Comets Fall in Overtime.

The Missouri Comets blew leads of 8 and 6 points over the course of the game and ended up falling in over time to the Milwaukee Wave 23-21 in their season opener at the Independence Events Center.

The Comets got off to an early lead though. Just 17 seconds in off of a restart, John Sosa found Vahid Assadpour near the boards. Assadpour's shot sneaked between the post and Marcel Feenstra to give the Comes a quick 2-0 lead. A little over a minute and a half in the Comets doubled that lead. New signing, Alex Megson stole the ball at the top of the box and fired a shot into the opposite corner to make it 4-0. The Comets controlled much of the possession, but couldn't add to their lead. Then just over the half way mark the Wave cut the lead to 1. Pablo DaSilva won the ball near midfield. He played the ball towards Ian Bennett who won the ball and raced towards the Missouri goal. Right by the 3 point line, Bennett let fly with a shot. He fired into the upper corner, beating Danny Waltman to make it 4-3. Bennett's goal was called a 3 pointer, but replays showed that it very well may have been on the line and should have been ruled a two. The goal stood though. Late on in the first quarter the Comets were able to add to their lead. Off a poor Wave free kick, the ball came to Assadpour. The Comets captain raced the length of the field before squaring the ball off the wall into the middle for Leo Gibson who had the simplest of tap ins to make it 6-3. Then with under a minute left in the quarter the Comets scored again. As the Wave pressed, Gibson sprung the ball up the field for Milan Ivanovic. Ivanovic raced in on goal and five-holed Feenstra to make it 8-3 as the first quarter came to an end.

Early in the second quarter, the Wave cut the lead to three. Off a Wave restart, Marcio Leite laid the ball back to Luan Oliveira. Oliveira fired the ball through the wall and into the net to make it 8-5. The second quarter continued with the Wave pressuring looking for another goal, but Danny Waltman and Missouri's defense came up with some big saves and blocks. Late in the quarter though the Comets started to get more possession. Gibson hit the bar with a rocket of a shot. And off a restart, Geison's effort was saved off the line. With under 2 minutes left the Comets almost had another goal. Gibson got played in 1v1 with Feenstra after a long through from Waltman.Feenstra up ended Gibson and ended up given a blue card. Geison took the shootout attempt for Missouri, his initial attempt was saved by Feenstra and the rebound fell back to him but his chip went just wide.

The Comets came out in the third quarter and grabbed another goal just under three minutes in. Gibson stole the ball inside Missouri's half and raced in towards Milwaukee's end. He fired a shot from three point range that went into the far corner giving the Comets an 11-5 lead. The game started to get very physical and cards started to fly. Just before the halfway point, Carlos Munoz fouled Stefan Stokic in the corner, elbowing the Comets defender. Stokic though got up and ended up hitting Munoz in the face. Both players were given blue cards and the teams played 4v4. Shortly after that blue card was given the Comets were down to three on the field as Assadpour was given a blue card for boarding. With the 4v3 advantage the Wave took advantage as Leite fed the ball to Oliveira to cut the lead to 4. The two teams then played 4v4 until the Wave penalty ended. But right as it ended, the Comets added another goal. Lucas Rodriguez played the ball to Sosa in the corner. Sosa beat Feenstra with pace on his shot to make it 13-7. Less than a minute later the Comets made it 15-7. Brian won the ball outside the yellow line, dribbled into the Milwaukee end and fired a shot into the far corner. Late in the third though the Wave started their first come back. Just over 12 minutes into the quarter, Oliveira played the ball to the back post for Giuliano Oliviero whose diving header cut the lead to 15-9. Shortly after the goal the two teams were down to 4v4 again. And again it was Missouri's lack of composure that caused it. Wave midfielder, Judson McKinney was given a blue card for boarding, but in retaliation, Ramone Palmer was given a blue card for retaliation. With the extra space on the field, the Wave took advantage, scoring 2 goals in that span to make it 15-13. Both plays were extremely similar. The first play saw Leite start a 3v1 break. He fed the ball forward to Victor Quiroz, Quiroz laid the ball back to Leite who fired home. Shortly after it was Fabinho playing the ball back to Bennett for his second of the night and cutting the lead to two points.

Early in the fourth quarter, the Wave got themselves level. Comets defender, Andre Braithwaite got caught in possession in the Comets end by Marcelo Fontana. Fontana fed the ball into the middle for Nicolas Perera who tapped the ball into the net to make it 15-15. Just over two minutes into the quarter the Comets retook the lead. Off a restart at the top of the arc, Sosa fed the ball into the corner for Assadpour. The Comets captain turned the ball in and put the Comets back on top. Just seven seconds later the Comets had a four point lead. The Comets won the ball back off the kick off and Palmer fed the ball into the middle for Geison who scored to make it 19-15. Just four minutes into the quarter, the Wave have a 1v1 opportunity but Waltman comes up with a big save. Off the save the Comets countered. Gibson fed the ball to Sosa who rounded Feenstra and put the ball home to make it 21-15.

With just five minutes left and a six point deficient, the Wave went to their 6th attacker. Two minutes later the Wave cut the lead to four. Munoz got the ball in the corner and beat Waltman to the near post. Less than a minute later, the Wave had the game down to a single score. Leite crossed the ball into the middle and Bennett finished his hattrick poking the ball home. Just forty seconds later, the game was level. On the counter, Bennett fired the ball from the corner and beat Waltman to make it 21 all.

The two teams went into overtime. The overtime turned into a very tight game as neither team wanted to make a mistake. The best chance came to the Wave as they had a 2v1 opportunity. Waltman started to cheat far post and the shot was fired towards the near post, but hit the bar. Just over the half way point of the OT, the game ended. Off a restart to Waltman's left, Leite fired a shot off the boards that bounced right into the path of Bennett, who knocked the ball home to give the Wave their first lead of the game, but the only one that mattered as the Wave won 23-21.

Geison Named MVP

Another year end award for the Missouri Comets. For the second year in a row, the Missouri Comets have the MISL MVP after Byron Alvarez won the award last year. Geison becomes the second player for the Comets to win both the scoring title and be named MVP. Geison finished the season with 90 points, including 38 goals to win the scoring title.

That was the only award that the Comets won this year, as Leo Gibson, Danny Waltman and Kim Roentved didn't win their awards they were up for.

Here are the voting results from the MISL, Comets players in bold.

Most Valuable Player – Geison 32, Mauricio Salles 18, Marcio Leite 17, Sagu 14, Danny Waltman 14

Rookie of the Year – Slavisa Ubiparipovic 32, Nicolas Perera 11, Kevin Ten Eyck 10, Cory Elenio 10

Goalkeeper of the Year – Sagu 27, Danny Waltman 25, Marcel Feenstra 3

Defender of the Year – Mike Lookingland 28, Nelson Santana 21, Leo Gibson 18, Joe Hammes 16

Coach of the Year – Keith Tozer 20, Danny Kelly 14, Kim Roentved 13

Post Season Awards for Comets

Three Missouri Comets players were named to the all league team today. The same 3 players are up for other awards later this week. Geison, Danny Waltman, Leo Gibson and Byron Alvarez were all named to the all league team. Geison was named to the first team, while Waltman, Gibson, and Alvarez were named to the second team.

Geison is also up for the MVP award that will be announced soon. Waltman is up for goalkeeper of the year while Gibson is up for defender of the year. The fact that Waltman and Gibson are on the second team very likely means that neither of them is going to win their individual award. The Comets coach, Kim Rontved is up for coach of the year as well. Congrats to the 5.

Comets End Regular Season with Big Win

The Missouri Comets closed out the regular season today against the Milwaukee Wave at the Independence Events Center. After the events of Friday where the two teams ended the game in a shoving match, everything was lined up for an extremely physical game. That did not disappoint either, as the two teams combined for 13 blue cards today. The Comets though used the Wave penalties to their advantage, going 4 of 5 on the day while the Wave went 1 for 4.

