2007 PDL season

The 2007 USL Premier Development League season was the 13th season of the PDL. The season started on April 28, 2007 and ended on July 25, 2007. The league consisted of 63 teams across eight divisions.

USL Premier Development League

Season	2007
Champions	Laredo Heat (1st Title)
Regular Season Champions	Hampton Roads Piranhas (1st Title)
Matches played	504
Best Player	Pablo Campos Fresno Fuego
Top goalscorer	Pablo Campos Fresno Fuego (18 Goals)
Best goalkeeper	Evan Newton Hampton Roads Piranhas
← 2006 2008 →

Laredo Heat finished the season as national champions, beating the Michigan Bucks on penalty kicks after a 0–0 tie in the PDL Championship game in Laredo, Texas on August 11, 2007.

Hampton Roads Piranhas finished with the best regular season record in the league, winning 14 out of their 16 games, suffering no losses, and finishing with a +36 goal difference.

Fresno Fuego striker Pablo Campos was the league's top scorer, knocking in 18 goals. Thunder Bay Chill's Gustavo Oliveira led the league with 15 assists, while Hampton Roads Piranhas keeper Evan Newton enjoyed the best goalkeeping statistics, with a goals-against average of 0.222 per game, and keeping 8 clean sheets in his 14 games.

Changes from 2006

Name changes

• The Williamsburg Legacy changed their name to the Virginia Legacy and unveiled a new logo on January 31, 2007.
• The Raleigh Elite changed their name to the Cary RailHawks U23's after forming a partnership with their USL First Division parent club Carolina RailHawks FC and unveiled a new logo on March 6, 2007.
• Tacoma FC changed their name to Tacoma Tide on March 8, 2007.
• The Virginia Beach Submariners were acquired by and renamed as the Hampton Roads Piranhas on April 6, 2007, after their parent club, the Virginia Beach Mariners, was terminated on March 30.
• The Boulder Rapids Reserve changed their name to the Colorado Rapids U23's on April 12, 2007, as well as their logo and colors, to reflect the changes undertaken by their parent club, the Colorado Rapids.

New franchises

• Ten teams joined the league this year, including seven brand new franchises:

Team Name	Metro Area	Location	Previous Affiliation
Baton Rouge Capitals	Baton Rouge area	Baker, LA	expansion
Fredericksburg Gunners	Fredericksburg area	Fredericksburg, VA	expansion
Long Island Rough Riders	Long Island area	New Hyde Park, NY	previously in USL-2
Mississippi Brilla	Jackson area	Clinton, MS	expansion
Lancaster Rattlers	Antelope Valley area	Palmdale, CA	expansion
San Jose Frogs	Silicon Valley area	San Jose, CA	previously in NPSL
Spokane Spiders	Spokane Valley area	Spokane, WA	expansion
Springfield Demize	Springfield area	Springfield, MO	expansion
Toronto Lynx	Toronto area	Toronto	previously in USL-1
Ventura County Fusion	Ventura County area	Ventura, CA	expansion

Folding

• Six teams left the league prior to the beginning of the season:
  • Ajax Orlando Prospects - Orlando, Florida
  • Augusta Fireball - Augusta, Georgia
  • California Gold - Modesto, California
  • Colorado Springs Blizzard - Colorado Springs, Colorado
  • Kalamazoo Kingdom - Kalamazoo, Michigan
  • San Diego Gauchos - San Diego, California

Playoff format

The top two teams in each division advance to the playoffs, with all playoff matchups consisting of one game. Each conference will hold separate playoffs at a host location. The format for each conference playoff consists of one division winner playing against the other division's second-place club, with winners advancing to the conference final. The winners of each conference play in the national semifinal, determined as such: Central vs Western, Eastern vs Southern. The winners of these matches play in the final match scheduled on August 11.

