bravos as they defeated the Laredo Heat 5-2 in penalty kicks on Wednesday night.

The game finished in a 1-1 stalemate in regulation, and the Bravos capitalized on their penalty kicks to take home the cup.

The tournament drew a large number of fans from both clubs at the Texas A&M International Soccer Complex.

Bravos goalkeeper Roman Lozano figured big in his team's win, stopping a Daniel Galvan penalty kick.

Heat goalie Ryan Cooper missed his kick, hitting the left post and setting up the game-winner, knocked in by Carlos Garcia.

The penalty kick goals from the Bravos were from Joel Lopez, Mario Aceves and Raul Rodriguez.

The only Heat player to knock in his shot was Joel Perez.

The Bravos knocked in the opening score in the first half on a Benjamin Patiño goal.

They failed to hold onto the lead, as the Heat's Albert Escobar knocked in the equalizer in the 77th minute.

The goal was the final straw for Nuevo Laredo coach Ricardo Lopez Estrada, who got sent to the showers for arguing with the official.

"The important thing is that the fans were happy," Bravos president Cesar Valdez said.

"Soccer is something that unites us both.

Somebody had to win and obviously we are happy we won, but more importantly that the fans were satisfied,"

Things were heating up early as the referee was quite liberal with the colored cardboard.

Not helping the physical nature of the contest was the pre-arranged rule that both teams would stick with 11 players on the field no matter if they were shown a red card.

"What happened is that it's normal when a team that has been playing for a while and a team that is just beginning for the match to turn into a tough played contest," Valdez said.

"In the end, though, it helps everybody out."

Added Heat coach Israel Collazo, "It's better for me to be able to see all eleven players on the field.

The Bravos are a physical team, well coached and we just have to keep on working."

The Bravos had two red cards, and both teams were littered with yellow cards.

Heat ready for Bravos exhibition game

2009-04-21T18:37:00.000-05:00

By NINO CARDENAS
LAREDO MORNING TIMES

Coach Israel Collazo is able to take a look at how his Laredo Heat players react in an in-game situation, ultimately, means little.

Coach Ricardo Lopez of the Nuevo Laredo Bravos, on the other hand, needs to leave something in the tank as his team prepares to wrap up its 2009 campaign.

More importantly, the Gateway City fans in attendance tonight (8 p.m.) for the showdown between the two clubs get to witness what they have to offer as they take part in their first LareDOS cup at the Texas A&M International soccer grounds.

“We are going to see two teams which feature a lot of youth; teams that are going to give it their all. Both teams have excellent coaches on their benches,” Bravos president Cesar Valdez said.

The ticket prices are $5 for adults and children 12-and-under get in free.

The fact that the Bravos are coming into the game with the majority of the season already played should give them the slight edge.

Leveling the playing field for the Heat is that the Bravos players are all 21 years old or younger.

Also, the core of the team, depending on how much it plays, shouldn’t need much time getting back into the flow of things.

The Heat has 11 players already signed. Those players are going to be joined by potential teammates who will try and make a case to earn their spot on the roster.

“This will be an entertaining game with a lot of goal opportunities,” Collazo said. “The pace should be up and down, with both teams being more aggressive than usual.

“We’ll put on a great show and hope to see the fans come out and support us.”

The Heat are hoping to get a scrimmage in Houston over the weekend before the Premier Development League season begins on May 2 on the road against the expansion Rio Grande Valley Dorados.

Heat organize yearly matchup with Nuevo Laredo Bravos

2009-04-08T16:59:00.001-05:00

It was in the works for quite some time and today it’s official: the Laredo Heat and the Nuevo Laredo Bravos are organizing a yearly contest.

“After several attempts over the past few years to have the Nuevo Laredo Bravos visit Laredo for a game against us, we were finally able to come to a mutually beneficial agreement with the Bravos administration,” Heat General Manager J.J. Vela said via press release.

The Bravos play in the second division of the Mexican Soccer Federation and are currently in the tail end of their season.

The Heat is on the opposite side of the spectrum, finalizing its roster as its Premier Development League season closes in.

“Our players, coaches and administration are truly looking forward to this event, and I say event, not game, because our cities are so intertwined in their day to day activities,” Vela said. “Citizens are one with each other, and we are excited to finally showcase both teams to soccer fans of the two Laredos.”

One of the obstacles for the team was getting the Bravos players’ visas to come into the United States.

All was cleared once the green light was given to give the players a one-day pass into the country in order to dispute the self-titled LareDos Cup.

The first match takes place on April 22 at the TAMIU soccer field.

Kick-off is set for 8 p.m.

Tickets are set at $5 for general admission and $30 for VIP seats. Children 12-and-under get in free.

The winner of the game takes home a trophy, which is to be provided by the home team on a yearly basis.

“When we initiated the discussions about the possibility of the match, one of the first things we talked about was making sure the game between the two teams would not be the only one ever scheduled, and that so long as the teams were competing in their respective leagues, there should be a home-and-away series established,” Vela said.

“With that being said, we agreed to establish a name for the annual game; something to give it a competitive feeling, something for the players to play for and we immediately agreed on giving the winner of the match a cup name La Copa LareDOS (LareDOS Cup).”

Heat to hold tryouts

2009-03-12T20:44:00.000-05:00

With one goal in mind for the upcoming 2009 United Soccer Leagues (USL) Premier Development League (PDL) Season, that of winning the division and conference titles and making it to the USL PDL Championship for an unprecedented fourth time in a row, the Laredo Heat Soccer Club started preseason training earlier this month with their core group of players.