Things got off to a rocky start for the Comets though, as less than 6 minutes in, Stefan Stokic was sent to the box for a tripping penalty. The Wave took advantage of the penalty as Giuliano Oliveiro finished off an opportunity from Hewerton, when he crossed the ball into the box and Oliveiro, who five holed Boris Pardo, who was getting his first start of the season. Two minutes later, the Wave doubled their lead. This time, Oliveiro played set up man as he fed Jonathan Greenfield who fired in a shot that beat Pardo to the far post.

By this point, the Comets looked to be going through the motions, without Vahid Assadpour, Tiguinho, Leo Gibson (who was actually red carded at the end of the game Friday), and Ryan Junge, the team just didn't seem to be there. Combine that with the fact that this game meant nothing and you could almost understand.

The game though continued to get physical and shortly after the Wave went up 4-0, we got some 4v4 soccer. Brian Harris was shielding a ball back to Pardo when he was fouled by Oliveiro. Harris took exception to the foul and immediately got up and pushed Oliveiro earning both players blue cards. Neither team was able to capitalize on the wide open field, but during that play, the Comets seemed to finally wake up. Shortly after the 4v4 situation, the Comets found themselves on the power play as Evan McNeley was given a blue card for tripping. The Comets took advantage of the man advantage, as Geison played a ball to the back side. Byron Alvarez connected with a header, putting it onto the bar and off of Milwaukee goalkeeper Nick Vorberg. The ball bounced onto the line and Alvarez pounced on it first making it 4-2.

Things continued to get out of hand as the quarter was drawing to a close. Neto had words with Greenfield after they both collided running for the ball. After their words, Neto was making a run, and Josh Rife stuck out a foot, tripping the Comets forward. The Comets pressed on the power play, and finally tied the game up. Once again it was the Geison to Alvarez combination. Geison found Alavarez at the back post with a cutting pass that Alvarez blasted in from a yard out to tie the game with 1.5 seconds left in the quarter.

The second quarter continued the physical and rough play as just a minute in, there was 4v4 soccer again as John Sosa and Marcio Leiti both got sent to the box for pushing. The Comets grabbed the lead just over 6 minutes into the game. Pardo collected a weak shot by the Wave and played an immediate ball to Stokic at Missouri's yellow line. Stokic then dribbled the length of the floor before firing a shot past Vorberg and into the net giving the Comets their first lead.

The Wave became the ones that really pushed the game from that point, pressuring the Comets and pushing their thing bench. The high pressure almost paid off late in the quarter. After Pardo got caught out of net, the Comets gave the ball away and Leite tried to ship the Comets keeper, Pardo got his hands up and knocked the ball down, but the problem was that Pardo wasn't back in the box yet. Pardo was whistled for a hand ball and the Wave had a shootout attempt. Pardo though came up big on the shootout attempt stopping Leite and then the Comets were able to kill off the power play.

With less than a minute left in the half, the Comets again found themselves on the power play. Hewerton this time was sent to the box. The Comets weren't able to capitalize before the end of the half, but early in the third quarter, the Comets again paid off and once again it was Geison to Alvarez. Geison played a ball to himself off the wall and then fired a ball to the back post where Alvarez was there once again to tap the ball in giving the Comets the 8-4 lead. Just over a minute later, the Comets made it 10-4. Pardo again played a quick ball to Stokic who again went the length of the floor, this time Vorberg saved his shot, but Geison was there this time to follow and make it a 6 point lead for the Comets.

Things went and got worse for the Wave, as Marco Terminesi was sent to the box for holding as Bato Radoncic got in behind the defense. Once again, the Comets capitalized on the power play and for the fourth time it was Geison to Alvarez. This time Geison played in a cross in the air that Alvarez met with a diving header to make it 12-4. At this point, Missouri was up by as many as they were at the same time on Friday. It became a question of whether Missouri had learned anything from the performance on Friday. About the midpoint of the quarter, the Wave cut the lead back to 6 as Oliveiro finished off his second of the game and for a split second people had to think "oh no here we go again."

Instead though the Comets came back and restored their 8 point lead. This time it was Neto finishing off a chance. His original 3 pointer was saved, but Bato was there, collected the rebound. Bato's first chance was blocked, he then picked out Neto who buried his chance and it was 14-6. The physicality continued though, and the Comets found themselves down a man again. Neto had fouled a Wave player. The player took exception to it and got in Neto's face. Missouri's big defender, Cristiano stepped up for his teammate and received a blue card for unsportsmanlike conduct. The Comets held the power play off though and ended the quarter up 14-6.

The fourth quarter saw the Comets build on their lead. First was Alvarez getting his 5th goal of the game, the first not on a power play. Alvarez led a fast break and was looking to return a favor from earlier goals as he tried to feed Geison. The pass though was blocked by a Wave defender and rolled into the net as Vorberg had committed himself to the pass. With Alvarez at the yellow line when he played the pass, it was a 3 point goal making it 17-6. At this point, the Wave made an interesting decision and went with the 6th attacker very early. The reason for this probably has to do with the playoffs approaching. With the playoffs, around the corner, if the Wave were facing a situation similar to this in the playoffs, they'd need to do this again so getting practice in a real game that means little is a big bonus to the Wave. The Comets though took advantage of it shortly after they made the change. Another quick outlet from Pardo found Coady Andrews who raced down the side. He fired a shot into the middle that got turned in by Neto to make it 19-6.

The Wave continued to pull the 6th attacker in and out of the game depending on the situation for the majority of the rest of the half. About halfway through though, the Comets made it 21-6, with Alvarez again finding the net off a pass from Harris. The Wave finally killed a power play, but that seemed to have a lot more to do with the Comets not really attacking than the Wave's defense. The Comets as well had one more penalty to kill after Alvarez picked up a 4th foul in the half and had to sit. But the Comets killed the game off and will go into the playoffs on a high with the 21-6 win, as the Comets scored 21 of the last 23 points in the game.

Poor Third Quarter Dooms the Comets

The Comets saw their 5 game winning streak snapped tonight at the Independence Events Center as a poor 3rd quarter doomed the Comets to a 15-14 loss to the Wave. In the first quarter, the Wave were the more aggressive side, pushing the game on the Comets, but were not able to find the net early on. The Comets had their chances as well, but they to couldn't get a goal. With just over 5 minutes left in the quarter, the Wave got on the board first, as Nicolas Perera cut inside on his defender and fired a shot past Danny Waltman to give Milwaukee the 2-0 lead. After grabbing the lead though, the Wave seemed to concede more of the field, and the Comets started to take advantage, and with just over 12 minutes played, got the score level. Lucas Rodriguez did a good job of splitting the defense with a nice pass and Geison fired the shot past Marcel Feenstra.

Shortly after the goal, the Comets found themselves on the power play, as Jonathan Greenfield was blue carded for boarding on Cristiano. A little over 20 seconds later, the Comets capitalized on the power play. Off a restart, Tiguinho fed a pass to Rodriguez, whose low shot 5 holed Feenstra and gave the Comets the lead at the end of 1 quarter, 4-2.

The second quarter saw the Wave working to get back into the game, but Waltman, as he has been doing a lot lately was coming up with quite a few big saves to keep the Comets in the lead. As the quarter wore on, the frustration for Milwaukee started to come out as they picked up foul after foul. The Comets themselves also had some chances, but Feenstra made some good saves himself in his goal. With just under 4 minutes to play in the quarter, the Comets started firing in rapid succession. The first to strike was Byron Alvarez. Waltman collected a weak shot from the Wave and immediately played an outlet pass to Alvarez. The ball went over his defenders head and Alvarez went to goal, he let the ball bounce one more time than fired a volley that beat Feenstra and made it 6-2 Comets. Less than a minute later, the Comets were up 8-2. The play came about after both teams had fast breaks, first the Comets broke 2v2, but had the chance broken up. This led to a 3v1 situation for the Wave, but Waltman made a good save and back the other way came Geison and Neto on a 2v1. Geison fed Neto who collected, turned and fired past Feenstra to make it 8-2. The fouling by the Wave continued and Marcio Leite found himself in the box for holding a short time later. Once again, the Comets capitalized on the power play, only 15 seconds after the power play started, it was 10-2. A ball played across to the back post was headed back into the middle by Geison. Feenstra could only slap at the header and the ball fell to Leo Gibson who hit it on the side volley past Feenstra to have the Comets go into the half up 8.

