Missouri Comets Lawsuit Brings Out Sexually Suggestive FC Kansas City Emails

Things aren't so rosy right now for Kansas City's other professional soccer owners, the Likens family and Brian Budzinski, owners of NWSL side FC Kansas City and the MASL's Missouri Comets. Last night the Kansas City Business Journal posted an article about a lawsuit that Budzinski has brought against his fellow owners, seeking $3.75 million in damages. Budzinski claims in the lawsuit that all decisions require a 75 percent approval by management which includes Budzinski, Brad Likens and Greg Likens (sons of Chris Likens who is also an owner of FC Kansas City). In the lawsuit though Budzinski says that he has been kept out of key negotiations like the Comets league, arena lease, and employment agreements with players.

In a letter exchanged between the two groups' lawyers, it said the Comets had borrowed $3.17 million to continue operating the club, a decent amount of money for the minor league Comets. With that amount of money lost, it's a wonder that the Comets have lasted as long as they have, and points to the continued struggles that indoor soccer have had since it's heydays in the 80's.


Budzinski has been the more visible of the owners, having taken over color commentary duty on the Comets broadcasts when the team is at home.  While he's done well in the roll, it's certainly weird to have one of the owners as part of the broadcast team for games.

The larger issue facing the owners, at least in the public eye was mentioned at the end of the article, and expanded upon in an article today on Excelle Sports. Budzinski claims that the Likens had used the Comets' computers and servers (and by extension FCKC's computers and servers) to transmit sexually suggestive pictures of female soccer players, and references to "riding them like horses."

The Excelle Sports article includes screen shots of the alleged emails, provided by an anonymous source, a former employee at National Holdings, another company the Likens own. Budzinski for his part is a recipient of the emails in the Excelle Sports story, but does not respond. He was concerned that the actions could have a negative effect on the Comets (and probably FC Kansas City as well).

While the KC Business Journal focuses on the Comets portion of the lawsuit, the FC Kansas City stuff in there will be the stuff that gets people talking, especially with the emails from Excelle Sports. It doesn't quite rise to the level of magicJack owner Dan Borislow in the WPS, but depending on what continues to come out from the lawsuit it certainly could put the NWSL and by extension US Soccer in a tough spot and require a response. The league and federation has to be hoping that Sporting Club would be willing or interested in stepping up and taking over the NWSL club. The club already runs the Swope Park Rangers out of their Swope Park complex, adding could certainly make some sense for the club.

Comets Season Ends in OT Loss to Baltimore

The Missouri Comets needed a pair of wins in Baltimore tonight to send themselves to the MASL final. Unfortunately for the Comets their defense let them down for the second straight game leading to another loss and the end of their season in overtime 4-3 to the Baltimore Blast.

After a tight, scoreless first quarter, the Comets were able to take the lead with just over five minutes left in the first half as Leo Gibson finished off an effort from Robert Palmer. With less than a minute left the Comets were able to double their lead as Vahid Assadpour scored off an assist from Max Touloute to make it 2-0 as the Comets headed into half time.

The second half saw the Comets extend their lead to three goals as Max Touloute took advantage of a mistake by William Vanzela to extend the lead. The Comets defense continued to hold on and keep the shut out as Boris Pardo made a number of key saves. In the final three minutes though the Blast were finally able to get on the board as Adriano Dos Santos scored off an assist from Vanzela to cut the lead to two goals. The Blast continued the pressure into the fourth quarter but it looked like the Comets may hang on. But like the game on Thursday when the Comets allowed two goals in the final four minutes to let the Blast take it to overtime, the Comets again gave up a pair of goals. First Onua Obasi pounced on a poor pass between John Sosa and Pardo to score and make it a one goal game. Then with the extra attacker on and just over a minute left, Lucas Roque scored to tie the game at 3-3 and send the game to overtime.

The two teams went to overtime, and played a scoreless first overtime with neither side able to find a goal. Early in the second overtime though the Comets were forced to be on the penalty kill after a tripping foul for Robert Palmer. Unfortunately that was the opening that the Blast needed as Tony Donatelli found Roque with the man advantage and he beat Pardo to give the Blast the win and the series 2-0 over the Comets. For the second year in a row now the Comets will be watching the Blast in the finals. After going 3-0 against the Blast in three meetings in the regular season the Comets couldn't get it done in the playoffs and bow out. Missouri did play the second half and overtime without last year's league MVP, Gibson, who sat out with concussion symptoms and his absence is certainly one that would

Comets Fall Apart Late, Drop Game One to the Blast

Mental lapses cost the Missouri Comets big time late against the Baltimore Blast and could very well end their season. Holding a 3-1 lead against the Blast with under four minutes remaining, the Comets conceded twice to go into overtime and then conceded just six seconds into overtime to go down 1-0 in the series to the Blast. The two teams will meet again on Tuesday in Baltimore for a second game, and mini game if necessary.

The Comets and Blast had played three very tight games this season that were low scoring, but that's not how last night's game started as both teams traded goals in the first two minutes of the game. Lucas Rodriguez put the Comets on top off an assist from Ramone Palmer before Levi Houapeu leveled things less than 10 seconds later. From there though things setteled down in terms of offense as neither team could find the goal for the rest of the quarter. Late in the first though Baltimore forward Andrew Hoxie was penalized for boarding and the Comets took advantage early in the second period as Bryan Perez put the Comets back on top again at 2-1. The Comets weren't able to add to their lead with another power play a minute later and went into the half up 2-1.

The Comets were able to extend their lead less than six minutes into the third quarter as Stefan Stokic scored off an assist from Max Touloute to make it 3-1. From there the Blast picked up the pressure trying desperately to get back into the game. Missouri's defense and Boris Pardo in goal played well though and kept the Blast out of the net for the rest of the third and much of the fourth. In the final four minutes though with the sixth attacker the Blast found their way back into the game. Seconds after bringing on Pat Healey as the sixth attacker Lucas Roque found the net to cut it to a one goal game. Then with just over two minutes left the Blast found the net to equalize again with the sixth attacker, this time wtih Adriano Dos Santos finding net to send the game to overtime. In overtime it took no time at all for the Blast to find the winner as Juan Pereira got onto the end of a long ball over the top by Healey, let it bounce off the wall and beat Pardo to give the Blast the win. The Comets will now have to pull a repeat of the 2013-2014 MASL finals when the Comets went into Baltimore and won game two and the mini-game to win the MASL title if they hope to play for the Ron Newman Cup.

Comets Run Past Milwaukee, Book Date with Baltimore

The Missouri Comets clinched a spot in the MASL's final four, advancing to the Eastern Conference finals to take on the Baltimore Blast with an 8-2 win over the Milwaukee Wave to sweep their series 2 games to none.

The Comets started things early with Vahid Assadpour finishing an effort off a John Sosa restart. The Wave were able to tie the game halfway through the quarter with Max Ferdinand finding the net. The Comets though proceeded to run away with things, Sosa scored off a restart with just over five minutes left, before Max Touloute scored in the final four minutes to make it 3-1 after one quarter. The Comets were able to extend their lead further in the second quarter, but only by a single goal as Alain Matingou finished up an opportunity off an assist from Kiel Williams.

