PDL News Release
Thursday, June 7, 2012
TAMPA, Fla. – The PDL announced its Team of the Week for the fifth week of the 2012 season today, honoring Chicago Fire PDL midfielder Tyler Engel as Player of the Week after he recorded three goals and two assists in his side’s three victories during the week.
After falling in their opening game of the season, the Fire PDL swept up the standings as they got into the meat of their schedule. The Fire opened their run of form with a 3-1 victory against cross-town rival the Chicago Inferno on May 30, with Engel picking up a goal and an assist. The SMU standout added a goal in the Fire’s 3-1 win against the Hamilton FC Rage on Saturday night before recording another goal and assist in the club’s 3-2 victory against the Toronto Lynx on Sunday evening.
Engel was joined on the Team of the Week by another pair of midfielders who put up big performances, with the Ottawa Fury’s Eddie Campbell scoring two goals in a 3-0 win against the Vermont Voltage, and adding an assist in a 4-1 win against the Boston Victory, as the Fury also picked up three wins during the week. Richard Heredia of the Westchester Flames was also named after recording three assists and putting in a strong all-around performance in his side’s victory against the Bermuda Hogges, while Jason Massie had a pair of strong performances, recording a goal and an assist as GPS Portland Phoenix took a pair of victories.
The Ventura County Fusion’s Gyasi Zardes led the forward trio as he had two goals and an assist in his side’s 6-0 win against the Fresno Fuego May 31. The Fusion currently top the Southwest Division, with only the Austin Aztex having produced a more prolific attack. Joining Zardes are the Mississippi Brilla’s Felipe Silva, who had a hat trick against Ft. Lauderdale Schulz Academy on Sunday night, and Jordan Ayris of FC London, whose two goals kept his side perfect with three wins from three after a 3-2 victory against Hamilton.
Carolina’s Sebastian Ibeagha led the defense, putting in a strong performance as the Dynamo took a 2-0 win on the road against the West Virginia Chaos, and he was joined by Dale Robins-Bailey of Fredericksburg, who helped his side move to the top of the South Atlantic Division with a 2-0 win against the Nashville Metros. Virginia Beach goalkeeper Tyler Benham also put in a strong performance to help his side win its first game of the season with a 2-0 win against Nashville, while the side was completed by Reading United’s Greg Cochrane, who had an assist and helped his side remain undefeated with a 2-0 victory against Baltimore.
The PDL season continues this weekend with 41 games scheduled from Friday through Sunday. Among the key games is the top of the Mid Atlantic Division clash between first-place Reading United and the Ocean City Nor’easters at Carey Stadium on Friday night. Elsewhere, the St. Louis Lions visit the Thunder Bay Chill for a pair of games with both teams aiming to create separation in the Heartland Division race, while Saturday sees defending Mid South Division champion the Laredo Heat visit current division leader the Austin Aztex at House Park.
Stay up to date with all of the action through the PDL’s Twitter feed and Facebook page, which will provide nightly updates of scores from across North America, and links to news, previews and game reports.
PDL Team of the Week
| Pos | Player | Team | Highlights |
| GK | Tyler Benham | Virginia Beach | Made six saves to lead Piranhas to victory against Nashville |
| D | Sebastian Ibeagha | Carolina | Played key role in shutout vs. West Virginia as Dynamo won 2-0 |
| D | Greg Cochrane | Reading | Had an assist and was strong in defense as United stayed undefeated |
| D | Dale Robins-Bailey | Fredericksburg | Helped Hotspur shut out Nashville, take top spot in South Atlantic |
| M | Jason Massie | GPS Portland | Goal, assist as Phoenix took pair of victories in Northeast Division |
| M | Eddie Campbell | Ottawa | Scored twice, and added assist, as Fury took three victories |
| M | Tyler Engel | Chicago Fire | Had three goals, two assists as Fire PDL won three time in week |
| M | Richard Heredia | Westchester | Had three assists, and dominated midfield, in victory vs. Bermuda |
| F | Felipe Silva | Mississippi | Had a hat trick as Brilla continued run of strong form |
| F | Gyasi Zardes | Ventura County | Had two goals and assist as Fusion won 6-0 on road in Fresno |
| F | Jordan Aryis | FC London | Scored twice as London remained perfect this season |
Honorable Mention – Austin: Jesus Cortes, Pedro Pereira; Baltimore: Christian Barreiro; Brooklyn: Stefan Dimitrov; Carolina: Donnie Smith; El Paso: Sergio Villadenor; FC London: Tyler Hemming; Fredericksburg: Mario Herrera; GPS Portland: Sean Hoek, Cam Omsberg; Jersey: Shawn Foster; Kitsap: Greg Miley, Ben Truax; Long Island: Tom Wharf; Michigan: Anthony Grant; Mississippi: Gui Brandao; New Jersey: Jack McVey; New Orleans: Oliver Hewitt-Fisher, Patrick Mullins; Ocala: Steven Diaz, Karambah Janneh; Orange County: David Ponce, Enrique Cardenas; Portland: Mark Sherrod; Reading: Deshorn Brown, Pedro Riberio; Real Colorado: Joey Madigan; Real Maryland: David Neuberth, Dustin Butcher; Sounders U23: Jamael Cox; St. Louis: Dean Lovegrove; Texas: Jasper Campfens; Thunder Bay: Juan Velez; Victoria: Craig Gorman, Jared Stephens; Virginia Beach: Patrice Mbang; West Texas: Joel Musambi.