Current standings

Legend
Division champion
Team qualified for playoff berth

Central Conference

Great Lakes Division

Pos	Team	Pld	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Michigan Bucks	16	11	2	3	48	15	+33	36
2	Chicago Fire Premier	16	8	4	4	23	17	+6	28
3	West Michigan Edge	16	6	5	5	21	24	−3	23
4	Toronto Lynx	16	6	6	4	25	21	+4	22
5	Indiana Invaders	16	5	9	2	19	31	−12	17
6	Cleveland Internationals	16	5	10	1	22	35	−13	16
7	Fort Wayne Fever	16	4	11	1	21	38	−17	13

Source: ^{[citation needed]}

Heartland Division

Pos	Team	Pld	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Thunder Bay Chill	16	10	3	3	35	17	+18	33
2	St. Louis Lions	16	10	6	0	39	24	+15	30
3	Kansas City Brass	16	8	3	5	26	28	−2	29
4	Des Moines Menace	16	8	7	1	41	24	+17	25
5	Colorado Rapids U23's	16	7	5	4	37	22	+15	25
6	Springfield Demize	16	4	11	1	16	44	−28	13
7	Sioux Falls Spitfire	16	3	11	2	15	41	−26	11

Source: ^{[citation needed]}

Eastern Conference

Mid Atlantic Division

Pos	Team	Pld	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Hampton Roads Piranhas	16	14	0	2	42	6	+36	44
2	Ocean City Barons	16	9	3	4	33	20	+13	31
3	Virginia Legacy	16	9	5	2	27	19	+8	29
4	Reading Rage	16	7	5	4	30	29	+1	25
5	Fredericksburg Gunners	16	7	7	2	31	22	+9	23
6	Richmond Kickers Future	16	5	7	4	23	25	−2	19
7	Northern Virginia Royals	16	3	11	2	15	48	−33	11
8	Delaware Dynasty	16	3	11	2	20	35	−15	11
9	West Virginia Chaos	16	3	11	2	20	37	−17	10[a]

Source: ^{[citation needed]}
Notes:

1. West Virginia was penalized 1 point for circumstances not released by the USL.

Northeast Division

Pos	Team	Pld	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Cape Cod Crusaders	16	9	1	6	35	15	+20	33
2	Brooklyn Knights	16	9	4	3	31	24	+7	30
3	Westchester Flames	16	7	4	5	34	17	+17	26
4	Long Island Rough Riders	16	7	6	3	26	22	+4	24
5	Albany Admirals	16	7	7	2	20	27	−7	23
6	Vermont Voltage	16	4	9	3	20	43	−23	15
7	Ottawa Fury	16	3	8	5	17	21	−4	14
8	Rhode Island Stingrays	16	4	11	1	19	33	−14	13

Source: ^{[citation needed]}

Southern Conference

Mid South Division

Pos	Team	Pld	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Laredo Heat	16	10	2	4	29	12	+17	34
2	El Paso Patriots	16	8	6	2	19	17	+2	26
3	DFW Tornados	16	7	6	3	22	24	−2	24
4	Mississippi Brilla	16	6	5	5	30	21	+9	23
5	New Orleans Shell Shockers	16	5	6	5	28	22	+6	20
6	Baton Rouge Capitals	16	5	7	4	20	32	−12	19
7	Austin Lightning	16	3	12	1	13	31	−18	10

Source: ^{[citation needed]}

Southeast Division

Pos	Team	Pld	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Carolina Dynamo	16	11	3	2	41	14	+27	35
2	Central Florida Kraze	16	11	4	1	47	21	+26	34
3	Atlanta Silverbacks U23's	16	10	2	4	32	14	+18	34
4	Bradenton Academics	16	8	4	4	39	19	+20	28
5	Cary RailHawks U23's	16	7	6	3	22	17	+5	24
6	Palm Beach Pumas	15	4	10	1	20	36	−16	11[a]
7	Nashville Metros	16	2	11	3	12	32	−20	9
8	Cocoa Expos	15	0	13	2	1	63	−62	2

Source: ^{[citation needed]}
Notes:

1. Palm Beach was penalized 2 points for circumstances not released by the USL.

Western Conference

Northwest Division

Pos	Team	Pld	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	BYU Cougars	16	13	1	2	37	14	+23	41
2	Tacoma Tide	16	10	4	2	36	23	+13	32
3	Ogden Outlaws	16	6	7	3	23	22	+1	21
4	Abbotsford Rangers	16	5	6	5	38	24	+14	20
5	Spokane Spiders	16	6	10	0	25	49	−24	18
6	Yakima Reds	16	3	9	4	22	35	−13	13
7	Cascade Surge	16	3	11	2	17	38	−21	11