The 3rd quarter, once again saw the Wave come out looking to get themselves back into the game. Both keepers were busy though as the Comets continued to try to strike on the counter. Once again they suffered a blow to their offense, as Tiguinho went down with a knee injury close to half way through the quarter and did not return to the game. The loss of Tiguinho hurt a lot, because Missouri didn't really have someone that could pull the strings offensively as well as the Brazilian. Without him, the Comets offense sputtered.

The Wave took advantage. Just over 7 minutes in, Greenfield got on the board as he fired a shot low to Waltman's far corner in off the post. From there the Wave continued to pressure and they always looked the more likely team to score again. The next goal came from Ian Bennett, who was played in behind the Comets defense by Hewerton and he only had to tap it past Waltman to make it 10-6. A few minutes later, the Wave were within one. After Waltman made a good save, knocking away a low effort, the ball unfortunately fell to JP Rodrigues, who from outside the yellow line fired a 3 pointer that made it into the net and made it 10-9. Less than a minute later, the Wave were back in the lead. This time it was Hewerton getting the goal. Leite started the play on the right, squaring the ball into the middle, where Hewerton beat Stefan Stokic to the ball and poking the ball past Waltman to make it 11-10 after 3 quarters.

After the first 3 quarters saw late goals, the fourth quarter started with a flurry. Less than 30 seconds in, the Wave had expanded their lead as Greenfield got his second goal of the game as Hewerton was again the set up man, playing Greenfield in behind the defense. The Comets though didn't take long to respond. Bato Radoncic, picking up some of the playmaking role, picked out Gibson who had made a run on the back side. Gibson collected the ball, took a touch and fired past Feenstra to make it 13-12. A minute later the lead was again 3 points after the Comets intentially played the ball out of bounds in their own half. Leite found Hewerton on the left on the free kick and Hewerton made no mistake firing into the roof of the net to make it 15-12. The Comets though responded about a minute later, this time again through Geison. First, Rodriguez fired a shot off the top glass, the ball fell to Alvarez, whose header hit off the cross bar as Feenstra batted at it, but it fell to Geison who headed it into the net to make it a 1 point game again.

The Comets continued to push the game late, getting another power play, but were again unable to capitalize on the opportunity. In the end they missed Tiguinho's creativity on the field to help them break down the Wave's defense. The end of the game saw Bennett commit a rough foul on Gibson. After the game, the foul led to an exchanging of words and shoving between the two players. The shoving escalated and both teams were soon enough packed together on one side of the field trying to separate things out. Certainly will make the next 3 games the two teams play against each other of the next week or so very interesting.

Undermanned Comets Hold Off Lancers

Without three players that put in a large number of minutes for the team today, the Missouri Comets built a 13-5 lead by late in the 4th quarter, but had to hold on late to defeat the Rochester Lancers 13-11 for their 5th straight win.

The Comets were without 3rd leading scorer, Vahid Assadpour, Cristiano, and recent signing Bato Radoncic today as they took on the Lancers. To go along with that, the Comets lost Ryan Junge and Tiguinho during the course of the game due to injury.

The Comets grabbed the early lead as Neto backhealed a pass from Tiguinho into the net. Only a minute later, the Lancers actually pulled ahead off a restart 3 pointer from Mauricio Salles. The Comets continued to push to try to get the lead back, and late in the quarter they pulled ahead again. Once again it was Neto finding the net off another assist from Tiguinho. This time Tiguinho got open on the right hand side and played a ball across the box to an unmarked Neto who tapped the ball home.

In the second quarter, the Lancers retook the lead, as Andrew Hoxie beat Danny Waltman in net to make it 5-4. Just after the midway point in the half though, the Comets retook the lead. This time through John Sosa. Byron Alvarez led a 2v1 break and then fed Sosa who slotted the shot under Patrick Hannigan to make it 6-5. Just over a minute later, Bryan Harris fed a pass to Neto, and the Brazilian fired a shot from 3 point range the went into the roof of the net giving the Comets a 9-5 lead. Waltman was called to make some big saves, including one where he made it across the length of the goal and knocked a ball off the line to keep the lead for Missouri.

In the second half, the Lancers began to push the game more, looking to get themselves back into the game. And at each turn, Waltman came up big, making a number of big saves. Including once again saving one off the line. Late in the quarter, Missouri extended their lead. With less than a minute left, Lucas Rodriguez fed a pass to the back post for Geison who beat Hannigan low again making it 11-5.

The fourth quarter saw both keepers once again come up big for their side, Waltman continued to keep the Lancers out of the net, while Hannigan kept his team in it as well. Missouri though did find another goal just before the half way point. Alvarez picked up his second assist of the game, feeding Geison who scored his second goal making it 13-5. The Lancers though kept things close, and finally found a way past Waltman. Doug Miller got the first goal with just over 9 minutes gone. Less than a minute later the Lancers were within 3, thanks to a goal from Gary Boughton.

Then as the game was winding down, things got interesting. The Lancers brought on the 6th attacker with about 2 and a half minutes left and pushed the game even more. That lasted for only about 30 seconds though when a blue card came out for Sallas. The Comets went onto the power play, but they were on the power play for about a minute when Lucas Rodriguez found himself going to the box for boarding. So with the teams playing 4v4, the Lancers brought the "5th attacker" back on the field. The Comets withstood the pressure and with 25 seconds left Harris tried to lead a break. Instead, Harris was up ended by Kyle Manscuk and went into the boards. The foul was the last of what had been a chippy 4th quarter, and Harris came up ready for a fight. Players from both teams came off the bench and a scuffle broke out. The referees quickly broke things up. When everything cleared up, Manscuk was shown a red card for his challenge, while Harris was given a blue card for retaliation and went to the box himself. So for the last 25 seconds the two teams played 3v3. The Lancers had one good late chance right before time expired, but Waltman came up with one last big save. In the end, Waltman had over 20 saves as the Comets held the Lancers off.

Combine the Comets 5th straight win with a 3rd straight loss for the Milwaukee Wave, and Missouri is back in the race to potentially win the Central Division. Missouri has to win out while the Wave continue to lose, but it is still possible. The Wave have 1 game against Syracuse before ending the season with 2 against the Comets.

Comets Clinch Playoff Spot

The Missouri Comets had gotten their magic number down to 1 on Friday with their win over the Baltimore Blast. They didn't wait long to make make that magic number 0. The Comets took care of business today in Milwaukee, defeating the Wave 17-14 to punch their ticket to the playoffs.

The Wave grabbed an early 2-0 lead on the power play less than 5 minutes into the quarter. It was the last 5 minutes of the quarter where the excitement was though. Lucas Rodriguez tied the game at 2-2 on the power play, off an assist from Byron Alvarez. Less than a minute later though, the Wave were not only 4-2 up, but 6-2, as they scored two goals in the span of 13 seconds. Before the end of the half though, the Comets were back in the game, as Ryan Junge scored to make it 6-4 after 1 quarter.

The Comets got the second quarter going in style as Geison hit a 3 pointer just over 3 minutes in, and right around the 4 minute mark, Neto scored to put the Comets on top 9-6. Once again the end of the quarter saw a lot of action. Vahid Assadpour got on the board with a goal to make it 11-6 with under 3 minutes left. Less than a minute later, the Wave made it 11-8. But before the half was over Assadpour grabbed his second to have a 13-8 lead in the half.

In the third quarter, Milwaukee was the only team to score making it a 3 point game at 13-10. Into the fourth quarter with Missouri in the lead, John Sosa added an early goal to make it 15-10. Milwaukee pushed the game looking to get back into it, and Hewerton Moreira led the charge, scoring 1 goal to make it 15-12 around the half way point of the quarter. Then almost immediately after putting on their 6th attacker, Moreira scored to get the Wave within one. That's as close as the Wave got though, while still with the 6th attacker on the field, a long pass from Danny Waltman was missed by two Wave players and headed into the empty net. Making it 17-14 and completing Assadpour's hattrick.

