St. Louis Lions earn weekend victories on the road in Springfield and Kansas City: Lions improve to 3-0-0 and move within one victory of the 2009 U.S. Open Cup

 

 

St. Louis Lions earn weekend victories on the road in Springfield and Kansas City

Lions improve to 3-0-0 and move within one victory of the 2009 U.S. Open Cup

 

St. Louis, Mo. (May 19, 2009) – The St. Louis Lions cruised to 5-0 and 4-2 victories on the road against the Springfield Demize and Kansas City Brass this weekend to improve to 3-0-0 on the season and move within one victory of qualifying for the 2009 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.

 

St. Louis got its two-game road trip off to a fast start Friday night in Springfield, netting two goals in the first eight minutes of the match in route to a 5-0 victory over the Springfield Demize.  Forward Steven Beattie led the Lions on offense with two goals and an assist while teammate Stephen Brocks added a goal and an assist.  Additionally, midfielder Martin Clayes and defender Alan Bradaric both scored on penalty kicks for the Lions, who have now defeated Springfield six times in seven all-time meetings.

 

"We played a quality game and had a huge effort from Beattie and Brocks," said Lions Head Coach Tony Glavin. "The two of them created a lot of havoc in the Springfield defense early which allowed for plays to open up and chances to develop."

 

After Friday's victory, St. Louis traveled to Kansas City on Sunday afternoon for a match against the Kansas City Brass.  In a total reversal of Friday night, St. Louis trailed Kansas City at halftime by a score of 1-0 despite out shooting the Brass 11-6 in the half.  However, the shots eventually turned to goals as the Lions netted four goals in the second half and won the match 4-2.

 

Forward Steven Beattie started the scoring for St. Louis in the 55^th minute with his third goal of the season.  Just one minute later the Lions struck again, this time forward Stephen Brocks netted his third of the season off a pass from Martin Clayes to give the Lions a 2-1 lead.

 

Kansas City tied the match right away in the 57^th minute on a misplay by St. Louis goalkeeper Brenton Saylor.  A Brass player was able to get a piece of the clearing attempt by Saylor and collided with him, resulting in the ball finding the back of the net.

 

Unfazed by the mistake, St. Louis proceeded to control play in the second half and generated numerous chances while wearing down the Brass defense. The effort paid off in the 80th minute when Stephen Beattie sent a cross to the back post to find the head of midfielder Stuart Wark who placed the ball in the near post netting for his second goal of the season making the score 3-2 in favor of St. Louis.

The Lions replaced forwards Steven Beattie and Stephen Brocks in the 86th minute with Mike Utley and Brian Harris in an attempt to keep up the sustained pressure in the final minutes. The two continued the relentless offensive attack and Harris one-timed a great ball to Utley who took the touch and blasted a shot past the diving Kansas City goalkeeper in the 88^th minute to give the Lions a 4-2 lead and the victory.

 

St. Louis is now 3-0-0 on the season and in U.S. Open cup qualifying.  The Lions next match will be at 5 p.m. on Saturday, May 23 at the Tony Glavin Soccer Complex in Cottleville, Mo. against the Des Moines Menace.  The Lions and Menace are tied atop the standings for the division's one U.S. Open Cup berth with St. Louis leading in goal differential.  A win or draw for St. Louis would put the Lions into the Cup for the second consecutive year.

 

For more information please visit www.stllions.com.

 

The St. Louis Lions are in their fourth season as a member of the United Soccer League's (USL) Premier Development League (PDL) where players have the ability to compete throughout the summer months in a professionalized setting while maintaining their collegiate eligibility. The league is the proving ground for players that aspire to reach the highest-levels of the game, while providing affordable family entertainment within their city.  The PDL consistently sends players into the professional ranks with several playing in the USL First and Second Professional Divisions as well as 39 players with PDL experience chosen in the 2009 Major League Soccer SuperDraft.  In just three prior seasons the Lions have competed in the U.S. Open Cup(2008), PDL playoffs(2007), won the Rookie Franchise of the Year Award(2006) and currently have five former players playing professional soccer. 

 

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Media Contact:

Colin Pennington

Colin.pennington@brightonusa.com

(314)505-5285