The PASL All Stars scoring was by James Katajwa (2 goals), KC Kings and Wilbur Velasco (Wenatchee Fire), Ignaciao Gutierrez (OTW Santa Clara), and Derek Van Gessal (Las vegas Knights) with a goal a piece. There were several other stars that stood out beyond the stat sheet and were mentioned after the game by Cougars head coach Bernie Lilavois. Goalkeeper: Miguel Guillardo (Austin A’MPD), Defenders: Richard Shaw (CNY United) and Josh Copeland (Stockton Pumas), Midfield: Robert Sanchez (TurlockExpress) and Jorge Martinez (OTW Santa Clara), Forward: Rhodney Viela (Richmond Rowdies).
Officiating: A special note needs to be made on the quality officiating done by: Kevin Campbell, Leo Pulido, Tammi Greene, and Saul Valerio. Both teams were pleased at the end of the game by the officiating. No major player injuries were reported.
Attendance: In the world of inflated attendance numbers the PASL is proud to say the actual ticket scanned gate attendance was 2,109, and thanks the California Cougars for their effort.
Cougars Press Release:
Sunday Feb 10, 2008
Stockton, CA – Feb. 10, 2008 – Sunday’s match against the Premiere Arena Soccer League All-Star team was a familiar sight for the California Cougars. Much like their preseason matches; the Cougars begin their second half with a dominating 27-10 win over the nation’s top amateur indoor soccer talent at Stockton Arena.
Semir Mesanovic led all scorers with four goals and eight points. The All-Stars were led by two goals from James Katajwa from the Kansas Kings of the Midwest division.
The Cougars used similar victories over the Stockton Pumas (31-0), Estadio Azteca All-Stars (8-5), Turlock Express (15-6) and Stars of Mexico (15-6) to catapult themselves to their fastest start in franchise history. However, the Cougars have lost seven straight since starting their season at 7-4.
“I think this type of win can get us back on track,” said Cougars head coach Bernie Lilavois. “The boys played well, this was a nice confidence boost for our team. I liked seeing our targets find their accuracy again and capitalize on so many shots.”
“I was really impressed by the PASL boys. They had a tough assignment of having to gel together and face a professional team with very little practice time. A lot of those guys have a future in the MISL.”
Cougars forward Naldo had three goals for six points. The Cougars also received goals from Nelson Santana, Franck M’Bemba, Craig Scheer and Luis Pinto in the win. The All-Stars had cut the Cougars’ lead to six points in the second quarter after a goal by Ignacio Gutierrez from Off the Wall Soccer in Santa Clara.
The Cougars return to action on February 15, 2008 against the Chicago Storm. The game starts at 8:00 p.m. at Stockton Arena and is part of a Fox Soccer Channel doubleheader featuring the Storm in both games.