The Comets will host the Milwaukee Wave on March 9th at the Independence Events Center in their playoff matchup.

Comets Move Closer to the Playoffs

The Missouri Comets magic number for clinching a playoff birth this year is now down to 1, after an 18-9 win over the Baltimore Blast at the Independence Event Center. The win, coupled with a 6-3 loss to the Milwaukee Wave in Milwaukee leaves the Comets 1 win or 1 Wichita loss away from clinching a spot in the playoffs this year.

The game tonight against the Blast started slow for both teams. The first quarter was an extremely sloppy affair as neither team was really able to create much with their possession and both teams seemed to lose it easily. Both Danny Waltman and Sagu were tested once or twice, but other than that, the first quarter was a complete and total stalemate.

The second quarter started very similar to the first, with neither team being able to really retain possession. The Blast had employed a very high pressure defense, pressuring Waltman and his two defenders very early on. This lead to a lot of early turnovers by the Comets. The combined with some chippy play pointed to the two teams both getting on the board soon. Just under 6 minutes into the quarter, the Blast broke the deadlock. Machel Millwood knocked a ball towards the middle of Missouri's box. It took a bit of a deflection, and Ricardinho was the first one to react and knocked the ball past Waltman for a 2-0 lead. Twenty-five seconds after the Ricardinho goal, the Blast were up 5-0. The Comets turned the ball over almost immediately off the kick off, Mike Lookingland fed the ball to Mike Deasel who raced a good quarter of the field unpressured and let loose a shot that got past Waltman and into the net for a 3 point goal.

The Comets called a timeout immediately to regroup, and it seemed to make a difference. From the timeout the Comets were getting more pressure and were finding quicker ways around the Blast's high pressure. Just after the half way point of the quarter, the Comets got on the board, as Byron Alvarez laid a ball into the middle for Vahid Assadpour who beat Sagu and made it 5-2. Unlike the Blast though, the Comets didn't need 25 seconds to score their second goal. Instead, it only took them 9 seconds, as Bato Radoncic won the ball immediately off the kick off, raced to the yellow line and let loose with a shot that Sagu was slow to get down for and the ball hit of the post and in, and just like that the Comets were level at 5-5.

The Comets weren't done though, and once again off the kick off, the Comets immediately won the ball through Christiano. Christiano fed Neto with a through ball that he fired past Sagu to make it 7-5. The Comets had gone from 5-0 down to 7-5 up in the span of 24 seconds. After taking the lead, the Comets sat back for a little bit. It took them 1 minute 1 second to grab another goal. Bryan Harris had a run in deep to the Blast end, he laid the ball back to Assadpour who beat Sagu for his second of the night and gave the Comets a 4 point lead at 9-5. In a minute twenty-five, the Comets had gone from 5-0 down to 9-5 up. The score held up through the end of the half and the Comets went into the half up 9-5.

The third quarter once again started with the Blast continuing their high pressure looking to get back into the game. But in their eagerness to get back into the game they got caught with too many men on the field. On the ensuing power play, the Comets were able to extend their lead. Lucas Rodriguez collected a pass from Assadpour and seemed to have all day just outside the 3 point arc to shoot. Rodriguez had time to line up his shot and fired a blast into the upper corner past Sagu to make it 12-5. From this point, the Blast really started to push the game and the game became the Danny Waltman show as more than once Waltman seemed left out to dry by his defense, but the goalkeeper stepped up and made a number of great saves, including getting across his goal once or twice to save goals. The Comets tried to break on the counter and Assadpour led a 2v1 with Neto but chose the shot instead of laying the ball off to his teammate and Sagu collected. The Blast did start to pull back into the game late in the quarter, as Shaun David played a ball into the middle for Ricardinho, who finally beat Waltman, but the Comets keeper almost made it across to keep it out but only got a small touch on it. With just under 4 minutes left, the Blast pulled back within a goal as they scored again to make it 12-9. Waltman on the series came up with two nice saves but could do nothing about the third as Pat Healey was fed by Adriano Dos Santos and Healey buried his chance. Late in the quarter, the Blast got their first power play of the game as Leo Gibson was called for kicking. The Comets though were able to kill the power play for the rest of the quarter, leaving them with only 1 second to kill in the fourth.

The Comets started off the fourth and were able to kill off the last second and get back to full strength. Just over a minute into the quarter, the Comets were back on the power play as Deasel was called for boarding. Unlike the Blast's last opportunity, the Comets again took advantage. They worked the ball around the perimeter before Rodriguez played the ball in down low to Alvarez who fired a shot into the roof of the net as Sagu went down for the save, making it 14-9. The Blast pushed for a way back into the game, and earned another power play as Stefan Stokic got a blue card for holding. The Blast once again though couldn't find a goal, in fact it was the Comets who controlled the ball for the majority of the two minute power play. Shortly after Stokic's power play was killed, the Comets found themselves on the power play again, as Max Ferdinand found himself in the penalty box for barreling into Waltman as he was playing the ball. To make matters worse for the Blast, the Comets once again scored on the power play to make them 3 for 3 with a man advantage compared to the Blast's 0 for 2. This time it was Rodriguez again, as he collected a pass from Gibson around the corner of the box and fired a shot past Sagu and into the net for his second of the night.

Waltman continued to come up big for the Comets making some more big saves and guaranteeing himself man of the match honors. With just under 4 minutes left, the Blast pulled Sagu for the 6th attacker. While the Blast had the majority of the possession after that, they couldn't find a goal. The Comets had a few quick counters with the open net but couldn't quite convert. Then with just under a minute left, Christiano fired a shot that was going to go just wide, but Geison raced onto it and buried it into the net to kill the game off and make it 18-9.

As mentioned above the Comets and need just one more win, or one more loss by the Wings to clinch themselves a spot in the playoffs. The Comets will have the first chance to wrap up a playoff spot on Sunday when they travel to Milwaukee to take on the Wave. Should they lose that the next opportunities would come next weekend when the Wings and Comets play the Rochester Lancers on back to back nights. A win by Rochester in the first game or by the Comets in the second will clinch a playoff spot.

Record Setting Night as Comets Rout Silver Knights

It was a big night for the Missouri Comets as they set multiple records at the Independence Events Center in their 33-12 rout over the Syracuse Silver Knights. They set a team record for the largest margin of victory since the teams rebirth, with 21. They tied a league record with 3 players recording a hattrick (Byron Alvarez, Geison, and Vahid Assadpour). They set a record for the most points this season so far, the largest margin of victory this season, and with the Knights 12 points the teams set a record for the most combined points this season.

The Comets got the night started off on the right foot as Leo Gibson collected a rebound from a shot by Ryan Junge and fired a 3 pointer into the far corner that Eric Reed in the Knights net didn't see until very late. The 3 point goal put the Comets up less than a minute into the game. Just after 5 minutes into the game, the Knights got as close as they were ever going to get the rest of the night when Daniel Stevens turned in a shot past Danny Waltman to make it 3-2. From there the first quarter was all down hill for the Knights. The Comets controlled the game after the goal, but struggled to find a shot to really test Reed in net. About the midway point in the quarter the Comets restored their 3 point lead though. John Sosa fed Assadpour down the left hand side, his first shot was saved by Reed, the second shot Assadpour fired off Reed and the ball rolled into the net. Assadpour was given the credit for the goal though and the Comets were up 5-2.

Things got worse for the visitors about 20 seconds later, as Waltman collected a shot by the Knights and played a quick outlet to Bato Radoncic, who had gotten in behind the Knights defense. One v one with the goalkeeper, Radoncic fired his shot low into the corner to make it 7-2. A minute and a half later things continued to go worse for the Knights. Tiguinho got his first assist of the night as his shot was spilled by Reed right into the path of Alvarez who just had to tap the ball over the line to increase the Comets lead to 9-2. They still weren't done in the first quarter though as Tiguinho got on the board, although once again likely an own goal, as Tiguinho beat his man down the side and fired a shot off the wall that hit a Knight's defender and went into the net to make it 11-2 with less than a minute left in the first quarter.

