At last, Cedar Rapids Rampage United set for Kingston Stadium debut

CEDAR RAPIDS — Let's try this again.

After a pair of postponements, historic Kingston Stadium will open its doors to the Cedar Rapids Rampage United as the 2017 home field for the second-year Premier League of America professional outdoor soccer team.

'Guys are driving by just to check on the stadium, so they are pretty excited,' Rampage United Coach Hewerton Moreira said with a laugh. 'Just to play in front of our fans again, it's just good. The guys are real excited for the game.'

Cedar Rapids (1-0) will host the defending PLA champion Milwaukee Bavarians, who have played four games and bring a 4-0 record into Saturday's game, which begins at 7:05 p.m.

The Rampage United won their regular-season opener last Saturday at Aurora, 4-1.

'Our guys are coming off of a good win in Aurora and hopefully we can take that momentum,' Cedar Rapids General Manager Chris Kokalis said. 'This will definitely be a very tough test to give an indication of where our squad stacks up from last year.'

The club's second PLA season, as well as the Kingston debut, have had uneven beginnings.

After a May 20 exhibition game at Cornell College, the Rampage United were scheduled to open the PLA regular season a week later on the road against league newcomer Elgin (Ill.). That game was postponed when Elgin was unable to secure a home field.

Cedar Rapids was set to host Elgin at Kingston on June 2, but Kingston officials had the date listed as June 3 and it too was postponed.

'When you've got a football game and a soccer game at the same time, it just wasn't going to work out,' Kokalis said. 'We looked at some alternative sites and there was just nothing there that was going to fit. ... All the rest of the dates have been reverified and we won't run into something like that again.'

To extend the frustration, a June 11 exhibition against Minneapolis City at Kingston was postponed when the former PLA member backed out and efforts to secure a last-minute replacement were hampered by a triple-digit weather forecast.

After playing last season at Coe College's Clark Field, the club is anxious to take advantage of Kingston's parking and tailgate opportunities, and for the players, a spacious playing environment highlighted by a turf that is less than 10 years old.

'I think it is a great place to play,' said Cedar Rapids midfielder Alejandro Pacheco, who last played at Kingston as an Iowa City High prep. 'I always liked playing there. ... It just felt like a comfortable place to play. I've sort of got used to the field and know how the ball moves with the turf and everything. I like Kingston.'

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