The two teams both had their chances in the third quarter, with the Comets getting the better of play, but neither side was able to find the net again. Finally in the final five minutes the Comets struck twice, first Kevin Ten Eyck caught Nick Vorberg with a quick strike that went through the Wave goalkeepers' legs to make it 5-1. Then in the final few seconds of the period Touloute fired a shot from the top of the box into the net to end the quarter up 6-1. Virtually from the kick off in the fourth quarter the Wave went with the sixth attacker trying to make their way back into the game. Five minutes in they found one as Ian Bennett beat Boris Pardo to make it 6-2 with 10 minutes still to play. Three and a half minutes later though the game basically over. In the span of 20 seconds the Comets scored twice against the sixth attacker to put the game away. First Ramone Palmer scored after him and Brian Harris played a perfect counter leading to a Palmer tap in to make it 7-2. Then 20 seconds later on a long ball by Leo Gibson, sixth attacker Johnathan Greenfield slipped on the turf, pulling it up and falling to the ground. Touloute, who was racing after the ball picked up the loose ball after Greenfield's slip and walked the ball into the net. From there the Wave reinserted Vorberg and the two teams played out the final six minutes as the Comets advanced.

Gibson Helps Comets Double Up Milwaukee

The Missouri Comets got a five goal game from reigning MASL MVP Leo Gibson on their way to a 10-5 win over the Milwaukee Wave in game one of the MASL Central Division finals. The Wave took the lead just over four minutes into the quarter through Sean Totsch. Near the midpoint of the first quarter the Comets got on the board with Gibson scoring his first goal of the game. Missouri scored three more times over the final six minutes of the first quarter Gibson added his second sandwiched between goals by Ramone Palmer and Max Touloute.

Gibson finished off his hattrick just under six minutes into the second quarter to extend the Comets lead to 5-1. Before the quarter was done though the Wave had reduced the lead to two as Ian Bennett scored twice to make it 5-3 in the Comets favor  at half time.

The third quarter saw three different runs by the two teams as the Comets ended up extending their lead. Touloute scored his second goal of the game less than two minutes in after he stole the ball from a Wave attacker at midfield and raced in on goal. John Sosa then extended the lead back to four goals less than seven minutes in. From there the Wave came back and scored two goals in less than 20 seconds with Bennett finishing his hattrick before Stefan St. Louis set up Hans Denissen to cut the lead back to two. That'd be as close as the Wave would get though as the Comets extended the lead back to four in the final four minutes as Gibson scored his fourth goal of the game before he set up Bryan Perez in the final minute and a half to make it 9-5 after three quarters.

The fourth quarter saw the Comets add a 10th goal and Gibson's fifth just over three minutes into the quarter to finish out the scoring. The Comets held off the Wave, even when they switched to the sixth attacker. Missouri will now head home for game two on Sunday in Independence with two chances to advance to the Eastern Conference finals.

Comets Sweep Baltimore, Win East

Over the last year the Missouri Comets and Baltimore Blast have had their share of drama on and off the field, from the Blast sweeping the previously unbeaten Comets out of the 2014-2015 MASL playoffs, to the post game head butt by former Comet Andre Braithwaite, to the post game ranting of Blast own Ed Hale. Then this year it was the half time interview Hale gave during the two team's first meeting where he said that the Blast would be leaving the MASL and basically called out the Missouri owner. To his subsequent interviews where he has basically said the Comets weren't worth of the new league he was creating, it's been a year full of plenty of things not focused on soccer. And that's a bad thing, because the three games this season between the Comets and the Blast have been some of the best in the MASL. All three games were decided by two or fewer goals, one of which being in overtime. The last of those three games was tonight at the Silverstein Eye Centers Arena where the Comets took a 2-0 lead, only to lose it before scoring two goals in the final six minutes of the fourth quarter to win 5-4. The win sees the Comets clinch the Eastern Conference, giving them home field advantage all the way to the MASL finals should they make it.

The Comets were able to jump out to a 2-0 lead over the Blast with Max Touloute scoring just over four minutes into the game to give the Comets the lead and Leo Gibson scoring with just over six and a half minutes left in the first quarter to double the lead. The Comets had numerous chances to extend the lead as they pushed the attack but good goalkeeping by William Vanzela kept them off the board, and when he was caught out of position, his defense was there to back him up to keep the Blast in the game. The second quarter saw the Comets continue to push for to extend their lead, but the Blast had their opportunities too as Boris Pardo was called on a number of times. Finally with under five minutes to play in the second quarter the Blast got on the board through Jonatas Melo.

The third quarter saw the Blast continue to pressure looking for an equalizer, but the Comets defense held strong for the first half of the quarter. Just before the half way mark though the Blast were level. A poor pass back to Pardo by Touloute put Pardo in a tough position. Uzi Tayou took advantage, getting the ball off Pardo's foot and knocking it into the net to tie the game at 2-2. The Comets though fought back and retook the lead as Alain Matingou redirected a cross from Vahid Assadpour into the net to make it 3-2. In the final 10 seconds of the quarter though the Blast again levels the score as Jinho Kim picked out Jereme Raley with a wall pass and he beat Pardo to level the game at 3-3 heading into the fourth quarter.

The fourth quarter got really tight for both teams, because of the way the game had gone it felt like one goal would be enough to win it. With five and a half minutes player the Blast were able to grab their first lead of the game as Adriano Dos Santos fired a shot from the penalty arc that deflected on it's way through, leaving Pardo wrong footed as it went in to make it 4-3. The Blast continued to create chances, but Pardo continued to keep the Comets within one. At the other end of the field, a Vanzela mistake with just under six minutes to play allowed the Comets to equalize. On a back pass, Vanzela's touch got away from him a bit, allowing Vahid Assadpour to jump on the loose ball, it got behind Vanzela and Assadpour quickly poked it into the net to tie the game at 4-4. Both teams had their chances to take the lead again, but it was Ramone Palmer with three and a half minutes left who was able to take advantage. Receiving a pass in the middle of the penalty arc from Gibson, Palmer took one touch then touched it around Vanzela before knocking it into the net to make it 5-4. The Comets were then able to kill the rest of the game while the Blast used the sixth attacker to claim the win.

Strong Second Half Sees Comets Down Silver Knights

For the second straight season the Missouri Comets finished the regular season unbeaten on the road with a 8-4 win over the Syracuse Silver Knights to push their record on the season to 16-3. They needed another comeback to do it though being down by two with five minutes left in the second quarter and a goal at half time. But five unanswered goals in the second half saw the Comets run away with things.

Bryan Perez got the Comets on the board first today though knocking home a pass from Leo Gibson to put the Comets on top with less than seven minutes played. The Silver Knights though took over the quarter from there Kenardo Forbes scored just over a minute later to tie the game. Then with under four minutes to play the Knights scored twice in the span of 17 seconds to take the lead 3-1 on goals by Darren Toby and Jerjer Gibson. Perez was able to get one back for the Comets in the final two and a half minutes off a John Sosa restart to cut the lead back to one after one quarter.