The second quarter started much the same way the first ended, with the Comets controlling possession, and under 2 minutes into the quarter it was 13-2. Tiguinho played another ball into the box and it looked as if it was another own goal, but in the end Geison ended up getting the last touch, putting the ball away. The Knights got themselves back on the board just under 5 minutes into the quarter as the Knights finally got some good passing and Cory Elenio found Alex Megson at the back post unmarked for a tap in to make the lead 9.

The Knights continued to push to get back into the game and looked to have a good opportunity as Brian Harris went to the box just past the half way point in the quarter for holding. In the end though the power play back fired on the Knights. The Comets killed the penalty and right out of the box, Harris was fed by Assadpour. Reed came well off his line, but Harris did well to round the keeper and then walked the ball into the net to make it 15-4. Before the half ended, the Knights once again cut into the lead, as Elenio fed Andriy Budnyy on a 2v1 break and Budnyy beat Waltman. Still the Knights struggled to get back into the game, and even another penalty for too many men on the field for the Comets, the Knights struggled on the power play.

The Comets didn't take their foot off the pedal in the second half either. Just over 6 minutes into the half, Tiguinho led a 3v3 break as the Comets countered. Tiguinho danced around his man and then fed the ball to Assadpour. Assadpour's initial shot was saved but once again Reed didn't hold the shot and Assadpour buried the rebound. And immediately after that goal to make it 17-6, the Comets were right back down the field and Radoncic fed Geison for his second of the game to make it 19-6 as the Comets continued to punish the Knights on the counter.

At this point you really started to almost feel sorry for the Knights. And if the next goal for the Comets just made it worse. Harris started the play with a shot from 3 point range that hit Megson in the groin area. With Megson hobbled, Harris was able to collect the rebound, cut past him and feed Alvarez who buried his shot to make it 21-6. Two minutes after Alvarez's second goal, Alvarez finished off his hattrick, and as was the theme all night it came as the Comets got in behind the Knights defense. Alvarez was played behind by Gibson. Alvarez, 1v1 with the keeper made no mistake making it 23-6. The Knights thought they salvaged a little bit of pride when Nelson Santana found net to make it 23-8, but before the 3rd quarter ended, the Comets got 1 more goal, again on the counter as Tiguinho led a 3v1 break. Tiguinho fed Geison who slotted the ball past Reed to complete his hattrick.

In the fourth quarter the Comets seemed content to sit back and continue to hit on the counter as they had started to do in the 3rd quarter. Just over a minute into the quarter, Stevens got his second goal of the game making it 23-10. A little over a minute after that goal though, the Comets had restored their lead off a restart. Tiguinho fed Geison who finished his 4th goal of the game to make it 27-10. Before 6 minutes were gone in the fourth, Assadpour completed his hattrick off an assist from Radoncic. As the Comets continued to sit back, the Knights were their own worst enemies as they missed 3 or 4 chances that should have been put away, but I think the mental factor of being down that much had thrown the Knights off their game as they just couldn't find the net. Before the quarter timeout, the Comets hit the 30 point mark, as Tiguinho beat Reed again to make it 31-10. The Comets had one more goal in them just past the 8 minute mark in the quarter as Harris bundled home his second of the night off a pass from Alvarez. The Knights continued to struggle to finish good chances, one of those actually led to their final goal as a miss on a wide open net by Megson had the ball fall to Elenio who headed in from a tight angle to give the final score of 33-12.

For those that don't want to track all there, here are the Comets stats from tonight.
Tiguinho - 2 goals 5 assists (9 points)
Geison - 4 goals (8 points)
Vahid Assadpour - 3 goals 1 assist (7 points)
Byron Alvarez - 3 goals 1 assist (7 points)
Brian Harris - 2 goals 1 assist (5 points)
Bato Radoncic - 1 goal 3 assists (5 points)
Leo Gibson - 1 goal (3 pointer) 1 assist (4 points)
Ryan Junge - 1 assist (1 point)
John Sosa - 1 assist (1 point)
Danny Waltman - 1 assist (1 point)

Bato Two Goals Lead Comets By Norfolk

The Comets new signing Bato Radoncic made an immediate impact for the Comets in his first game, as he scored two goals as the Comets continued their push towards a playoff spot with a 14-6 win.

Bato got his Comets career started fairly quickly, as he scored just over 4 minutes into the game to give Missouri the early lead. Tennant McVea would tie the game with under 4 minutes to go in the quarter. But with 21 seconds left, Geison was able to put the Comets back on top with another 2 point goal.

In the second quarter, the Comets continued to pressure the Sharx, but were only able to add 1 goal to their lead as Ryan Junge fired in a shot off a restart from Byron Alvarez.

The Sharx came out firing in the 3rd quarter, and pulled within a goal only 44 seconds into the second half on a goal by Gary Brooks. Around the midpoint of the quarter, the Comets restored their 2 goal lead again off a restart as Vahid Assadpour found Tiguinho who fired his shot home to make it 8-4. Once again though, the Comets fell asleep after a goal, and less than a minute later it was again a 1 goal game as Matt Clare scored for Norfolk.

In the fourth quarter though the Comets put the game away. Bato scored a goal just over 3 minutes in to restore the 2 goal lead. Throughout the quarter the Sharx tried to find a way back into the game, but were unable to break down the Comets defense. With just over a minute left, the Comets basically ended the game as Geison scored his second of the game. Things didn't end there though, as Brian Harris got on the scoring sheet as well as the Comets won the ball off the ensuing kick off and Harris finished his opportunity.

The win puts the Comets at 10-8, 2 and a half games again of Wichita, who lost last night at home to Milwaukee 9-6.

Comets Lose Back and Forth Game with Wings

Last night in the Missouri Comets' game against the Wichita Wings was the epitome of a back and forth game. Neither team scored 2 goals in a row all night, and there was only one lead the entire game that was more than 1 point. Unfortunately for the Comets though, the Wings ended up getting the last goal and getting the 10-9 win in front of over 8,000 fans at the Sprint Center in downtown KC.

The first part of the first half was a fairly uneventful affair as the teams seemed to be feeling each other out. Neither team really created any chances. Just over 7 minutes into the first quarter though, the Comets ended up having to play a man down as Brian Harris got a blue card for a tripping penalty on a 2v1 break. The result of the play also gave the Wings a penalty shootout. Danny Waltman though came up with a big save on Victor Quiroz in the shootout. The good vibes though didn't last long though, as the Wings took advantage of the power play, as Frederico Moojen scored. Moojen had 3 chances at it, firing two shots right at Waltman before his third attempt he turned into the far corner to give the Wings the 2-0 lead. That lead would be the largest either team would have all night. The Comets controlled much of the run of play after the goal, but struggled to get good shots off. Late on in the half though, the Wings tried to clear their end. Geison cut off the clearance with a chest trap, he took one touch and then let loose with a blast from outside the yellow line that wrong footed Sanaldo with it's movement, and the Comets were up 3-2.

Early in the second quarter, the Wings would retake the lead. Less than 2 minutes into the quarter, Fausto fired in a shot past Waltman to reestablish the Wings advantage 4-3. The Comets continued their pressure again but couldn't find a goal. Midway through the half, the Comets got their first power play of the game as Quiroz was sent to the box for tripping. The Comets pressured throughout the penalty but as time wore on, it looked like the Comets wouldn't be able to take advantage of the man advantage. But with only 2 minutes left, the Comets got their goal. Some good ball movement saw the ball go from one side of the field to the other through Leo Gibson to Lucas Rodriguez, who fed Byron Alvarez. Alvarez's first shot was blocked, but he fired his rebound across the middle of the goal. The ball took a deflection past Sanaldo and into the net, putting the Comets back on top.

That lead though would last a grab total of 6 seconds as directly off the kick off, the Wings came right back down the field and scored, with Brian Cushing getting the goal. It's a problem that has plagued the Comets all season, defensive lapses after they've just scored, and again it cost them a goal as the Wings went up 6-5. The Comets though would retake the lead before the end of the half, with some nice build up again. John Sosa played a ball in to Alvarez who had posted up on his defender. Sosa continued his run and received the ball back from Alvarez. Sosa got Sanaldo to commit to him and passed up a good shot for a better one, as he laid the ball off to Vahid Assadpour who passed the ball into the net to go up 7-6 at the break.

