Laredo Heat News Release -- www.laredoheatsc.com
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
LAREDO, Texas -- Excitement is in the air this week for the defending 2012 PDL Mid South Division Champion Laredo Heat as they prepare to open their 2013 season in front of their home fans on Wednesday night against cross-border soccer club, the Bravos de Nuevo Laredo, a member of the Mexican Football Federation’s (FMF) Second Division.
Kickoff for the Copa LareDOS is scheduled for 8 p.m. at the Texas A&M International University Soccer Complex.
The Laredo Heat will continue to offer great family entertainment in 2013 as General Admission Pricing will remain at $5 for adults and $1 for kids 12 and under. A VIP Area will also be available again this season with tickets available for $20 in this up-close, sideline section of the stadium at TAMIU.
The team has been training since early April and has had two very productive pre-season games versus St. Edward’s University in Austin and the University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio. In Austin, Laredo was able to produce a 2-0 victory over the Hilltoppers; however, versus the Cardinals in San Antonio, a 0-0 draw was the best the Heat could muster at Benson Stadium this past Sunday evening.
“Over the past three weeks, we have had the opportunity to see new players incorporate themselves into our system of play by virtue of solid practices put together by our coaching staff and two very successful games in Austin and San Antonio that allowed us to see these new players in action,” said Laredo Heat General Manager J.J. Vela.
“Now it’s time to showcase ourselves in front of our loyal fan base and the rest of Laredo sports supporters in what will be a great opening home game to watch and be a part of as the Bravos (de Nuevo Laredo) will bring a team that is about finished with their spring (clausura) portion of their schedule and more importantly, they bring players that have the talent to play at a high level as their personal expectations are to move up into the First Division of Mexican Soccer.
“For fans that have been supporting us over the years, the one thing they will notice immediately are the new faces that will be wearing the red and black as only Juan de Dios Ibarra, Greg Mulamba, Emmanuel Frias and local standouts Daniel Garza (United High School) and Eduardo “Wayo” Gonzalez (Alexander High School / TAMIU) are part of a handful of returning individuals that will be joining several other talented local players and plenty of other players that have origins in Brazil, Serbia and Cuba,” concluded Vela.
2013 PDL Season
The Heat will continue to prepare for 2013 after this match-up against the Nuevo Laredo Bravos for another two weeks as they will open up the PDL Season in The Woodlands, Texas against the Houston Dutch Lions on Saturday, May 11th. Then on Friday, May 17th, Laredo will host the Midland / Odessa FC at TAMIU.
Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Tournament
News on what team the Laredo Heat will face in the 1st Round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup will be announced soon. The 1st Round Match will be played on Tuesday, May 14th and the Gateway City team has submitted, to the U.S. Soccer Federation, its request to host in Laredo. Stay tuned for details.
Laredo will be participating in the U.S. Open Cup for the second straight year and will be representing the Mid South Division of the PDL. Also representing the Mid South will be the Heat’s I-35 rival, the Austin Aztex. The Heat and Aztex earned the right to play in the 100th edition of the U.S. Open Cup by virtue of placing first (Heat) and second (Aztex) in the Mid South in 2012.