The second quarter saw the back and forth game continue, but less than seven minutes in, Doug Miller turned in a shot from Joey Tavernese that hit off the glass and bounced right into his path. The goal made it 4-2 and restored the Knights' two goal lead. The Comets once again fought back and were able to close the gap to one on a nice turn and finish by Gibson off an assist from Sosa to allow the Comets to head into the half down just one goal.

The Comets came out and were able to find an equalizer in the third quarter on the power play after a blue card was issued to Slavisa Ubiparipovic for tripping. Vahid Assadpour fired a blast past Knights goalkeeper Bryan O'Quinn on an assist by Gibson to tie the game at 4-4. The goal was the only one of the quarter and the two teams went into the fourth tied.

It took the Comets just over six minutes to retake the lead in the fourth with Assadpour again finding the net on Sosa's third assist of the game. Less than a minute later, Perez finished off the hattrick against his former team to make it 6-4 in a matter of moments. The Comets held off the Knights attack and with about three minutes left the Knights pulled their goalkeeper looking for a way back into the game with the extra attacker. The Comets though were the ones who took advantage, twice finding the open net in the final two and a half minutes to double the lead to 8-4 as Stefan Stokic and Max Touloute were the ones to add to their goal tally.

The Comets now return home for their final regular season game against the Blast next Saturday night. From there the Comets will then head into the playoffs to face off against Chicago or Milwaukee.

Comets Beat Baltimore, Clinch Central

The Missouri Comets unbeaten run last season was ended in the playoffs when they lost to the Baltimore Blast twice to end their season. This year the Missouri Comets ended the Blast's 27 game home winning streak that dated back to 2013, and in the process clinched the MASL's Central Division with a 5-4 overtime win on Friday night.

The first quarter saw a defensive battle with both goalkeepers coming up with fine saves to keep the game scoreless. Boris Pardo ended up being the busier of the two goalkeepers. Very late in the first quarter, Leo Gibson picked up a blue card for endangering Baltimore goalkeeper William Vanzela. The penalty bled into the second quarter as the Comets killed the penalty but seconds after it ended the Blast took the lead Onua Obasi finally beat Pardo to make it 1-0 to the Blast. The Blast kept up the pressure and forced Pardo into a number of saves before Tony Donatelli scored less than five minutes into the quarter to make it 2-0 Blast. The Comets fought back though and were able to cut the lead to 2-1 before the half was over as Max Touloute found the net to get the Comets on the board.

The Comets didn't take long to tie the game in the third quarter as Gibson scored just 18 seconds in to tie the game at 2-2 and set the pace for the quarter. The Comets would score twice more in the quarter, once on a short handed situation after Vahid Assadpour was given a blue card for the Comets having too many men on the field. Robert Palmer scored off an assist from Touloute to give the Comets their first lead at 3-2. In the final minute the Comets got a power play of their own and took full advantage as John Sosa fired a shot from the yellow line into the top corner to put the Comets up 4-2 after three quarters.

Missouri tried to kill the game off in the fourth quarter, they didn't push forward as much, trying to kill the game off. The Blast though quickly got the game back to just one goal as Jinho Kim scored a little over three minutes into the fourth. The Comets continued to try to absorb the pressure and just over eight minutes in they conceded the equalizer. After the ball pinged around a little bit, Adriano Dos Santos cushioned a header down to the top of the box. Two Comets players had a chance to clear it, but neither did and the ball fell to Donatelli to blasted the ball past Pardo to tie the game. The Blast controlled the majority of the final few minutes of the game looking for a winner. The Comets pressure came back, but they were unable to muster much in the way of offense and after regulation the two teams were tied 4-4 and headed to overtime.

Overtime moved at a very quick pace for both teams from the start as the Blast came out with high pressure looking to complete their comeback. Pardo though continued to do well in goal and kept the Blast out. The Comets were able to strike the other way quickly through Touloute. He had a shot well saved by Vanzela with his feet. Touloute recovered his own rebound though and played the ball back to Assadpour who fired the ball past Vanzela and into the lower corner to give the Comets the win 5-4, pushing their record on the season now to 15-3. Holding the tiebreaker on the Chicago Mustangs 2-1 means that the Comets clinched the Central division as now the Mustangs can only tie their record. Missouri play their final road game on Sunday in Syracuse before ending the season at home a week from tomorrow against the Blast.

Comets Clinch Top Two With Win Over Milwaukee

The Missouri Comets kept their lead atop the MASL's Central Division as they topped the Milwaukee Wave 7-2 in Milwaukee. The Comets came into the day only a half game ahead of the Chicago Mustangs for first in the Central, and three games ahead of the Wave for third place. With the win though the Comets have clinched at least a top two seed in the Central and will get at least one home game in the MASL playoffs this year.

The game between the two teams was tight and both goalkeepers were in top form early on as Boris Pardo and Nick Vorberg both made saves to keep the game scoreless. With less than five minutes left in the quarter the Wave were able to jump on top Stuart Grable scored to make it 1-0 after one quarter.

The second quarter saw the Comets mount a quick comeback. Less than four minutes in the Comets had leveled the score as a Leo Gibson shot redirected into the net to tie the game at 1-1.The Comets continued to pressure and hold possession and before seven minutes had been played, took the lead on the Wave as Bryan Perez finished off an opportunity from John Sosa. Late in the quarter Perez added a second of the game to put the Comets up 3-1. Missouri held the ball for long stretches late, killing plenty of clock and creating chances but were unable to extend their lead.

The third quarter started with the Wave having a renewed push on the game, coming out with a much higher line than they had in the first half. Pardo in the Comets net kept the Wave off the board for over half the period though. With just over eight minutes gone though the Wave finally broke through and cut the lead to one goal as Ian Bennett was finally able to get a shot past Pardo to make it a 3-2 Comets lead. After taking a timeout after the goal the Comets were able to reestablish their possession game and regain control. With a minute and a half left in the quarter the Comets restored their two goal cushion as Brian Harris caught the Wave on a line change and played the ball forward to Max Touloute who was unmarked in the Wave half. He dribbled in on Vorberg and fired a shot past him at the near post.

The Comets continued to control possession in the fourth quarter, but struggled to find a way to extend their lead as Vorberg continued to play well. Finally just past the midpoint the Comets had a break in their favor, as Lucas Rodriguez tried to square the ball to the back post Tenzin Rampa redirected the ball into his own net to extend the Comets lead to 5-2. At that point the Wave pulled Vorberg to go with the sixth attacker. It took the Comets less than two minutes to capitalize on the empty net as Touloute won the ball off his man and raced the length of the field beating sixth attacker Jonathan Greenfield down the field to extend the lead to 6-2. With less than four minutes left Touloute again started a counter against the sixth attacker, trying to set up Perez, the ball got knocked away, right to Touloute, who easily scored to make it 7-2. The Wave put Vorberg back in the game and the two teams played out the final few minutes without any additional goals. The Comets will now go on a two game road trip to the East coast to play Baltimore and Syracuse before closing the season out at home against Baltimore.