This coming weekend, in anticipation of finding replacements for players not returning, the team will be conducting its annual Invitational Try Outs at the Texas A&M International University Soccer Complex.With over a hundred "soccer resumes" looked over and phone calls made to coaching references by the Heat Administration and Coaching Staff over the past two months, participation in the tryouts has already beenclosed out and hopefully with this due diligence, the best players have been asked to participate over the weekend."

Due to hard work and the fortunate success, not to mention luck that we have had over the past three seasons, we (as an organization) have come a long way in recruiting quality players to come play in Laredo," Heat general manager J.J. Vela said."With combining local talent with out of town quality players, we have been able to put an excellent product on the field."Back in 2004, I still remember explaining to players where exactly Laredo was and that it was not close to El Paso.This still remains my favorite story that shows how far we have come along in terms of getting players to the Gateway City to play".

"The players we have coming back understand the importance of the try-outs because some of them have been in that position themselves and each year have participated in making players welcomed to theorganization and making them understand that if they make the team, they will need to work hard, participate with the Heat's commitment to the community and more importantly, make them aware of our successful history and that 100% participation in all endeavors, from practice to games, is expected from each of them."

With the regular season opening on May 1 on the road versus the expansion Rio Grande Valley Bravos, the Laredo Heat Soccer Club is aiming at having a complete roster by the middle of April, after several preseason games that will be played in Austin and San Antonio.For additional information on the Laredo Heat Soccer Club, visit their Web site at www.laredoheatsc.com or call the Heat office at 723-4700.

Closer look

2008-08-10T02:05:00.005-05:00

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

2008-08-10T01:08:00.005-05:00

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

2008-08-10T00:54:00.003-05:00

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

2008-08-10T00:04:00.000-05:00

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

2008-08-08T22:19:00.003-05:00

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

2008-08-06T14:54:00.002-05:00

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

2008-08-05T15:22:00.002-05:00

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

2008-08-04T22:14:00.003-05:00

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

2008-08-04T02:39:00.002-05:00

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?"

2008-08-03T00:38:00.006-05:00

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

2008-08-02T22:44:00.002-05:00

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

2008-08-02T16:01:00.002-05:00

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

2008-08-01T17:24:00.002-05:00

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

2008-08-01T17:23:00.000-05:00

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

2008-07-28T02:21:00.003-05:00

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

2008-07-27T23:15:00.002-05:00

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

2008-07-27T16:45:00.003-05:00

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

2008-07-27T16:38:00.002-05:00

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

2008-07-27T16:23:00.007-05:00

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

2008-07-27T16:18:00.002-05:00

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

2008-07-27T16:08:00.002-05:00

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

2008-07-24T02:16:00.000-05:00

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

2008-07-20T00:05:00.000-05:00

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

2008-07-16T23:41:00.000-05:00

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

2008-07-15T23:02:00.000-05:00

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

2008-07-12T23:20:00.001-05:00

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

2008-07-11T22:51:00.000-05:00

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

2008-07-08T22:57:00.000-05:00

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

2008-07-03T01:09:00.000-05:00

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

2008-06-30T01:46:00.000-05:00

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

2008-06-28T13:55:00.001-05:00

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

2008-06-26T13:32:00.001-05:00

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

2008-06-25T00:24:00.005-05:00

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

2008-06-24T20:56:00.000-05:00

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

2008-06-22T00:19:00.000-05:00

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

2008-06-21T13:31:00.000-05:00

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

2008-06-19T23:54:00.000-05:00

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

2008-06-18T23:25:00.000-05:00

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

2008-06-15T17:31:00.000-05:00

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

2008-06-13T23:28:00.000-05:00

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.

Match Preview: Heat gearing up for back-to-back versus Baton Rouge

2008-06-12T16:40:00.000-05:00

Come Sunday, the Heat (3-1-3, 12 points) will either find themselves in second place in the Mid-South Division or running in the middle of the pack chasing the Austin Aztex with the rest of the teams.

Currently, the Heat are tied with the New Orleans Shell Shockers (3-3-3 / 12 points) and this weekend foe, the Baton Rouge Capitals (4-3-0 / 12 points). The Shell Shockers have played two more games than the Heat and Capitals.

Kick-off for both matches is set for 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday at the Texas A&M International Soccer Complex.

For the Heat, playing two games at home, versus the team which they are tied, could not have come at a better time.

“These types of pressure situations is what shows what a team is made of and it will show me the level of commitment I have for the remainder of the season. We could not have asked for a better set-up to dictate the rest of the season," said Heat Head Coach Israel Collazo.

“I expect Baton Rouge to come all out this weekend and give it their all because they are in the same situation as we are and I would not expect their organization to be any different than us in their approach to these two pivotal matches."

This weekend will also be the Heat’s “Make-A-Wish Weekend”, and on both Friday and Saturday, Heat staff will be distributing Heat logo decals prior to the game from 7-8 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 on cars and to bring attention to the community commitment of both the South Texas Make-A-Wish Foundation and the Laredo Heat.

Local Wish Child Luis Flores will be granted his wish at halftime of Saturday evening's 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.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation and the Laredo Heat invite all of all Laredo to come support Luis and his family to make this evening a memorable occasion for him.