Into the third quarter both teams found good chances hard to come by. The Comets though had the better of the chances, forcing some good saves out of Sanaldo. It was the Wings though that grabbed the lead on some poor defense from the Comets. Bryan Perez played a ball over the top to Daniel Villegas. Villegas and a teammate were both back in behind the Comets defense. Villegas collected the ball and slotted it past Waltman to restore the Wings 1 point lead at 8-7.

The fourth quarter saw the Comets pushing for a goal to put them back in front. Early on they were back on the power play as Sanaldo was given a blue card for punching the ball outside the box. Sanaldo tried to argue that he was still inside the box, but the goalkeeper was easily a good foot or two outside his box when he punched it. The Comets though couldn't capitalize on the opportunity. Soon enough though, the Comets did find themselves back on top. Once again it was some nice build up from the Comets as Alvarez was played in behind with Rodriguez in a 2v1 situation. Alvarez slid the ball across to Rodriguez who buried his shot and once again put the Comets on top 9-8. As the half wore down it looked like the Comets might just hand on. But with just under 3 minutes left, right when the Wings were looking to pull their goalkeeper, the Wings found another goal. Kevin Ten Eyck with his back to goal was able to turn and hit a volley that beat Waltman to his far post. So instead of the Wings going with a 6th attacker, it would end up being the Comets that pulled their goalkeeper. With the extra man, the Comets had quite a few chances to retake the lead as Alvarez, Geison, and Rodriguez all had good opportunities blocked on the line. In the end though the Comets couldn't find another goal and the Wings pulled off a big win, 10-9.

The loss dropped the Comets to 9-8, with the Wings are now 5-8. With 4 games in hand on the Comets, the Wings would seem to have a very good chance to try to catch their I-35 rival for the other Central Division playoff spot.

Comets Win Turnpike Trophy

The Missouri Comets wrapped up the Turnpike Trophy last night in Wichita taking out the Wings 13-10 to take the season series with a game remaining. KC now has 4 wins to Wichita's 1. Missouri opened the game quickly, as Brian Harris blasted a 3 point goal only 2 minutes into the game to give the Comets the lead. The Comets continued to push the game in the first quarter, but Harris' goal was the only goal in the quarter.

Into the second quarter, the two teams traded goals back and forth, but the 3 pointer from Harris remained the difference. Tijani Ayegbusi opened the scoring in the second quarter under 3 minutes in, cutting the lead to 3-2. The Comets restored their 3 point lead through Neto off an assist from Vahid Assadpour. Only about 30 seconds later, Frederico Moojen had the lead back to 1, 5-4. With less than 5 minutes left in the quarter, Byron Alvarez made it 7-4. Once again though, the Comets couldn't hold the lead for a long period of time as only 20 seconds later the Comets were only up by 1, as Alargie Jobe finished an opportunity.

In the second half, the Comets tried to hold onto their 1 point lead, but with under5 minutes left, Moojen got his second of the game. to give the Wings the lead 8-7.

It didn't take long in the fourth quarter for the Comets to jump back in front, just over 30 seconds into the half, Geison got a goal to put the Comets back on top. Just over half way through the half, the Wings once again jumped back in front as once again Moojen struck to make it 10-9 and complete his hattrick. The Comets pushed the game trying to find another goal to put them back on top. Finally with under 5 minutes left, Tiguinho found net putting the Comets back on top 11-10. As the game was winding down, the physicality continued and Jamar Beasley picked up a blue card, and before that penalty expired the Wings picked up another blue card to Edvin Worley that made it 5 on 3. The second penalty meant that MO would end the game on the power play. Before the first penalty expired, Geison fired in a shot that made it 13-10. With Missouri still on the power play though, it was hard for the Wings to get the 6th attacker out there and only finally did for the last few seconds when the Wings had a restart. The Comets though held off the opportunity and left Wichita with the trophy.

Comets Fall Behind Earlier, Can't Quite Make Comeback

Two days after the Comets fought back to defeat the Wichita Wings in a close game at the Independence Events Center, the Comets found themselves having to do it again against the Wings, this time in Wichita. Unfortunately the result wasn't the same as the Wings pulled off a 12-10 win over the Comets to get their first win in the series.

The Wings used a strong first quarter to pull away from the Comets, Kevin Ten Eyke was the star, assisting on the first two goals, before scoring the fourth goal himself as the Wings led 8-0 after the first quarter.

In the second quarter, the Comets started to wake up, under two minutes into the quarter, the Comets were on the board as John Sosa tapped one home off a pass from Neto. Shortly after that, the Comets got another, as Geison finished an opportunity on a power play to cut the lead to 8-4. The power play goal came after a period of time when the Comets were playing with a 4 on 3 advantage due to a number of penalties being called. The Wings though extended their lead on the power play as Jamar Beasley finished off a chance. But in the span of about 30 seconds late in the quarter, the Comets pulled themselves within a goal as both Leo Gibson and Neto found net to cut the lead to 10-8.

In the second half, the scoring settled down quite a bit, the two teams had chances in the third and fourth quarters, but until late, neither team was able to find the net. Byron Alvarez ended up tying the game up for the Comets with 2:45 left in the game off a pass from Christiano. But in something that's become a bit of the story of the season for the Comets, shortly after the goal, with only 1:36 left in the game, the Wings found one last goal to extend the lead to 12-10. The Comets couldn't find net in the last little bit with the 6th attacker on the field, as the Wings won their first game in the series.

Comets Pull Off Comeback

The Comets looked like they were going to give the Wichita Wings a leg back into the Turpike Trophy competition between the two teams. Poor shooting and some good goalkeeping Sanaldo had the Comets facing a 7-2 deficit heading into the fourth quarter, but 4 unanswered goals saw the Comets pull out the 10-7 win taking a 3-0 lead in their series with the Wings.

The Comets got off to an early start after an early penalty to Victor Quiroz. On the ensuing power play, the Comets played the ball around the top of the arc before playing it inside to Leo Gibson, Gibson played the ball out wide to Byron Alvarez who cut inside and fired a ball into the far post to give the Comets the 2-0 lead. Just about half way through the quarter though, Quiroz made amends as he fired home a shot past Danny Waltman to make it 2-2. About a minute past this, the Wings grabbed the lead through former Comet, Jamie Harding. On a fast break, Chile Farias fed Harding who fired a 3 point shot that Waltman let slip by him and into the net for a 3 pointer giving the Wings a 5-2 lead.

Into the second quarter, both teams pushed to find the next goal, but saves by Sanaldo and Waltman kept the score level at 5-2 heading into the half time break. The shot selection by the Comets was another issue as well, many times they chose the wrong shot or the wrong pass giving the ball away or watching the ball roll to Sanaldo.

About five minutes into the 3rd quarter, the Wings went onto the power play for the first time after Waltman handled the ball outside the box on a Wings fast break. On the ensuing penalty shootout by Farias, the Wings forward tried to get cute laying the ball off to a teammate and Waltman came up with a big save. Still Quiroz converted later on the power play to extend the Wings lead to 7-2. Later in the 3rd quarter, the Comets started their comeback, again on the power play. Once again it was Alvarez finishing off the chance. This time it came about as Geison fired in a shot from the far side that the Comets captain turned in to cut the lead to 3.