Comets Hold Off Mustangs Late, Jump Into First

The Missouri Comets looked like they'd cruse into first place in the MASL's Central Division as they headed into the fourth quarter with a 5-1 lead over the Chicago Mustangs. The Comets had done a good job through three quarters of shutting down the Mustang offense, particularly Bofo Bautista, but the fourth quarter saw the Mustangs stage a big comeback. It wasn't enough though as the Comets were able to hold off the Mustangs just enough to survive for a 7-6 win.

The first quarter saw a number of chances for both teams with the Comes Boris Pardo probably being the busier of the two goalkeepers with the saves he needed to make. Late in the quarter though the Comets jumped on the board as Kevin Ten Eyck scored with less than a minute left in the quarter as the Comets ended up 1-0.

The second saw the Mustangs quickly equalize through Wilo Martinez to tie the game at one. The tie game didn't last as long this time as just four minutes into the period Vahid Assadpour scored off an assist by John Sosa off a restart. Near the midpoint of the quarter the Comets extended their lead to 3-1 as Stefan Stokic scored off an assist from Assadpour. Once again in the final minute of the quarter the Comets extended their lead to 4-1 as Leo Gibson scored off an assist from Max Touloute.

The third quarter again saw a tight quarter with only one goal scored as Robert Palmer just under six minutes into the quarter to make it 5-1 Comets as the two teams headed into the final period. The fourth quarter though belonged to Bofo as he almost single-handedly brought the Mustangs back. Just over four minutes in he beat Pardo with a nice finish to make it 5-2 to the Comets. Missouri responded less than a minute later as Ramon Palmer turned in a back post shot by Gibson to make it 6-2 for Missouri. Near the midpoint the Mustangs again pulled a goal back, this time Bofo set up Trajche Lostovski to cut the lead to just 6-3 with over half the quarter left to play. The Comets began pushing the game again looking for another goal and made it 7-3 off a restart goal again as this time Sosa set up Lucas Rodriguez for the finish. Less than a minute later the Mustangs were back within three goals as the Comets got caught up field countering leaving Bofo basically all alone in the Comets end. Bofo brought the ball down and slotted it past Pardo to make it 7-4. Shortly after the Mustangs went to the sixth attacker looking to close the lead further. Bofo did just that with just under two and a half minutes left off a restart being Pardo with the help of a deflection off Gibson.  The Comets held off the Mustangs but struggled to clear their end as time ticked away and with less than a minute left Bofo scored his fourth goal of the quarter to bring the Mustangs within one goal. The Mustangs continued to have efforts over the final 50 seconds but the Comets defense held out enough to preserve the victory and move the Comets ahead of the Mustangs in the Central division and also give the Comets the tie breaker for the season with the Mustangs, going 2-1 against the Chicago side.

Comets Win Showdown with Baltimore

The Missouri Comets came back from a three week break to welcome the Baltimore Blast to the Silverstein Eye Centers for the first of three games in the final six for the Comets against the MASL finalist. For the first time since the infamous headbutting situation in last year's playoffs the two teams met. This time there was no physical altercation, just a good indoor soccer game. The Comets and the Blast fought in a back and forth intense game.

The first quarter was tight between the two teams with both goalkeepers being called upon to make big saves to keep the game scoreless. Under a minute left in the quarter though the scoring started. First Lucas Roque scored with 43 seconds left in the quarter to give the Blast the lead. The Comets though responded before the end of the quarter as Lucas Rodriguez scored off a restart with less than a second remaining to end the quarter with the two teams tied at 1-1.

Early in the second quarter Adriano Dos Santos took advantage of a power play opportunity and restored the Blast's lead before two minutes of the second quarter had been played. Once again though the Comets responded before five minutes had been played as Keil Willams jumped on a rebound after he and Leo Gibson had a few efforts in front of goal. With William Vanzela a little out of position, Williams was able to knock the ball into the net to make it 2-2. With less than five minutes left in the quarter the Comets grabbed their first lead of the game as Ramone Palmer set up the club's captain, Vahid Assadpour who made it 3-2.

The third quarter kept the game tight as the Blast tied the game with just over five minutes played as Roque scored his second goal of the game to knot the game at three all. Just under three minutes later, near the midpoint of the half the Comets retook the lead as Gibson scored to put the Comets back on top 4-3. The Blast once again fought back though and tied the game as Onua Obasi fired a shot off the inside of the far post and into the net to level the game at 4-4.

Into the fourth the Comets found themselves having to kill another penalty after a boarding penalty on John Sosa. The Comets were able to kill the penalty and shortly after had a power play of their own. The Comets took advantage of the man advantage as Lucas Rodriguez set up Bryan Perez with a nice pass to put the Comets up 5-4. The Blast pushed the game trying to once again find an equalizer but couldn't, after puling their goalkeeper and going with the sixth attacker. With under a minute left the Comets were able to extend the lead to 6-4 as Rodriguez found the back of the net to give the Comets the win.

Comets Offense Shut Down by Chicago

The Missouri Comets are the MASL's best offensive team. They've been the highest scoring team this season in the league and have the league's point leader in Vahid Assadpour. Against the Chicago Mustangs though the Comets were unable to get their high powered offense going and were shutout for three quarters before falling 10-3.

The first half saw just three goals scored overall. Just before the halfway mark in the first quarter the Mustangs took the lead as Adolfo "Bofo" Bautista received the ball in the corner and crossed a ball into the middle where Alain Matingou knocked the ball into his own net giving the Mustangs the lead. In the second quarter the Mustangs struck again near the mid-point of the quarter as Wilo Martinez received a long ball from goalkeeper Jesus Flores and fired a ball past Boris Pardo to make it 2-0. Then late in the quarter Taylor Bond was able to beat Pardo with just over a minute left to extend Chicago's lead to 3-0 as both teams headed into halftime.

The third quarter saw the Comets really begin to push the game but Flores and the Mustang defense was able to shut down the Comets attack and really limit the number of chances that the Comets were able to create through the quarter. The fourth quarter though saw the Comets give themselves a way back in quickly as Max Touloute won the ball off a defender in the Mustangs' half, raced into the box and slotted a shot past Flores into the near post to make it 3-1. Unfortunately that bit of life didn't last long as the Mustangs first restored their three goal less than 30 seconds later, and extended their lead to 6-1 before five minutes of the fourth quarter had been played. The Comets once again tried to fight back as Assadpour twice found the back of the net to make it 6-3 with just over seven minutes left. But pushing forward looking for more goals left the Comets extremely exposed in the back and the Mustangs scored four more goals, three in the final minute to take the game 10-3 and leapfrog over the Comets and into first place in the MASL's Central Division.

The Comets will have a long time to stew on this game as they now do not play again until January 31st when they host the currently unbeaten Baltimore Blast. That same Blast team beat the Comets in the MASL semifinals last year. If the Comets played like they did tonight they'll be no match for the Blast. And the Comets get the Blast three times in their final six games. It certainly will not be an easy end to the season, but maybe it will have the Comets battle ready for the playoffs this year.

