Second Division Mexican Soccer Clubs to visit Laredo, Texas
The future of Mexican soccer will be making a trip to the Gateway City as the Laredo Heat Soccer Club (7-6-0 / 21 points) of the Premier Development League (PDL) of the United Soccer Leagues ( www.uslsoccer.com ) based in Tampa, Florida will be hosting two International Friendly Matches in Laredo on Thursday, June 30th and Saturday, July 9th.
On Thursday, June 30th, the Laredo Heat Soccer Club will host the Second Division Chivas de Guadalajara and on Saturday, July 9th, the Heat will play the Reserva Especial (Special Reserve Team) Tigres de Monterrey. Both games have scheduled start times of 8:00PM and will be played at the Student Activity Complex located at Hwy. 359 and Loop 20.
Heat Owner and Team President Shashi Vaswani is excited about both games and said, "These two games, versus established Mexican soccer institutions, are the beginning of what I hope will be more visits by higher caliber Mexican soccer teams in the future." Vaswani added, "This is a thrill for the Heat players and soccer fans in Laredo and surrounding areas should have an opportunity to see future stars of the Mexican Federation of Soccer up close."
Just last year, during the Heat's Inaugural Season, the Tigres de Monterrey visited Laredo for a Friendly Match against the Heat that ended in a two - two tie in regulation and was won by the Tigres on penalty shots and the Head Coach that brought the Tigres to Laredo, Leonardo Alvarez Piņones, is currently the Head Coach for the actual 1st Division Tigres de Monterrey that just competed in the Copa Libertadores.
These two International Friendly Matches will serve as tune up games for the Heat before their last three PDL games of the season. With back to back losses in New Orleans last week, the Heat made the final three league games must win situations. The Heat currently stand in second place of the Mid-South Division of the Southern Conference; however, they have played 13 games and third place Austin has played 11 games and is only one point behind the Heat. Heat COO J.J. Vela said, "In essence, we have three weeks to prepare for our final three league games since we have an off week this week and during that time, we will be playing two quality teams from Mexico that should improve our team chemistry". Vela added, "Come game time on July 16th versus Austin, we should have had ample time to regroup and organize ourselves with the new additions to the team and make a serious run for a playoff spot. Hopefully, the only thing in our way will be the Austin Lightning and rest will be up to us to either win or lose that playoff position"
Tickets for these two and all Heat home games can be purchased at the Student Activity Complex Ticket Window located on the northwest part of the stadium on game days. Tickets prices are $6.00 for adults and all kids 12 and under that wear red shirts receive free admission when accompanied by an adult.
For additional information on the Laredo Heat Soccer Club and complete game schedule and updates, please visit their web site at www.laredoheatsc.com .
