Michigan Bucks News Release - www.buckssoccer.com
Friday, July 20, 2012
PONTIAC, Mich. - The Michigan Bucks were crowned 2012 Premier Development League (PDL) regular season champions this week after their 13-1-2 (41 points) record to lead all 73 teams in the eight-division PDL. The Bucks enter the postseason as the No. 1 seed in the 16-team tournament.
Goalkeeper Adam Grinwis took top honors among the league's 'keepers with a goals-against average of .444 per game (yielding less than a half a goal a game). Midfielder Tom Catalano finished tied for the top spot in the league in assists with 12 helpers during the regular season.
Although being the top seed in the tournament sounds like a great place to be, history in the PDL has proven different.
"I think in the 17 years the Bucks have been in the league, the No. 1 seed has only won the tournament one time," Bucks CEO Dan Duggan said. "When we finished first in 2000 we lost in the championship game and when we were the top seed in 2008 we lost in the conference semifinals, so we have not fared particularly well as the top seed either."
"When we won it all, we won it as the No. 13 seed. The regular season title is nice because it shows we were consistent over a 10-week season. But what we really want are four more wins to be crowned North American PDL champs by winning the playoff tournament beginning this weekend."
The Bucks have appeared in the PDL postseason a record 15 times in 17 seasons, a record that may never be challenged with the growing number of quality teams throughout the league each year. This season's quest begins on Saturday night at Ultimate Soccer Arenas in Pontiac when the Bucks take on the Real Colorado Foxes at 6 p.m. ET. That match will be immediately followed by FC London taking on the defending Central Conference champion Thunder Bay Chill. The Chill won the conference tournament last year with a 2-1 win against the host Bucks at Ultimate Soccer Arenas.
Catalano's fourth season with the Bucks has turned out to be his finest, as the former Oakland University product has turned up his game and led the league's highest scoring team (46 goals) this season. The attacking midfielder had five goals to go along with his 12 assists in the regular season, but it was his stellar play throughout the U.S. Open Cup that had the rest of the team believing in his leadership abilities.
"We had several key players that are new to the team this year and Tommy emphasized the importance of the US Open Cup both on and off the field," Head Coach Gary Parsons said. "From our first-round game when he scored a goal and had two assists to his performance against the Chicago Fire of MLS, you could see how much he has matured in a Bucks uniform."
In addition to coaching Catalano with the Bucks, Parsons was responsible for recruiting the Macomb, Michigan native to attend Oakland. Catalano electrified a sellout crowd of more than 2,000 fans at Ultimate Soccer when he scored the game's first goal against Major League Soccer's Fire on May 29. He would also assist on the game-winner in overtime that made the Bucks the only PDL team to ever record two wins against MLS clubs in the history of the 99-year-old tournament.
Grinwis has been another special player who has been a part of the Bucks the past two seasons, without seeing any action. In 2010, he was a late addition to the team as a backup for late-season run and the playoffs. Last year, a spring college injury at the University of Michigan put him on the sidelines for most of the summer. Watching the team lose to Thunder Bay in two consecutive years in the playoffs helped to motivate the Ada, Michigan native to show the athleticism that has put him on the radar of most MLS teams.
This season, Grinwis displayed some of that incredible talent as he shutout the first two U.S. Open Cup challengers, including the USL PRO Pittsburgh Riverhounds, where he was the Man of the Match for several incredible saves in the Bucks' 1-0 upset on the road. The next week he showed his wares against the Fire in the 3-2 overtime win. Grinwis was beaten on two shots that game, but both came from counterattacks and near breakaways from two of the Fire's top strikers in Federico Puppa and Corben Bone. Grinwis made several game-saving stops in the match as well.
While Parsons had Grinwis focus on the U.S. Open Cup, backup keeper Sean Teepen carried the work-load early for the regular season games and was superb in getting the team to midseason with its undefeated record intact. The two backstops combined to give the Bucks the lowest goals-against average in the PDL with only 10 goals surrendered. Grinwis finished the four U.S. Open Cup games with a 3-1 record before playing nine of the PDL regular season matches and amassing a record of 8-0-1 with five shutouts.
Grinwis' four goals allowed were also the lowest in the PDL. Parsons was happy to see one of his top youth prospects finally get to show what he can do at the top level.
"He was a man among boys in the academy [where Parsons coached Grinwis for the Wolves Academy] and had a challenging year last fall at Michigan," Parson said. "I was happy to see him have a consistent season where he proved to himself that he could be a difference maker at the professional level. The games he played against the three pro teams this summer for us in the Open Cup only helped to raise his pro stock. He has the talent to be a great one at the highest level in this country."
The PDL will announce its year-end awards during the next two weeks and there could be more accolades for the team. Catalano is a certain contender for PDL MVP for his leadership of the league's top team and Grinwis could earn top goalkeeper and qualifies as PDL Rookie of the Year since he has not appeared in games for the Bucks prior to the 2012 season. Meanwhile, Parsons will look to do something that has never been done before. The reigning PDL Coach of the Year for his stellar work in 2011 has surpassed last year's accomplishments this season to make him a candidate for back-to-back Coach of the Year awards, something that has yet to happen in the history of the PDL.
Tickets for Saturday's Central Conference Semifinal are $10 adults and $7 youth (16 and under) at the door, but can be purchased for only $6 presale until midnight Friday by visiting the Bucks website at www.bucksoccer.com and clicking on the TICKETS link. Children 5 and under are always free at Bucks games. Tickets for Saturday allow fans into both matches. For fans bringing the family or planning on attending all three matches (two on Saturday and the final on Sunday), select the Family Pass or Individual Pass that allow fans to purchase tickets for as low as $4 per person.