The lead was down to 1 only 42 seconds into the fourth quarter. Neto fired in a shot from the corner that Geison slid to met the shot pushing it past Sanaldo and making it 7-6. The Comets were able to kill off another power play as Cristiano was sent to the box for boarding. The Comets though probably had the best opportunity on the fast break, but Tiguinho, who had plenty of chances throughout the night was stuffed by Sanaldo. The chances kept coming for the Comets, Cristiano hit the cross bar for the second time in the game and it looked like it just wouldn't be the Comets night. But with just under 5 minutes left, as the Comets were looking to pull the Waltman for a 6th attacker, the Comets took the lead. Alvarez held up a ball into the top of the arc well, and then laid the ball off to an on rushing Vahid Assadpour who collected the ball and one v one with Sanaldo slotted the ball into the corner to give the Comets the 8-7 lead. So instead of the Comets pulling their goalkeeper, it was the Wings looking to regain the lead. The Wings created some half chances, but it was the Comets that found the next goal, as Waltman started a fast break, feeding Tiguinho. Tiguinho fired a shot into the net at the near post, beating the Wings 6th attacker and making it 10-7. Still with just over 2 minutes left, the Comets still had to be on their toes as a 3 pointer by the Wings tied the game. The Comets created a few more chances, but couldn't find another goal, and Waltman made one last big save to guarantee the points and a nice win for the Comets.

Poor Second Half Dooms Comets

Sorry I'm just reposting the press release today, not feeling the greatest this morning.

From the Comets.

(Syracuse, NY) The holiday season didn’t start off the way the Comets hoped it would as they lose to the Syracuse Silver Knights tonight 18-8. Cory Elenio and Savisa Ubiparapovic each had a hat trick for the Knights while Lucas Rodriguez led the Comets with 4points on two goals. The two teams battled hard for 30 minutes before Syracuse ran away with the score in the 2nd half.

Coming off a stretch where they lost six of their last seven games, the Syracuse Silver Knights started the game off with a high pressure attack that put the Comets on their heels. Halfway through the 1st quarter the Comets looked like they had solved the Knights tactics and Lucas Rodriguez put home a rebound to give the Comets the early 2-0 lead. The Comets pressured the Silver Knights immediately off the kickoff and it paid off when Geison was able to find the net only 17 seconds later and all of a sudden the Comets had a 4-0 lead. Andriy Budnyy was able to get it past Danny Waltman to get the Silver Knights on the board as the 1st quarter ended with the Comets leading 4-2.

The 2nd quarter ended up being a fierce battle between two teams anxious to get any advantage they could. Both teams adopted an aggressive approach that moved play up and down the arena floor and resulted in what was the most physical game for the Comets to date. Nine fouls were called between the two teams and all the scores were a direct result of those penalties. Syracuse’s Jeffrey Hughes scored off a restart, then Byron Alvarez converted a Penalty Kick for the Comets last lead of the night. Nelson Santana tied it up for the Knights on a Penalty Kick of his own and the half ended with the teams knotted up at 6.

Coach Kim Roentved probably wishes he could have packed up the team and started the Holiday weekend right then, because the 3rd quarter was all Syracuse. Four different players scored for the Knights as the high pressure attack returned caught the Comets out of position several times. In the 4th quarter the Comets tried to mount a comeback with Vahid Assadpour in as the sixth attacker. Lucas Rodriguez got his second of the night as the Comets cut the Silver Knights lead to 16-8, but Cory Elenio was able to beat the sixth attacker and put the final nail in the coffin as the Comets will return home with a 18-6 loss.

The Comets are finally back at the beautiful Independence Events Center this Wednesday December 28th to take on the Wichita Wings. It is also the 1st annual Media Game. Brett Anthony from NBC Action News, Bill Althaus from the Independence Examiner, Bryan Truta from JACK FM and Nick Vasos and Sarah Clark from Fox 4 will join more of your favorite media personalities in a short soccer exhibition at halftime. Kickoff is at 7:35pm. For tickets and information visit CometsIndoorSoccer.com

For more information about the Comets, Season Tickets or Group Outings please call Jeff Husted (816-478-7870) or email jhusted@cometsindoorsoccer.com.

Comets Cruise to Win Over Sharx

After a hard fought, dramatic late game victory over the Baltimore Blast on Friday night, the Comets went into Norfolk for the second game of their road trip with high hopes. The Sharx have still yet to win a game in the league this season, and in most of the games they've played they've not been close. The Comets didn't seem to ever take it out of first gear. And in reality they didn't have to. Two and a half minutes into the game, the Comets grabbed the lead as Byron Alvarez played a ball into the box for Vahid Assadpour who just had to tap the ball into the empty net to make it 2-0. The Comets made it look too easy. A minute and a half later, Assadpour returned the favor, finding Alvarez who fired home to make it 4-0. It appeared that the route was well and truely on, but only about 30 seconds after Alvarez's goal, the Sharx were back in the game as Matt Clare fired a shot past Danny Waltman and into the net.

In the second quarter is when the Comets pulled away, Neto scored inside the first minute of the quarter to make it 6-2. Shortly after that goal, Geison got himself two goals that basically killed the game off before half time. The first goal came on a header from a Coady Andrews pass. The second a tidy finish into the corner. The Sharx had some chances though, Waltman came up big on a 1v1 situation after a Sharx player collected the ball at the top of the box after he'd been camping behind MO's defense. The Comets went into the the half up 10-2.

In the second half, the Comets really took their foot off the pedal and it led to the Sharx getting more possession and chances, but rarely were those chances threatening to the Comets. Even with their foot off the gas, the Comets were still able to extend their lead. Just over a minute into the half, an Assadpour shot hit off the glass and bounced to John Sosa at the top of the box. Sosa collected and fired and shot into the net to make it 12-2. With about 5 minutes left in the half, the Sharx found their second goal of the game as they allowed Brady Bryant to dribble the length of the field and fire a shot past Waltman as Stefan Stokic and Alvarez back pedaled to stay with their men. A short time later on a power play, the Comets put the game beyond doubt as Assadpour fed Lucas Rodriguez, whose long range 3 point blast went into the back of the net to make it 15-4.

The fourth quarter saw both teams create some chances, specifically the Sharx, but there was no scoring. The Comets became a little sloppy with their defending and play against their inferior opponent and it almost cost them a few goals if Norfolk could finish. It's something that the team is going to need to clean up before their trip back to Baltimore next week. Hopefully it's just tired legs due to the game the night before, but we shall see. Still the Comets did enough to kill the game off and won 15-4.

Dramatic Comeback Give Comets Win

For almost 3 quarters of last night's game between the Comets and the Baltimore Blast, it appeared that it was going to be a similar result for the Comets. Since returning to the MISL last year, the Comets have not been able to beat the Blast, going 0-4 coming into the game last night. After grabbing an early 2-0 lead through Ryan Junge, the Blast scored the next 10 points to look to be going away mid-way through the third quarter. The majority of those points came in the third quarter, as things were tight defensively in the first half with the Blast only leading 4-2 at the half.

The comeback started shortly after the Blast went up 10-2 on a PK goal by Machel Millwood, as Geison fired in a shot past Sagu to make it 10-4. As the four quarter started and played out though, it looked like the Blast would kill the game off. Baltimore looked content to control the ball and let the clock run out. But with just over 9 minutes gone, the Comets cut the lead to 4 points. Lucas Rodriguez did a good job of getting by his defender and fired a shot past Sagu to make it 10-6. Still with less than 6 minutes left the odds were long that Missouri wouldn't be able to find 2 more goals. It especially looked that way as the Comets kept Danny Waltman on the field when you'd expect them to pull him and go with a 6th attacker. But with just over 3 minutes left, the Comets cut the lead to one. Christiano collected a pass from Rodriguez and fired a shot from just over the 3 point line to cut the lead to 10-9.

Shortly after that the Comets did pull Waltman and Vahid Assadpour came in as the 6th attacker. Almost immediately the Blast almost killed the game off with a long shot that was rolling into the empty net. But Assadpour made a great effort to get back and cleared the ball off the line to save a goal. A fantastic effort by Assadpour to race half the length of the field at full speed and have the ability to knock the ball wide of the goal. Assadpour's effort ended up paying off for Missouri as with 32 seconds left Geison fired a shot from past the 3 point line that took a deflection past Sagu and into the net giving the Comets the 12-10 lead. A 10 game of 2 10-0 runs ended with the Comets winning 12-10.