Comets Defense Steps Up in Win over Milwaukee

In what turned into a tight defensive effort, the Missouri Comets closed out their busy after Christmas schedule welcoming the Milwaukee Wave to the Silverstein Eye Centers Arena for the first game of the New Year. The two teams who played a tight game a month ago at the SEC again played a superb defensive game.

The game started out going back and forth between both teams. Both Missouri and Milwaukee had some decent chances but Boris Pardo and Nick Vorberg both came up with some big saves early on. It wasn’t until the game was almost 10 minutes old that the first goal was scored. The Comets had had pressure on the Wave, pinning them in their own end. The goal came after a Vahid Assadpour shot was knocked wide of the goal by Vorberg. At the back side though was Milan Ivanovic who unmarked knocked the ball into the net putting the Comets up 1-0 and atoning for an earlier miss when he’d missed a goal on the doorstep. Twenty seconds later the Comets were able to put themselves up 2-0. The Comets high pressure forced a high pass to Vorberg who was outside the box. The Wave goalkeeper tried to bring the ball down on his chest but Stefan Stokic knocked the ball away and raced towards goal but was brought down by Vorberg from behind in the box. With a penalty kick give, Assadpour stepped up and buried a penalty kick for his first goal of the night to double the Comets lead. The Comets were able to add another goal before the quarter ended as Gibson beat his defender in the corner and fired a shot into the far post to put the Comets on top 3-0 after one quarter.

Like the first quarter, the second quarter continued with a tight performance. The Comets controlled a good portion early on, but as the quarter continued the Wave started to get more of the ball. Around the midpoint of the quarter though the Comets added a fourth goal to their total as a long ball over the top found Gibson. The Comets forward chipped a ball into the box where Ivanovic had arrived to head the ball past Vorberg and into the net. Shortly after the goal though the Wave were able to get themselves on the board through a shootout attempt of their own through Max Ferdinand. After Stokic almost made Vorberg pay again for a poor giveaway the ball the Wave countered the other way through Ferdinand. Robert Palmer fell down while in pursuit, leaving Ferdinand one on one with Pardo. The Comets goalkeeper pushed Ferdinand wide but fouled the Wave midfielder just outside the box drawing a blue card and shootout that Ferdinand put away himself. The Comets did a good job of shutting down the Wave attack by playing keep away and were able to go into the half up 4-1.

The defensive effort by both teams continued into the second half as neither side was able to get themselves on the board early on in the third quarter. Both teams had their chances but the defense on both teams was able to shut down the chances and when they didn’t the goalkeepers kept the ball out of the net. It wasn’t until there less than five minutes left in the quarter that the Comets scored, but it was worth the wait as Max Touloute on his return from injury fired a blistering effort into the far corner to make it 5-1 to the Comets.

The Wave started to apply more pressure in the fourth quarter needing to cut the lead down. The Comets though were getting more chances on the counter but Vorberg continued to come up big. The saves proved to be worth it as the Wave were able to cut the lead to three just over the half way point of the quarter. Kevin Ten Eyck handled a Milwaukee cross in the box, drawing a blue card and giving the Wave a penalty kick. Ferdinand stepped up and sent it right down the middle to make it 5-2 with just over seven minutes left. As soon as the Wave won the ball back off the kickoff they went to the sixth attacker bringing another player up the field to try to cut further into the lead. The Comets defense held firm and kept the Wave out of the net, but were unable to hit on the counter. With less than three minutes left though the Wave began to make it interesting as a pair of goals by Ian Bennett in the span of 16 seconds made it a one goal game at 5-4. The Wave continued to pressure, keeping the Comets pinned in their own end looking to find that last goal to tie the game up, but the Comets defense stepped up again late and kept the Wave from getting a clear chance at goal with Stokic getting the final block right as the clock hit zero to preserve the win.

2016 Wants and Wishes

The new year has started and with the new year come new wants and wishes for the year. With that in mind here are my wants and wishes for 2016.

1. Silverware - Always the main goal, more trophies, more painting the wall for Sporting Kansas City. In the past two years all three professional soccer teams in KC have won at least one trophy, fans have been a little spoiled lately, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't want more of them.

2. Sporting KC address center back issues - I like Ike Opara, I think he's a very good and capable center back when he's healthy. But that is the main problem, since coming into the league in 2010 he's made it through exactly one season without it ending early due to injury. And that one season was 2013 when he wasn't even the primary starter for Sporting KC. His replacement last year, Kevin Ellis performed admirably, but he's not a starter full time at this level for me.Erik Palmer-Brown could be the future at that position, but I'm not sure he's ready to be the starter there at 18, although I'd love for him to have a Matt Miazga type season. The team's other two potential center backs currently, Lawrence Olum and Amobi Okugo both seem likely to stay in midfield, although I feel Okugo's best games with the Philadelphia Union were at center back. Whether it's within MLS or elsewhere, KC needs to find someone that can consistently be the starter next to Besler at the MLS level.

3. Keep Krisztian Nemeth in Sporting blue - This is going to be a two part wish, the first part is going to be going on now as the transfer window has reopened in Europe. There's been talk that Nemeth had some interest from teams in Europe after a season that saw him score 16 goals across all competitions for Kansas City. While Robb Heineman has said he expects Nemeth to be back in KC this year things could change if a team that really needs goal scoring comes calling. The second part of this will come this summer, which is usually a more active window for European teams when it comes to buy. Combine that with this summer's European Championships that Nemeth is likely to play in with Hungary, more offers could come in at that time. But keeping Nemeth in Sporting blue has to be a priority. Last year he took a lot of pressure off of Dom Dwyer, allowing both to play better.

4. Sporting advance from their CCL group - Sporting KC is back into the CONCACAF Champions League in 2016 and after their last trip in 2014 ended with an elimination by Saprissa at the group stage I'd like to see Sporting get into the knock out phase this year. In the 2015 group stage ended with either an MLS team or a Mexican team on top of their group, I'd hate for KC to be the one that potentially breaks that streak.

5. Jon Kempin and Erik Palmer-Brown both play 15 plus games - I wanted to make this 20 plus games but I'm going to make this a little lower. I don't mean that they play 15 plus games for Sporting KC this year, although that would speak wonders to what Peter Vermes sees in them, but I mean 15 plus games either for Sporting or for the new Swope Park Rangers. The key thing for both Kempin and Palmer-Brown at this point is to get them games. Kempin's games last year were cut after KC cut Luis Marin loose and recalled Kempin. And with Palmer-Brown being a teenager it's not surprising that Vermes wanted him closer to home where he could be more in control of his development. With the Rangers now in town and Vermes able to work directly with Marco dos Santos and observe practice more easily, there's no reason that these two should not be getting a lot more games now.

6. Swope Park Rangers have successful first season - Sporting KC's USL affiliate is set to debut in the USL this season playing at the Swope Soccer Village. While the team will certainly have some focus on winning considering who is in charge of the team, the main focus of their success should be on developing players for the first team. So far of the five players that the Rangers have signed, the oldest is 26 year old goalkeeper Zac Lubin, and the average age of he five is 23.8. Developing the younger talent like Kris Tyrpak and Johnny Grant could be a big boost to the first team.

