Bucks and Fire draw, 3-3

Story courtesy Michigan Bucks Public Relations

Pontiac, MI (July 12, 2008) - The Michigan Bucks continue to flirt with disaster as they once again spotted their opponents a lead but found a way to claw back into the match. This time the hole was a bit deeper as the Central Conference leaders spotted the Chicago Fire a 2-0 lead at halftime before they decided to compete. The Fire came out attacking the Bucks from the opening whistle and both teams traded blows until the 38th minute. Andrew Duran slotted a free kick from the left side of the box past the wall and past Bucks keeper Steve Clark to give the visitors a 1-0 lead. The teams would continue to battle on both ends of the pitch until just before halftime when Chicago forward Chris Cutshaw was knocked over in the penalty area, where referee Marc Lawrence whistled a PK for the Fire. Captain Carlos Franca smacked home the PK to the left of Clark for a 2-0 intermission lead.

The scoreboard did not reflect the effort in the first half, and the fired up Bucks came out smoking in the second half looking to get back in the game. Michigan State teammates Dave Hertel (Holland, MI) and Doug DeMartin (Mason, MI) dominated the second half with their attacking skills that left the Fire with eight players behind the ball for most of the interval. Hertel took a pass from defensive midfielder Piotr Nowak (Sterling Heights, MI/ Oakland University), who found the left back on a run. Hertel cruised past three defenders before he put his right footed shot past Fire goalkeeper Pat Sperry (Michigan). With the lead cut in half, the Bucks continued to press the issue and took the attack at the Chicago defense. It only took four minutes for Spartan teammate DeMartin to take a pass from Nowak and beat two players before smacking home the tying goal in the 55th minute. At 2-2, the Bucks had all the momentum, but still needed to close the deal.

In the 77th minute, DeMartin scored his second goal of the game and fifth of the season when he took a cross from the right side from forward Stephan St. Louis and pounded home the go ahead strike that sent the huge crowd (791) into a frenzy. With a 3-2 lead and only 13 minutes to play, the Bucks would only need to hang on defensively to finish the game off. Everything was working in the Bucks favor until midfielder Mark Blades stole a ball over the midfield stripe, stepped in and hit a 30 yard strike that went upper 90 and is sure to be a contender for goal of the month in the 85th minute.

In one of the most exciting games played in the United Soccer League's (USL) Premier Development League (PDL) this year, both teams look to finish the regular season strong and await a possible annual rematch in the playoffs. Said Bucks coach Dan Fitzgerald, "This was a classic Bucks/Fire match with all the intensity, tackling and competitiveness that you could find in a PDL match. The fans must have enjoyed the game, because I know the coaches didn't; this was a nerve wracking affair from the opening kickoff. There was a great display of football from both sides and we expect we will see them again before the playoffs are over."

The Bucks play their last regular season home game on Wednesday at Ultimate Soccer Arenas against the Kalamazoo Outrage (7:30 kickoff). The Bucks will then finish out the regular season with a road game at Toronto on Sunday afternoon. Tickets for Wednesday's huge match with Kalamazoo to determine the final Central Conference playoff positions are available through Ticketmaster or at Ultimate Soccer Arenas beginning Sunday. For further information about the Bucks and the upcoming PDL playoffs, please visit the Bucks website at buckssoccer.com or the USL web site at uslsoccer.com.

Team Duggan Wrecks Burns in Alumni Game

The Michigan Bucks first ever Alumni-Reunion match, held before the Bucks/Fire game was won by Team Jim Duggan (Green) 4-0 over Team Steve Burns (White). Mario Scicluna's pounced on a mistake by Burns' backline in the 1st minute, and Team Duggan never looked back. Paul Snape made it 2-0 in the 35th minute off a penalty after a foul in the area. It was ex-Fire draft pick Ryan Mack that took a feed from Snape to make it 3-0 in the 48th minute, with Mario Scicluna finding the back of the net again in the 57th off a feed from Mack. The game also featured appearances from old-timers Dominic Scicluna, Scott Weiger, Reid Friedrichs, Scott Emert, Matt Rawlins and Tim Richey as well as more recent Bucks, Ryan Rzepka, Brady Vance, Jeff Wiese, and Erik Nelson.

Chicago Fire vs. Michigan Bucks
Ultimate Soccer Arenas
Pontiac, MI
July 12, 2008

Scoring Summary:
CHI -- Andrew Duran (unassisted) - 38th minute
CHI -- Carlos Franca (penalty kick) - 45th minute
MICH -- Dave Hertel 2 (Piotr Nowak 2) - 55th minute
MICH -- Doug DeMartin 5 (Piotr Nowak 3) - 59th minute
MICH -- Doug DeMartin 6 (Stefan St. Louis 1) - 77th minute
CHI -- Mark Blades (Pat McMahon) - 85th minute

Lineups:

Misconduct Summary:
CHI - Carlos Franca (caution) - 7th minute
MICH - Fabien Lewis (caution) - 28th minute
CHI - Brandon Barklage (caution) 36th minute
MICH - Kenny Uzoigwe (caution) - 51st minute
CHI - Pat Sperry (caution) - 51st minute
MICH - Piotr Nowak (caution) - 60th minute
MICH - Fabien Lewis (caution) - 90th minute
MICH - Fabien Lewis (ejection) - 90th minute

Statistics:
Shots: Chicago 7, Michigan 9
Saves: Chicago 1, Michigan 5
Fouls: Chicago 16, Michigan 18
Offsides: Chicago 3, Michigan 1
Corners: Chicago 3, Michigan 5