Comets Qualify for Playoffs

For the Comets, their Sunday evening match against the Baltimore Blast at 1st Mariner Arena would only have meaning if the Omaha Vipers somehow pulled off the upset and defeated the Wave in Milwaukee earlier in the day. Fortunately for the Comets, the Wave took care of business and guaranteed the Comets a spot in the MISL Playoffs. The Comets meanwhile, could never get into any sort of rhythm Sunday, falling to the MISL Regular Season Champions by a score of 17-6.

The Comets saw an end to their four-game winning streak, while forward Byron Alvarez, held in check by Baltimore all day long, saw an end to his nine-game scoring streak. With the loss, the Comets finish the regular season with an 8-11 record and sole possession of third place. Despite the tough loss Sunday, the Comets will host the Milwaukee Wave for a home playoff match at the Independence Events Center on Wednesday at 7:35 p.m. There will be a second playoff game in Milwaukee next Sunday, March 20th, then the team with the most goals scored in the 2-game series, moves on to play the Baltimore Blast at 1st Mariner Arena for a single Championship Game on Friday, March 25th.

On Sunday though, it was Baltimore getting on the board early, scoring twice in the game’s first two minutes. The first goal was on ball that Aristodemo put off the boards from the right side that Comets’ goalie, Danny Waltman poked out of the way, but it went right to an unmarked, Matt Watson who put it back past Waltman. A minute later, it was Aristodemo scoring on a one-touch, right foot shot off a lob pass by Celenza to give the Blast a quick 4-0 lead. At the 7:06 mark, on a Comets restart, it was Jamar Beasley launching a pass by Vahid Assadpour past the Blast’s Sagu to pull the Comets to within two. The goal was Beasley’s 20th of the season. The period would end with the Blast leading 4-2.

The 2nd period belonged to the Blast who netted three goals, starting with a power play goal after Waltman came out to block a shot by Max Ferdinand that deflected right to Neto, who headed it into the goal. At the 11:17 mark, it was Ferdinand, unassisted, unleashing a 3-pointer from the right side that went by Waltman into the upper left corner of the goal. At the close of the half, it was Ferdinand scoring again, on a ball that somehow squibbed out from the corner to Ferdinand who quickly deposited past a diving Waltman. Halftime score: Blast 11, Comets 2.

The third period was more of the same, with Baltimore doing a majority of the scoring, with Neto extending the Blast lead to 13-2 on a nifty turnaround goal with two Comets defenders on him. On the kick-off, newly-acquired forward, Anthony Maher of the Comets put a pass off the boards that Geison Moura put past Sagu for a goal. The Blast would end the 3rd period scoring with a goal by Millwood on an assist by Ferdinand, giving them a 13-4 lead.

The fourth period was the quietest of the game with a single score by each team. At the 4:52 mark, it was Baltimore’s Pat Healy from Ferdinand putting a sliding shot past Waltman. Going with a 6th attacker, Leo Gibson of the Comets finished things off with a rocket from the top of the box after Moura got caught up with a Blast defender, pulling him out of position, leaving Gibson a point-blank shot. Final score: Blast 17, Comets 6.

Box Score: http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/boxscore.html?gameid=1443344

Playoff Tickets: Comets playoff tickets can be purchased online at ticketmaster.com, or by calling 816-478-BALL. For more Comets news and information, visit www.cometsindoorsoccer.com.