7. US national team has a respectable performance in the Copa America Centenario - My interest in the US men's national team over the last two years plus has really started to wane. Last year's Gold Cup was a big let down as was the loss to Mexico in LA for the chance to make the Confederations Cup in 2017. At this point plenty of fans are frustrated with the performance that the team has put out under head coach Jurgen Klinsmann. I'm not stupid enough to think that a poor performance here would get Klinsmann fired, and I'm not one to completely turn on the US hoping they fall flat on their face in the hopes that Klinsmann is fired. That said I want a respectable performance out of the US. For me that means at least making it out of their group, meaning finishing in the top two. They'll avoid Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina in group play which will help, but CONMEBOL is full of strong teams that will cause the US plenty of problems.

8. Missouri Comets get past Baltimore Blast - Last year the Blast ended the Comets season in the MASL semifinals falling in both games and losing their headers at home in the final game. This year the two teams again appear to be on a collision course to meet in the playoffs. The two will get a chance to see each other before the playoffs though as the teams meet three times in the final month or so of the season, with two of those games taking place at the Silverstein Eye Centers Arena.

9. FCKC recover from losing four regulars - The Blues are going to have some rebuilding to do after winning back to back NWSL titles. FC Kansas City has lost a number of their starters from this past season and will have a number of holes to fill. The team is losing US women's national teamer, Lauren Holiday, and defenders Amy LePeilbet and Leigh Ann Brown to retirement . They'll also be losing Amy Rodriguez at least for the 2016 season as it was announced that Rodriguez will miss the 2016 season as she is pregnant with her second child. The team still has the likes of Becky Sauerbrunn, Heather O'Reilly, and Nicole Barnhart which will certainly help FCKC, but Vlatko Andonovski will have his work cut out for him as FCKC looks to go for the three peat.

A Look Back at my 2015 Wants and Wishes

With 2015 about to end, here's a look at my 2015 wants and wishes and how they turned out ahead of the calendar switch to 2016.

1. Silverware - Silverware is always fun and this year Kansas City soccer teams brought home two trophies. Sporting KC started the season off strong and for a period of time looked to be one of the favorites to win MLS Cup. Injuries though played a role in their downfall, but in the end were able to finish the season with their third trophy in four years, the US Open Cup. It was the club's third US Open Cup trophy to go with the 2004 and 2012 trophies, and as expected, came in a penalty kick shootout. Also this year FC Kansas City brought home their second straight NWSL title repeating as champions with a 1-0 win over Seattle thanks to an Amy Rodriguez goal.

2. Sporting KC improve their home form - I'd say this was a successful wish for 2015, Sporting KC. After going 6-5-6 in 2014, and losing 10 over the last two years, Kansas City lost just twice at home in 2015. Sporting finished with a 10-2-5 record, an 11 point positive swing in Kansas City's favor from their 2014 form. Add in their four US Open Cup wins at home and KC went 14-2-5 in 2015, tying a club record for home wins.

3. A little more balanced scoring - Overall scoring was much better for Kansas City in 2015. The club didn't have to rely solely on Dom Dwyer and ended up scoring 64 goals in all competitions, the second most in club history. Leading the way was Dwyer, Krisztian Nemeth, and Benny Feilhaber who all scored 10 goals or more in league play, becoming the first trio to accomplish that feat in one season for Kansas City. While Dwyer's scoring was down, he still led the team with 12 league goals, added another five in the US Open Cup, and one in the playoffs to finish the season with 16. Nemeth to go along with his 10 league goals scored five in the Open Cup for 15, while Feilhaber added two in the Open cup to finish with 12 on the season.

4. Finally defeat the Seattle Sounders at home - Sporting finally got their first home win against the Sounders thanks to a late Benny Feilhaber penalty kick back on June 6th. KC actually was unbeaten against the Sounders this year, going 1-0-2, drawing 0-0 in Seattle on May 23rd and earning a 1-1 draw at home on September 27th with a mostly reserve lineup three days before the US Open Cup final.




 
5. Ike Opara (or whoever partners Matt Besler) is fully recovered and starts 25-30 games - I guess I can't technically call this one a failure as Kevin Ellis started 26 games paired with Matt Besler in central defense for Sporting during the regular season, but the spirit of this wish didn't come true, especially after the way Ike Opara started the season. Opara had been Sporting's best player over the first month of the season, but another injury in early May put him out for the rest of the season leaving KC to lean heavily on homegrown player Kevin Ellis again. Ellis performed better than I think anyone expected, but was still prone to mistakes that a player with more size or experience at center back wouldn't make.

6. Luis Marin is available for all 34 league games, allowing Jon Kempin to start all but a game or two with Oklahoma City - Well this is another one that didn't come to be at all. We'll ignore the fact that Jon Kempin didn't go on loan at all to the Energy and instead focus on the fact that Luis Marin played just eight games for Kansas City before being benched in favor of Tim Melia. Marin just never seemed to adjust to the style of play of MLS very well. He did pick up three shutouts in his eight games, but two of those were at home against teams that seemed to have little to no interest in attacking on the road (Portland and Salt Lake) and the third came against New York City. The last straw for Marin came in the club's 4-4 draw with Houston where Marin was at least partially responsible for a few of the Dynamo goals. Marin though has rebounded well in Chile where he helped lead Palestino to the Apertura finals there.

And while Melia turned out to be a diamond in the rough as a starter for Kansas City, Kempin only appeared in three games for KC after being recalled from his loan to San Antonio. Peter Vermes says Kempin will challenge Melia for the starting job in 2016 preseason. If Kempin doesn't beat Melia out I hope he can spend quite a bit of time with the Swope Park Rangers getting plenty of minutes.

7. US Men's national team says perfect in Kansas City - Unfortunately the perfect run in Kansas City ended at five as the US national team drew with Panama 1-1 at Sporting Park in the final group play game of the 2015 Gold Cup. Falling behind on a first half goal by Blas Perez the US equalized early in the second half on a goal by Michael Bradley. The entire group stage of the Gold Cup didn't go that well for the US, and the problems were only compounded in the knock out round, but I'll get to that next.

8. US win the Gold Cup - I almost want to laugh at this wish now, after seeing how the 2015 Gold Cup played out. After getting out of Group A as the top seed going 2-0-1 but looking less than impressive in their wins against Honduras and Haiti, and draw against Panama, the US took Cuba behind the woodshed, winning 6-0 in the quarterfinals. This set up a semifinal match against Jamaica. The Jamaicans came out on the front foot and really pushed the game against the United States and were rewarded for it with goals from Darren Mattocks and Giles Barnes putting them up 2-0 at half time. Michael Bradley scored very early in the second half to give the US hope, but they were unable to break down the Jamaican defense and missed the finals for the first time since 2003. Things got even worse for the US as they lost the third place game on penalty kicks to Panama after drawing 1-1 with Fabian Johnson, Bradley, and DeMarcus Beasley all missing.

