Laredo Still Has Hopes for Divisional Title, Final Two Games in Midland and El Paso
Written by Post Public Information Representative, Jul 12, 2012, 0 Comments
Courtesy Vanessa Guajardo,
Hosting Conference Championship Still a Possibility
Laredo, TX: For the Laredo Heat Soccer Club (8 – 3 – 3 / 27 points), the task at hand is easily understood, they must go to Midland to take on the West Texas Sockers (2 – 6 – 6 / 12 points) today Thursday, July 12th (Grande Communication Stadium, kick-off at 8:00 P.M.) and then head to El Paso to challenge the Patriots (6 – 6 – 2 / 20 points) on Saturday, July 14th (Patriot Stadium, kick-off at 8:00 PM MST) and the Mid-South Division Championship will belong to them.
Laredo, currently sitting in 2nd place in the Mid-South Division behind the Austin Aztex (9 – 4 – 2 / 29 points) with a game in-hand is in the driver’s seat and controls its destiny for the divisional title. Six points over the next 72 hours is all they need; however, as anyone that has played sports or has lived life knows, this task is easier said than done.
In addition, if the Heat are fortunate enough to obtain six points on the road in Midland and El Paso, Laredo also gives itself a chance to host the opening round of the Premier Development League (PDL) Conference Championships if the Southeast Division Champion, the Ocala (FL) Stampede (10 – 3 – 2 / 32 points) lose their final game of the season on the road to the Panama City (FL) Beach Pirates (6 – 5 – 3 / 21 points).
Confused? Do not worry, because right now, nothing is settled in the Southern Conference of the PDL and there is even a possibility, if things do not go well for the Stampede and the Heat that the conference tournament will be played in Austin because the Aztex could win the Mid-South title if they beat New Orleans on Saturday.
“Right now, we know that Ocala, Austin and Laredo will be playing next weekend in the playoffs and we need another team from the Southeast Division to claim the last spot and that will happen this weekend. What I wish I could tell everyone is where we will play the Southern Conference Championship”, said Heat General Manager J.J. Vela.
“For us, the way the hosting of the opening round of the PDL playoffs is set up, the divisional champion from either the Southeast or the Mid-South that accumulates the most points during the 16 game regular season has the right to host and it is my understanding that Ocala, Austin and us are all interested parties. But for now, we have to play the games and complete our seasons”.
Vela concluded, “By the time the whistle blows to start our game in El Paso on Saturday, we will know if the possibility exists to host in Laredo because Ocala and Panama City will tangle Friday in the Florida panhandle; however, the Mid-South Division title will hopefully still be on the line for us and the boys will have the opportunity to fight for that and we can accomplish our third goal of the season, winning the division. Our first goal was to win an Open Cup match and our second was to make the playoffs”.
Current Mid-South Division Standings
Austin Aztex (9 – 4 – 2, 29 points)
Laredo Heat (8 – 3 – 3, 27 points)
El Paso Patriots (6 – 6 – 2, 20 points)
Texas Dutch Lions (5 – 7 – 2, 17 points)
New Orleans Jesters (2 – 6 – 7, 13 points)
West Texas (Midland) Sockers (2 – 6 – 6, 12 points)
Heat Super 20
The Laredo Heat Super 20 is also playoff bound after a successful regular season in the Mid-South Division’s Super 20 South Zone. The Super 20 will be heading to Bradenton, FL to compete in the United Soccer Leagues Super 20 Championship Tournament.
Teams that have already qualified for the Super 20 Championships and that will be joining the Heat in Florida are: Westchester (NY) Flames, TSF (NJ) Academy, Reading United (PA) FC, Ironbound (NJ) SC, Alamo SC San Antonio, Texas Football Club (Dallas), Crew Juniors (OH), Chicago Fire, Waza (Detroit) FC, Ottawa Fury (Canada), Knoxville Soccer Academy, Triangle (NC) FC, Tampa Bay United and IMG Academy (FL).
