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Amateur notes: Bavarians play host to Amateur Cup finals this weekend

08/05/2016, 3:45pm CDT
By ERIC ANDERSON
U.S. Adult Soccer Association logo

After claiming two trophies last week, Bavarian SC goes for the treble this weekend.

The Bavarians play host to the U.S. Adult Soccer Association National Amateur Cup tonight and Saturday at Heartland Value Fund Stadium in Glendale. Tickets are $10 per day for adults, $5 per day for youth players and free for children under 8. The matches also will be streamed live on the USASA YouTube channel.

Maryland's Christos FC faces California's Moreno Valley FC in the first semifinal at 5:30 p.m., with the Bavarians facing Texas' Legends FC at 8 p.m. The third-place game is set for 5:30 p.m. Saturday, followed by the 8 p.m. national final.

The Bavarians won the Wisconsin Soccer Leagues Major Division title last Tuesday, topping longtime rivals Croatian Eagles 3-1 after extra time, then won the Premier League of America championship last weekend in Holland, Ohio.

Defender Brett Dietz, who was named the PLA tournament MVP, had the lone goal and Jim Jones (Kenosha Tremper/Cardinal Stritch) in the Bavarians' 1-0 victory over host Toledo United in the semifinals last Saturday. A day later, Milwaukee School of Engineering's Braden Andryk (Milwaukee Marquette) scored twice and Scott Lorenz (UW) added a goal and an assist in a 4-2 victory over defending champion RWB Adria in the final.

The Bavarians earned their spot in the Amateur Cup semifinals by dominating the Region II tournament in June in Saginaw, Mich., winning all four of their matches in a field that included reigning national champion Quinto Elemento of Kansas.

They have won the Amateur Cup five times – 1976, 2001 to '03 and 2009 – and only two clubs have more titles in the competition that started in 1923: Ponta Delgada SC from Fall River, Mass., and St. Louis Kutis SC, who both have seven.

Two of the Bavarians' championships have come on home turf. They beat New Jersey's Trenton Extension 3-1 in the 1976 final at Bavarian Field, and rallied past Florida's St. Petersburg Kickers 3-2 at Uihlein Soccer Park to claim their third straight title – and cap a double after winning the USASA Open Cup a day earlier.

The Bavarians' 22-man roster for the weekend includes midfielder Patrick Hodan (Milwaukee Marquette), who was drafted by Major League Soccer's San Jose Earthquakes after completing a standout career at Notre Dame last fall. Also on the roster are defender Greg Rosenthal (UW-Milwaukee) and midfielder Tighe Dombrowski (West Allis Hale/UW-Milwaukee), two former pro players who have been out of action the past few weeks because of injury.

MILWAUKEE BAVARIANS (from): Braden Andryk, Logan Andryk, Paul Ciszewski, Lucas Davey, Brett Dietz, Tighe Dombrowski, Andre Francois, Luke Goodnetter, Patrick Hodan, Dan Holowaty, Dennis Holowaty, Kelmend Islami, Daniel Jarosz, Jim Jones, Dorian O'Lochlayne, Sean Reynolds, Greg Rosenthal, Patrick Ruhland, Reid Stevenson, Kevin Strong, Jake Taylor, Dogara Zamani.

Region III champion Legends FC plays in the North Texas Premier Soccer Association in Dallas, and won the regular-season title in the league's top division this spring before losing in the playoff final. Striker Anthony Santaga (Green Bay Notre Dame) plays for Legends, who have lost to the eventual champions in the Amateur Cup semifinals each of the past two years, falling to the New York Greek Americans in 2014 and to Quinto Elemento last year.

Region I representative Christos FC are looking for national cup double, having trounced Indiana's Oblicic Legends 8-1 in last Sunday's Werner Fricker Open Cup final on their home turf. Region IV champion Moreno Valley FC won the United Premier Soccer League Southeast Division title this season, but were upset in the regional semifinals.

  • One day after the PLA season ended, the league announced its first expansion team for the 2017 season. The Muskegon (Mich.) Risers, who have played an independent schedule the past two seasons, are the PLA's 11th team. The Risers have played WSL Majors team Milwaukee Brewers FC each of the past two years and played a home-and-home series with the National Premier Soccer League's Milwaukee Torrent this year – the Torrent claimed the inaugural Wischigan Trophy last Saturday in Milwaukee, winning 4-2 to claim the series 5-3 on aggregate.
  • Atotonilco completed an impressive run to the WSL First Division title, outlasting the North Shore United Reserves 2-1 after extra time in the rescheduled final last Saturday night at Heartland Value Fund Stadium. Atotonilco (13-4-5) was seeded fifth in the eight-team playoff field and avenged three of its losses in the postseason – they topped No. 4 seed United Serbians Reserves 2-1 in the quarterfinals and beat top-seeded Bavarian SC Reserves 3-1 in the semifinals before getting past No. 2  North Shore United Reserves to claim their first WSL championship.

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