9. Missouri Comets return to championship game - Unfortunately the Comets didn't make it back to the finals. After going undefeated in the regular season and defeating Milwaukee 8-2 in the Central Division final, the Comets met up with the Baltimore Blast, losing 6-4 in Baltimore then coming home and having the wheels completely come off their season with red cards and suspensions being issued to Brian Harris and John Sosa and then the headbutt incident involving Andre Braithwaite and Pat Healey after the game. Not the way you want to end your season with so much of a sour taste in the team's and fans' mouths.






10. FC Kansas City improve attendance - FC Kansas City played in their third stadium in three years as they moved from Durwood on UMKC's campus down the road to the newly completed Swope Soccer Village and played at the Championship field there. The move bumped the available capacity to 3,557 for the Blues in their third season. The move, coming off a championship, and a boost from the Women's World Cup helped FCKC up their average attendance by over 1,000, going from 2,018 to 3,091 in 2015.

11. US women's team wins World Cup - The United States made it through their group as the winners picking up wins over Australia and Nigeria with a draw against Sweden in between to finish with 7 points. They met the upstart Colombians in the round of 16 and needed two second half goals after Colombia's starting goalkeeper was sent off to see them through. The quarterfinals saw a rematch of the 1999 final against China with Carli Lloyd scoring the lone goal to send the US through to the semifinals. There they met two time winners, Germany. The US though played their best game of the tournament up to that point though and scored twice in the second half from a Lloyd penalty and a Kelley O'Hara goal to make the finals. There they met Japan, who had beaten them in the finals of the last World Cup in Germany. The knockout rounds though had become the Carli Lloyd show and she continued in the finals. Lloyd had had two goals in the first five minutes as the US jumped on Japan early. Lauren Holiday scored in the 14th to make it 3-0 and in the 16th Lloyd finished her hattrick with an outlandish shot from midfield that went over goalkeeper Ayumi Kaihori and into the net to make it 4-0 to the US before Japan even knew what happened. Japan got a goal back on each side of halftime before Tobin Heath finished the scoring in the 54th to give the US the 5-2 win.

Comets Use Second Half Run to Top Rampage

The Missouri Comets closed out 2015 with a big win over the Cedar Rapids Rampage in the second of three games this week. The Comets used a big second half run, scoring six unanswered from the start of the third quarter to blow the game open as Missouri won 11-4.

Unfortunately for the Comets just like in Tuesday night's loss to the St. Louis Ambush, the Comets fell behind on an early goal as former Comet Patrick Kelly scored an early goal to give the Rampage the lead. Unlike Tuesday night though the Comets made their possession pay off in the first quarter as the Comets tied it up with less than five minutes left in the quarter off a goal from Vahid Assadpour after the Comets won the ball in the Rampage end. The Comets were able to take their first lead of the game before the end of the quarter as Leo Gibson flicked a long ball into the path of Milan Ivanovic who knocked the ball into the net off the far post.

It didn't take long for the Rampage to tie things up in the second quarter though as Jacob Johnson scored less than two minutes into the quarter to tie the game at 2-2. The Comets though retook the lead before the midpoint of the quarter as John Sosa found the back of the net. Less than two minutes later the Comets had doubled their lead after Ramone Palmer picked out Leo Gibson at the back post, Gibson fired home to make it 4-2 for the Comets. Missouri made it 5-2 as Kiel Williams got on the end of some quickly passing by the Comets. Under a minute left the Rampage pulled a goal back as Semir Mesanovic scored off a feed from Chile Farias off a restart.

The third quarter is when the Comets really took over the game. Six minutes in the Comets scored two goals in about a 30 second span with Robert Palmer scoring both to extend the lead to 7-3. The Comets added onto their lead just over 10 minutes into the third with another pair of goals in a one minute span. This time it was Lucas Rodriguez and Assadpour who scored to extend the lead to 9-3 before the quarter ended.

The Comets extended their scoring run early in the fourth quarter as Ramone Palmer got on the board less than a minute in. Missouri continued to push and were able to add an 11th goal with just over eight minutes played while on the power play with Rodriguez getting his second of the game. The Comets killed the majority of the rest of the game but with less than a minute left Farias got the Rampage one last consolation goal to make the final score 11-4 Comets. Missouri will now return home where they'll finish their three game in five day stretch with a game

That Game Looked Familiar - Comets Fall to Ambush

Kansas City fans should be getting used to games like tonight’s between the Missouri Comets and St. Louis Ambush. Across the city at Sporting Park there have been numerous games over the last few years as Sporting KC would dominate long periods of games at home with their high pressure, have the lion’s share of possession, but be unable to really capitalize on it. That was what happened tonight at the Silverstein Eye Centers Arena as the Comets out shot the Ambush 41-15 and had the majority of the possession, but came up short 6-5 as the Ambush played some extremely composed and organized defense to shut down the Comets in their first of three games this week.

Five minutes into the game the Comets couldn’t clear their defensive end and Daniel Berko played the ball to Andre Hayne who was behind the Comets defense. As Boris Pardo came out Hayne chipped it over and into the net to put the Ambush on top. The quarter was back and forth, but the Comets had more of the shots and more of the chances, but it was the Ambush who had the better opportunities in the first half with Pardo having to make a big save on the line. The Ambush though couldn’t find the back of the net while their defense remained compact and kept the Comets off the board in the first quarter.

The second quarter started with the Comets in possession and Pardo bringing the ball up field slowly. Pardo had a shot that was blocked and the Ambush started going the other way. Pardo was able to make the initial save on Hayne but the rebound fell to Jeff DiMaria who controlled the ball and played it to the back post where Hayne knocked it in to make it 2-0 to the Ambush. Less than five minutes in the Comets pressure finally paid off as Kiel Williams picked up the ball near the yellow line and dribbled into the box. He left the ball for Leo Gibson who controlled and calmly fired a ball into the far post upper 90 to make it 2-1. The Comets continued to pressure and started to create some good opportunities but couldn’t find the equalizer. With less than five minutes left the Comets pressing for the tying goal came back to bite them. A long ball down the field was collected by Odaine Sinclair, who was held up by Pardo who came off his line. The ball got knocked away to Gordy Gurson though who knocked the ball into the empty net to put the Ambush up 3-1 as the teams headed into the half time break.

The third quarter saw the Comets come out aggressive again attempting to get back into the game, and soon after they were within one goal as a Leo Gibson played a ball off the wall to Bryan Perez who fired the ball into the near post to make it 3-2 Ambush. Five minutes in the Comets were level as John Sosa fired a free kick past the wall and inside the near post to level the game at 3-3.  The Comets continued to pressure the Ambush but were unable to take the lead against their cross state foe. Late in the quarter their inability to do that cost them as they got caught multiple times with numbers forward. With just over two minutes left Elvir Kafedzic got played in behind the Comets defense. Kafedzic got Pardo to commit and then laid the ball off to Hayne who placed the ball into the empty net to finish his hattrick. A minute later the Comets couldn’t clear their line as the Ambush had chances from Sinclair and Luis Almeida. Pardo made a good save on Almeida and the ball went wide to Gurson who fired a shot that went off the inside of Pardo’s foot and into the net to make it 5-3. The Ambush weren’t done either as with under a minute to play the Ambush again caught the Comets up field as goalkeeper Piotr Sliwa played the ball to Kafedzic who again was behind the Comets defense. This time he took the ball himself, rounded Pardo and fired the ball into the net to end the quarter up 6-3.