Comets Pull Away from Knights in Second Half

(Independence, MO) The Syracuse Silver Knights make only one trip this season to the Independence Events Center and they are probably in no hurry to come back. After taking a 10-9 lead early in the 2nd half, the Comets poured on 7 unanswered goals for the 23-10 victory. Lucas Rodriguez, Byron Alvarez and Brian Harris had two goals apiece and Rodriguez and Ryan Junge led the team with five points.

Syracuse started the scoring in the first half when Jeffrey Hughes scored off a restart three minutes into the game, but Ryan Junge answered with a three pointer only 3 seconds later. Junge’s 3 point goal was the difference after the first quarter as the Comets held onto a 5-4 lead.

The Silver Knights have one of the most prolific offenses in the league and weren’t about to go down easy. Jeffrey Hughes and Cory Elenio worked the ball down the field and retook the lead for the Knights halfway through the 2nd quarter at 6-5. The Comets pressured the Syracuse goalkeeper with shot after shot. 6 minutes into the quarter Byron Alvarez worked his way down the left sideline and put a ball off the wall right to two waiting Comets. Lucas Rodriguez was able to put it away and the Comets regained the lead 7-6. Neto made the score 9-6 only a minute later and it seemed the Comets were pulling away for good, but Syracuse’s leading scorer, Slavisa Ubiparapovic scored a goal in his 4th straight game to bring the Knights within one at 9-8. That’s where the teams ended the half.

Andriy Buddny of Syracuse got things going quickly in the 2nd half and gave the Knights a temporary lead again at 10-9. That was the last time the Silver Knights came close to getting past Danny Waltman. The Comets offense woke up from that point on. The Comets outshot the Knights 18-6 in the second half and scored seven straight goals in the 3rd and 4th quarters. Brian Harris scored his second of the night on a penalty kill early in the 4th quarter. That was the Comets third straight game with shorthanded goal. Byron Alvarez finished the scoring off 10:23 into the game and gave the Comets the 23-10 victory.

The 5-3 Comets are on the road next week taking on Baltimore and Norfolk. They are back home again December 28th against rival Wichita Wings. That game is the 1st Annual Media Game. Fans can see their favorite TV, Radio & Newspaper personalities battle for soccer supremacy at halftime. For tickets and information call the Comets Office at 816-478-2255.

Boxscore can be found at http://pointstreak.com/prostats/boxscore.html?gameid=1740487

Video highlights can be downloaded from the Comets at: http://www.cometsindoorsoccer.com/ext/video/Comets_12-04-11_1st_Goal

For more information about the Comets, Season Tickets or Group Outings please call Jeff Husted (816-478-7870) or email jhusted@cometsindoorsoccer.com.

Comets Fall on Road to Wave

From the Comets

(Milwaukee, WI) They say that defense wins championships and that the best defense is a good offense. The Milwaukee Wave proved both tonight, handing the Comets their 3rd loss of the season, 24-18. Byron Alvarez, Neto and Geison each had two goals for the Comets and the team outscored the Wave 8-2 in the 4th quarter, but not even that was enough to give the Comets a road win.

Neto started the scoring for the Comets by tapping home a long-range shot from Geison. As would be the case all night, the Wave would not be shaken, scoring again only 20 seconds later. The usually solid defense of the Comets looked confused at times as the Wave had several open opportunities in front of Danny Waltman. The Comets kept it close until the end of the 2nd quarter when the Milwaukee Wave closed the half with six straight points.

Things didn’t get much better in the third quarter as the Wave continued to pressure the Comets defense, confusing them with defensive runs that left players wide open with great looks on the goal. Danny Waltman, despite giving up 24 points, had one of his better saves of the season as he was called upon to make many one-on-one saves. Brian Harris did take the ball coast-to-coast for his second goal of the season and Byron Alvarez converted a shootout, but that was all the Comets offense could muster in the third quarter.

Down 22-10 going into the 4th quarter, the Comets needed to take advantage of whatever opportunities they could find. Vahid Assadpour made his own opportunity when he took a Stefan Stokic clearance pass and dribbled through three Milwaukee defenders to stop the bleeding. That sparked an eight point 4th quarter for the Comets. Everyone got into the act as even Danny Waltman dribbled the ball through Wave defenders and over the half line, finally giving a pass to Geison sitting on the goal line. Geison converted that goal and one more, but the Wave defense was solid as it had to be and held on for the win.

The Comets return home to play at 3:10 pm this Sunday in the Independence Events Center. It’s our 2nd Annual Toys For Tots night. Fans are encouraged to bring a new, unwrapped toy to donate to the cause. Just for doing that they will receive a coupon for 10% off Comets merchandise purchases. The team will also be wearing special camouflage-themed jerseys to honor the US Marine Corps and the rest of the US Armed Forces. The jerseys will be auctioned off immediately following the game.

For more information about the Comets, Season Tickets or Group Outings please call Jeff Husted (816-478-7870) or email jhusted@cometsindoorsoccer.com.

Comets Beat Sharx

I didn't make it out to the Independence Events Center for the game last night, but watched the majority of the game on the league's website. The Comets let the Norfolk Sharx stick around for a half, in fact the Sharx grabbed only their second lead of the season when they went up 5-2 in the first quarter. The Comets though immediately tied it up to close the first quarter 5-5. A goal for each side made it 7-7 at the half. An 12-0 run in the 3rd and 4th quarter though gave the Comets separation, it was lead by 3 point goals from Vahid Assadpour and Geison in the 3rd. Here's the full release from the Comets:

(Independence, MO) The Thanksgiving weekend was good to the Comets after a convincing 19-9 win over the visiting Norfolk SharX. Five different players had goals and nine players scored a point overall on the night. Leading the way was Geison with two goals (one of them a three pointer) and an assist for six total points. Right behind him was Stefan Stokic with five points and Vahid Assadpour with four. League MVP Byron Alvarez also kept his 10 game point scoring streak alive with four points of his own…and a halftime marriage proposal to boot.

The Norfolk SharX came into the Independence Events Center still looking for their first win of the season and the Comets were determined to make sure it didn’t happen here. Byron Alvarez got things started only a minute into the game after collecting a cross-field pass from Coady Andrews, putting the Comets up 2-0. Gersen Dos Santos tied things up a few minutes later and Brady Bryant’s three pointer actually gave the SharX a 5-2 lead. That was only the second lead the team had held all season and it would be their last of the night. Stefan Stokic collected an errant defensive clear outside of the arc and buried his first goal of night to tie the game at 5-5. Dos Santos and Stokic would trade goals again in the second quarter and the two teams went into the locker room at half tied 7-7.

Fans were treated to a special surprise at halftime as forward Byron Alvarez and the Comets staff planned an elaborate scheme to bring his girlfriend, Jenni, on the field. Thinking she was participating in a halftime contest, she was led blindfolded onto field and, with the help of fans, directed to the midline. There, the blindfold was removed and she saw Alvarez on one knee with flowers and a ring. Fans cheered as she answered with a resounding “OF COURSE!”

Whether it was the halftime engagement or Coach Kim Roentved’s motivating halftime speech, the Comets came out for the 3rd quarter firing on all cylinders. Geison added to his team leading goals total with a two-point and a three-point goal in the third quarter. Another three-pointer from Assadpour gave the Comets a 15-7 lead. Overall the Comets outshot the SharX 15-0 in the quarter.

The Comets cruised through the 4th quarter, controlling play throughout. Neto and Byron Alvarez added two-point goals. Norfolk’s Cecil Lewis was able to get the SharX on the board in the second half, but it was not nearly enough as the Comets walked away with a 19-9 win.

The Comets have two games this week. They make their first trip of the season to Milwaukee on Friday night at 7pm. Fans can catch all of the action at the Official Watch Party Location of the Comets, the Brewtop Pub and Patio in Lee’s Summit or on MISLLiveSoccer.com. The Comets return home Sunday December 4th to take on the Syracuse Silver Knights at 3:10pm. The US Marine Corp will be on-hand collecting new & unwrapped toys for their annual Toys 4 Tots program. Tickets are available by calling the Independence Events Center Box Office or going to Ticketmaster.com

For more information about the Comets, Season Tickets or Group Outings please call Jeff Husted (816-478-7870) or email jhusted@cometsindoorsoccer.com.