Source: ^{[citation needed]}

Southwest Division

Pos	Team	Pld	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Fresno Fuego	16	10	4	2	41	28	+13	32
2	San Fernando Valley Quakes	16	9	2	5	33	16	+17	32
3	San Jose Frogs	16	10	5	1	24	16	+8	31
4	Ventura County Fusion	16	9	4	3	27	19	+8	30
5	Los Angeles Storm	16	6	5	5	23	25	−2	23
6	San Francisco Seals	16	6	8	2	18	23	−5	20
7	Southern California Seahorses	16	5	6	5	26	24	+2	20
8	Bakersfield Brigade	16	6	10	0	22	29	−7	18
9	Orange County Blue Star	16	3	9	4	18	27	−9	13
10	Lancaster Rattlers	16	2	13	1	23	48	−25	7

Source: ^{[citation needed]}

Playoffs

Playoff bracket

Conference Semifinals

Conference Finals

National Semifinals

PDL Championship Game

MA1

Hampton Roads Piranhas

1 (5)

NE2

Brooklyn Knights (AET/PSO)

1 (6)

NE2

Brooklyn Knights

1

Eastern Conference

NE1

Cape Cod Crusaders

0

NE1

Cape Cod Crusaders

5

MA2

Ocean City Barons

0

NE2

Brooklyn Knights

1 (4)

GL1

Michigan Bucks (AET/PSO)

1 (5)

GL1

Michigan Bucks

4

HL2

St. Louis Lions

1

GL1

Michigan Bucks

3

Southern Conference

GL2

Chicago Fire Premier

0

HL1

Thunder Bay Chill

1

GL2

Chicago Fire Premier

3

GL1

Michigan Bucks

0 (3)

MS1

Laredo Heat

0 (4)

MS1

Laredo Heat

4

SE2

Central Florida Kraze

0

MS1

Laredo Heat

2

Central Conference

SE1

Carolina Dynamo

1

SE1

Carolina Dynamo

1

MS2

El Paso Patriots

0

MS1

Laredo Heat

1

SW1

Fresno Fuego

0

NW1

BYU Cougars

2

SW2

San Fernando Valley Quakes

0

NW1

BYU Cougars

0

Western Conference

SW1

Fresno Fuego

3

SW1

Fresno Fuego (AET)

4

NW2

Tacoma Tide

1

Conference semifinals

Hampton Roads Piranhas	1 – 1 (AET)	Brooklyn Knights
Haywood  53' Joseph 89' Wheeler  89'		Cambridge  22' Niebles 44' Matos  87' Matteo  89' Damiani  111'
Penalties
Wheeler Mottinger Lima Kinney Thomas Newton Joseph	5 – 6	Matteo Charles Dragoi Berenzen Damiani Belke Cioffi

July 27, 2007

5:00 PM ET

Carey Stadium
Ocean City, New Jersey

Referee: Daun White (USA)

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Thunder Bay Chill	1 – 3	Chicago Fire Premier
Gold  3' Putrus  15'  90' Swartzendruber 57' Moldenhaur  62' Alvarado  85'		Hlavaty 53' (PK)  62' Fleak 76' 77'

July 27, 2007

5:30 PM ET

Lake Orion High School
Orion Township, Michigan

Referee: (USA)

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Carolina Dynamo	1 – 0	El Paso Patriots
Franks  12' Jata 81'		Cervantes  10' Morin  70'

July 27, 2007

6:30 PM ET

UISD Student Activity Center
Laredo, Texas

Attendance: 143

Referee: Rudy Nino (USA)

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Ocean City Barons	0 – 5	Cape Cod Crusaders
Carmichael  22' Holloway  24'  24' Evans  30'		Chery 36' 49' Short  44' Wright 52' Massie 57'  57' Nyazamba 72'

July 27, 2007

7:30 PM ET

Carey Stadium
Ocean City, New Jersey

Attendance: 878

Referee: Mark Geiger (USA)