The Comets tried to chip away at the three goal deficit throughout the fourth quarter, getting a number of looks with Sliwa out of position, but time after time the Comets either were putting the ball wide of the goal or into a defender who had gotten back on the line to block the play. Six and a half minutes in the Comets cut the lead to two as Lucas Rodriguez and John Sosa played a one-two getting Rodriguez into the box where he lifted it over Sliwa and into the net.  The Comets continued to pressure but it really began to not look like their night when Gibson and Vahid Assadpour both missed separate chances at the back post. With just over two minutes left though the Comets were able to cut the lead to one goal. Gibson collected the ball at midfield as the Ambush tried to counter with Pardo pushed up. Gibson fed the ball into Assadpour in the corner; the Comets captain laid the ball back to Kevin Ten Eyck who slotted the ball into the corner to make it 6-5. The Comets pressing for an equalizer left them exposed in the back and late Pardo picked up a blue card late for a kick on Sinclair. Gurson missed the shootout attempt and the Comets poured forward down a man looking to find a goal but with a couple chances they still couldn’t find the net and the Ambush walked out with their first win of the season and their first win since their rebirth against the Comets.

Comets Win First Ever Match Against Detroit

The Missouri Comets moved to 9-1 on the season in the MASL with an 8-5 win over the Detroit Waza Flo in the first ever match up between the two sides.

The Comets jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first quarter with Vahid Assadpour and Robert Palmer finding the net. Leo Gibson made it 3-0 less than four minutes into the second period. A power play goal by Ricardo Lopes cut the lead to 3-1 around the mid-point of the quarter, which is where the teams were at when they headed into the half time break.

The third quarter saw the Comets extend their lead even further. Less than four minutes in Kiel Williams put the Comets up 4-1. The majority of the action though took place in the final five minutes. First Assadpour scored his second of the game with less than four and a half minutes left. With under two minutes left Assadpour turned provider to set up Ramone Palmer to make it 6-1 to the Comets. Costea Decu cut the lead to 6-2 before the end of the quarter as the two teams headed into the fourth with Missouri up.

The fourth quarter saw the Comets again score early, this time on the power play as Lucas Rodriguez found the back of he net. The Waza made it 7-3 when Zach Bowman scored around the midpoint of the quarter. With just over five minutes left, Rodriguez found his second goal of the quarter to make it 8-3. The Waza made it close late in the quarter after pulling their goalkeeper, scoring twice in the final three minutes through Danny Dragoi and Nik Djokic but it wasn't enough to get them all the way back as they fell 8-5.

Comets Ruin Waltman's Homecoming

Danny Waltman was the Missouri Comets goalkeeper for the first five years of their re-birth in indoor soccer, he endeared himself to the fans with his personality, showmanship, and of course his play on the field. This offseason though he returned to Washington to join the Tacoma Stars in their first full season in the MASL. Last night Waltman and the Stars came to the Silverstein Eye Centers Arena but it wasn't a welcome homecoming for Waltman as the Comets ran away from the Stars winning 12-5.

The Stars actually came out as the much more aggressive side in the game pressing the Comets hoping to force mistakes. The Comets though were able to get on the board first through Lucas Rodriguez off a restart. Tacoma though was able to capitalize on their high pressure though as they scored a pair of goals through Jamael Cox and Derek Johnson to end the first quarter ahead 2-1.

The high pressure kept the Comets at bay for a good portion of the second quarter as well. But just over half way through the Comets finally leveled the score as Milan Ivanovic slotted a ball from the top of the box into the corner past Waltman. The goal started a quick run for the Comets as 39 seconds later Bryan Perez gave the Comets the lead again as he tapped home a shot from inside the box after Leo Gibson dribbled down the side and got Waltman to commit. The Comets weren't done either as 31 seconds after that Ramone Palmer scored to put the Comets up 4-2 which is where the two teams were at as they headed into half time.

The third quarter saw the Comets extend their lead further, outscoring the Stars 3-1. After Perez and Tacoma's Tyrone Hall traded goals in the first nine minutes of the quarter, the Comets were able to pull further away. First Rodriguez got his second goal of the game again off a restart on a power play, then a minute and a half later John Sosa extended the lead to 7-3 after a few failed chances on the line weren't collected or cleared by the Stars defense.

In the fourth the Comets were able to extend the lead further. All the scoring though occurred in the second half of the quarter. After controlling the first half of the quarter but unable to extend the lead until just over seven minutes had been played when Waltman got caught in possession outside his box. Robert Palmer played the ball into the middle for Vahid Assadpour who needed two chances but scored to make it 8-3. A minute later some good interplay between Gibson and Ramone Palmer led to another goal as Palmer fed Robert Palmer to make it 9-4. Ten seconds later the Stars had pulled a goal back with Hall scoring his second goal of the game. The Comets responded in kind as Gibson scored his first goal of the game as he was unmarked at the back post to finish a Perez cross. The Stars threw more numbers forward trying to find a way back into the game with Waltman basically playing as a sixth attacker quite often. The high line though allowed the Comets to counter as Gibson sprung Robert Palmer who scored his second goal of the game to make it 11-4. With less than a minute left the Comets finished off their scoring as Gibson scored from midfield as Waltman was up field. After the goal Waltman removed his gloves and threw them into the stands as he'd done during his time in KC. His teammate Raphael Cox wasn't done though as he added on one more goal for the Stars to finish the game at 12-5.

Comets Fall Against Milwaukee

For the first time in almost two years, the Missouri Comets lost a league game on Friday night. The Comets and Milwaukee Wave played to a 6-6 draw through regulation and through overtime, and it took a shootout for the Wave to finally end the Comets 31 game winning streak.

The game started like many Comets games have lately as the Wave took the lead with the only goal of the first quarter through Max Ferdinand. The Comets though came back in the second quarter and took the lead into half time as Robert Palmer, Ramone Palmer, and Vahid Assadpour all scored to put the Comets up 3-1. Ian Bennet got the Wave within one for 30 seconds before Kiel Williams responded to make it 4-2. Marcio Leite though scored with less than two minutes left to make it 4-3 heading into half time.

The third quarter saw the teams traded goals early via Phillip Surprise and Leo Gibson before a late power play goal by Bennet made it 5-5 after three quarters. In the fourth quarter the Comets again grabbed the lead as Ramon Palmer scored his second goal of the night with just over six minutes left. It looked like the Comets may be able to hold on, but Bennett finished off a hattrick on a power play after the Wave had pulled their goalkeeper for a two man advantage with two and a half minutes left.

The two teams went through overtime without a goal and advanced to the shootout, where Leite was the only player for either team to scored as Gibson, Assadpour, and Lucas Rodriguez all missed as the Wave won.