Laredo Heat SC: First Round U.S. Open Cup Match All Set


Monday, June 12, 2006 (Laredo, TX):

For the Laredo Heat Soccer Club, it's finally here. After winning its four qualifying matches versus divisional rivals Austin, New Orleans, El Paso and Dallas / Ft. Worth, the Heat earned a spot in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.

This single elimination tournament that includes all 12 Major League Soccer (MLS) teams got started last Wednesday in Des Moines, Iowa and Baltimore, Maryland with the initial opening qualifying round. The tournament gets into full swing this coming Wednesday, June 14th with eight games set in Browns Summit, North Carolina just outside Greensboro, in Rochester, Michigan, in Wilmington, North Carolina, in Des Moines, Iowa, in Chicago, Illinois, in Phoenix, Arizona, in Santa Rosa, California and here in Laredo, Texas.

The Heat opens up the tournament at the Student Activity Complex, located at the corner of Highway 359 and Loop 20, at 8:00 PM versus the Dallas Roma FC, members of the United States Adult Soccer Association (USASA).

The Dallas Roma FC is a team that is made up of several former MLS, Major Indoor Soccer League, United Soccer Leagues players and experienced soccer players from the North Texas and Dallas / Ft. Worth area.

From a competitive standpoint, this match should challenge the Heat unbeaten Premier Development League record of 7 - 0 - 0.

When asked about his thoughts regarding the Lamar Hunt U.S Open Cup having an opening match in Laredo, Heat Owner and CEO, Shashi Vaswani, was quoted as saying, "This is really an exciting time for the organization and most especially the players." Vaswani continued, "The team worked very hard during its pre-season training sessions and their hard work has been rewarded with this tournament." Vaswani concluded by mentioning, "I hope we can get a good and rowdy crowd out the Student Activity Complex (SAC) on Wednesday the 14th to support the team and their efforts. As we all know, this is the first time, and I hope not the last, that a U.S Open Cup match will be held in the Gateway City and it would be great for the soccer fans in Laredo to come out in full force to support the players."

The incentive to do well in the U.S Open Cup is there for the Heat players due to the fact that if they continue into the latter rounds of the tournament they will have opportunities to play versus teams from the United Soccer Leagues (USL) First Division, USL-1, and MLS teams.

Heat General Manager and COO, J.J. Vela, said, "As mentioned before to our players, what better motivator, than to play against the finest soccer athletes in the country, exist than this." Vela continued, "Our players are fully aware that they must take care of the task at hand this Wednesday to continue in this tournament so that they may put themselves in a position to play higher caliber opponents." Vela continued, "In no other organized sport in this country does a tournament like the U.S. Open Cup exist for its players of all levels."

For the Heat, if they get past the Dallas Roma FC in the First Round, their reward will be the opportunity to host Miami FC from USL-1 in Laredo on Wednesday, June 28th in the 2nd Round of the U.S. Open Cup. Miami FC is a first year USL-1 club that includes players with remarkable soccer backgrounds such as 1994 World Cup MVP and 1994 FIFA Player of the Year, Brazilian Romario de Souza Faria (known as Romario) and Brazilian Crizam Cesar de Oliveira Filho (known as Zinho). Zinho was a teammate of Romario when Brazil won the 1994 World Cup held in the United States.

For additional information on the Laredo Heat Soccer Club and future game updates, please visit their web site at www.laredoheatsc.com .