Saturday, August 9, 2003

 

NAPERVILLE, IL -- The Cape Cod Crusaders took advantage of two defensive miscues by the Chicago Fire Reserves to repeat as Premier Development League Champions with a 2-0 win Saturday Night at Cardinal Stadium in Naperville, Illinois in front of 2,700 fans.

In a fast-paced back-and-forth match, the Crusaders caught a break in when a Chicago defender played the ball with his hand in the penalty area, giving Cape Cod a penalty kick in the 17th minute. Joseph Ngwenya, who led the league in goals, converted the kick from the spot for the lead.

The back-and-forth play continued with Cape Cod showing more of the control in the first half.

Chicago, however, turned the tables in the second half with the majority of possession and a number of scoring chances only to see them turned away time after time and have three shots find the wordwork instead of the back of the net.

Another defensive miscue in the 81st minute secured the win as David Bulow took the ball and rushed in on goal alone and beat goalkeeper Matt Pickens for the insurance tally.

Cape Cod becomes the fifth team in USL amateur history to repeat as champions, following the Chicago Sockers (1999-2000), Central Coast Roadrunners (1996-1997), Greensboro Dynamo (1993-1994) and Colorado Comets (1989-1990).

 

The game will be rebroadcast Sunday at 2:00 pm ET on Fox Sports World.