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BYU Cougars	2 – 0	San Fernando Valley Quakes
Fellows 64' 76'		Shaw  18' Leslie  59'  72' Borak  63' Paladini  68'

July 27, 2007

7:30 PM ET

Chukchansi Park
Fresno, CA

Attendance: 2,746

Referee: Colin Arblaster (USA)

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Michigan Bucks	4 – 1	St. Louis Lions
Dube 26' Jafta  45' Holody 79' Djokic 86' Uzoigwe 90'		Clayes  29' Angus 45'  70'

July 27, 2007

8:00 PM ET

Lake Orion High School
Orion Township, Michigan

Referee: (USA)

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Laredo Heat	4 – 0	Central Florida Kraze
Morales 4'  4' 26' Galvan 7' Ibarra 60' Mulamba  64' Macias  89'		Herbet  24'

July 27, 2007

9:30 PM ET

UISD Student Activity Center
Laredo, Texas

Attendance: 1,401

Referee: Jeff Katawar (USA)

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Fresno Fuego	4 – 1 (AET)	Tacoma Tide
Nunes 22'  38' Rivera  43' Blanco  74' 102' Cabello  75' Cignetti  90' Machado  95' 108' Campos 100'		O'Brien  27'  74' David 63' Schomaker  102'

July 27, 2007

10:30 ET

Chukchansi Park
Fresno, CA

Attendance: 2,746

Referee: Mike Kampmeinert (USA)

Conference finals

Cape Cod Crusaders	0 – 1	Brooklyn Knights
Barnett  53' Short  54' Stratford  88' Nyazamba  88'		Dragoi  34' 38' (PK) Niebles  40' Cioffi  49'

July 28, 2007

7:30 PM ET

Carey Stadium
Ocean City, New Jersey

Attendance: 231

Referee: William Guarini (USA)

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Michigan Bucks	3 – 0	Chicago Fire Premier
Dube 57' Shipalane 74' Daniel  79' Uzoigwe 89'		Katic  42' Fallon  85' Ratner  88'

July 28, 2007

7:30 PM ET

Lake Orion High School
Orion Township, Michigan

Attendance: 653

Referee: (USA)

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Laredo Heat	2 – 1	Carolina Dynamo
Galvan  32' Ibarra 48' (PK)  48' Infante  71' Morales 74' Garcia  76' Blackwell  90'		Loyd  30' Lahoud 54' Lewis  84'

July 28, 2007

9:05 PM ET

UISD Student Activity Center
Laredo, Texas

Attendance: 1,457

Referee: Michael Brow (USA)

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Fresno Fuego	3 – 0	BYU Cougars
Nunes 5' (PK) Campos 51'  55' 90' Vogt  74'		Van Wagenen  80' De Francis  90'

July 28, 2007

10:30 PM ET

Chukchansi Park
Fresno, CA

Attendance: 1,872

Referee: Yader Reyes (USA)

National Semifinals

Michigan Bucks	1 – 1 (AET)	Brooklyn Knights
Clark  17' Dube 33'		Smith 15' Matos  60' Velasquez  108'
Penalties
Uzoigwe Djokic Brunner Shipalane Holody	5 – 4	Matteo Dragoi Niebles Charles Belke

August 4, 2007

7:30 PM ET

Lake Orion High School
Orion Township, Michigan

Attendance: 1,061

Referee: Chad Ulinger (USA)

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Laredo Heat	1 – 0	Fresno Fuego
Quinones  34' Infante  48' Garcia 83' Su  90'		Codeceira  31' Cabello  64' Blanco  88' Nunes  90'

August 4, 2007

9:05 PM ET

UISD Student Activity Center
Laredo, Texas

Attendance: 2,713

Referee: Colin Tait (USA)

National final

Laredo Heat	0 – 0 (AET)	Michigan Bucks
Infante  109'		Nowak  80' Djokic  86' Holody  109'
Penalties
Galvan Ordaz Morales Blackwell Ibarra Garcia	4 – 3	Djokic Balc Brunner Fuzetti Holody Daniel

August 11, 2007

UISD Student Activity Center
Laredo, Texas

Attendance: 6,640

Referee: Oscar Ortiz (USA)

See also

• United Soccer Leagues 2007