Cedar Rapids Rampage United return to Kingston in search of division title

CEDAR RAPIDS — For the Cedar Rapids Rampage United, the division crown will have to wait another day.

The second-year Premier League of America professional outdoor soccer club dropped its first match of the season Friday night, 1-0, on the road against the defending league champion Milwaukee Bavarians.

The Rampage United can clinch the PLA West Division with a victory Saturday against the Elgin Pumas (0-6-2) at 7:05 p.m. at Kingston Stadium, provided they maintain their 10-score lead in goal differential over Milwaukee.

'We have a great squad,' Coach Hewerton Moreira said. 'Our practices sometimes have been more competitive than games. That's why we've been doing so well during the season. … I've been very lucky and fortunate to have the squad that I have.'

Cedar Rapids and Milwaukee are both 8-1 and tied for the lead in the PLA West Division. The teams split their two regular-season meetings by identical 1-0 scores. The division tiebreaker may come down to goal differential. Cedar Rapids has outscored its opponents this season, 29-5, while the Bavarians have been slightly less dominant with a 21-7 advantage.

Saturday's match with winless first-year PLA club Elgin (Ill.) will be the final chance for Cedar Rapids to play in front of its home fans, where they are unbeaten in four matches this season.

'Especially the last couple of games, the turnout was really good,' Moreira said. 'The crowd itself was able to push the players to the result that we got. We're really happy with it.'

Cedar Rapids blanked Elgin July 2 on the road, 5-0. Rampage United forward Kenan Malicevic — who is second on the team with five goals — should get some work Saturday after missing the last four games with an injured hamstring.

Should Cedar Rapids clinch the division Saturday, it would play the second seed from the East Division in a PLA championship tournament semifinal June 29 at Glendale, Wis. The semifinal winners meet for the league title a day later.

'We need players to be on their game for the playoffs,' Moreira said. 'We need to have the game experience, to have the game speed, in order to go to a playoff.'

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