1996 USISL Premier League season

Add links
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

USISL Premier League
Season1996
← 1995
1997 →

The 1996

USISL Premier League
season was its second. The season began in April 1996 and ended in August 1996.

San Francisco Bay Seals 3–2. Spokane Shadow
won the regular season title, winning 14 games to 2 losses.

Changes from 1995 season

Name changes

New teams

12 teams were added for the season.

Team Area Location Previous affiliation
Washington (state) Bellingham Orcas Northwest Washington area Bellingham, WA expansion
California Central Coast Roadrunners
Central West Coast area
 San Luis Obispo, CA expansion
Florida Strikers
Greater Miami area
 Fort Lauderdale, FL from USISL Pro
Kentucky Lexington Bluegrass Bandits Lexington area Lexington, KY from USISL Pro
Miami Tango
Greater Miami area
Miami, FL
 expansion
Mid-Michigan Bucks
Flint/Tri-Cities area
 Saginaw, MI expansion
Omaha Flames
Omaha-Council Bluffs area
 Omaha, NE expansion
California San Diego Top Guns
San Diego area
San Diego, CA
 from USISL Pro
California Southern California Gunners
Inland Empire area
 San Bernardino, CA expansion
Washington (state) Spokane Shadow Spokane area Spokane, WA expansion
Florida West Florida Fury Emerald Coast area Pensacola, FL expansion
Oregon Willamette Valley Firebirds
Corvallis area
 Corvallis, OR former Portland Firebirds of the USISL Pro League

Teams leaving

Five teams folded after the 1995 season:

Standings

Central Conference

Northern Division

Pos Team Pld W PKW L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Lexington Bluegrass Bandits 14 9 1 4 32 18 +14 28[a] Division champion
2 Michigan Madness 14 8 1 5 24 28 −4 25[a] Team qualified for playoff berth
3 Detroit Dynamite 14 7 1 6 34 19 +15 22[a]
4
Mid-Michigan Bucks
 14 7 1 6 24 18 +6 22[a] Team qualified for playoff berth
5 Kalamazoo Kingdom 14 5 0 9 18 22 −4 15
6 Grand Rapids Explosion[b] 7 0 0 7 6 21 −15 0
Source: [citation needed]
Notes:
  1. ^ a b c d Detroit, Kalamazoo, Lexington, and Michigan were all penalized 3 points.
  2. ^ Grand Rapids did not have a home stadium this year, and played only road games.

Southern Division

Pos Team Pld W PKW L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Austin Lone Stars 14 10 0 4 41 17 +24 30 Division champion
2 Omaha Flames 14 8 0 6 39 22 +17 24 Team qualified for playoff berth
3 Sioux City Breeze 13 7 2 4 26 23 +3 23[a][b]
4 Des Moines Menace 14 7 0 7 22 21 +1 21
5 Oklahoma City Heat 14 7 0 7 22 26 −4 21
6 Wichita Blue 13 5 0 8 18 33 −15 15[a]
Source: [citation needed]
Notes:
  1. ^ a b The game between Sioux City and Wichita was postponed and could not be rescheduled before end of the season. The game was cancelled because it had no effect on the playoffs.
  2. ^ Sioux City was penalized 6 points.

Eastern Conference

Northern Division

Pos Team Pld W PKW L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Roanoke River Dawgs 14 10 0 4 48 28 +20 30 Division champion
2 Jackson Chargers 14 7 1 6 34 24 +10 22[a] Team qualified for playoff berth
3 Nashville Metros 14 5 2 7 34 26 +8 17[b]
4 Birmingham Grasshoppers 14 4 0 10 20 33 −13 12
Source: [citation needed]
Notes:
  1. ^ Jackson was penalized 3 points.
  2. ^ Nashville was penalized 6 points.

Southern Division

Pos Team Pld W PKW L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Cocoa Expos 14 9 1 4 45 22 +23 28[a] Bye into semifinals as defending champion.
2 Orlando Lions 14 8 1 5 25 28 −3 25[a]
3
Florida Strikers
 14 6 1 7 31 33 −2 19[a] Team qualified for playoff berth
4 West Florida Fury 14 5 0 9 29 36 −7 15
5
Miami Tango
 14 4 0 10 29 37 −8 12
6 South Florida Future 14 0 0 14 17 63 −46 0
Source: [citation needed]
Notes:
  1. ^ a b c Cocoa, Florida, and Orlando were all penalized 3 points.

Western Conference

Northern Division

Pos Team Pld W PKW L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Spokane Shadow 14 11 1 2 34 17 +17 34[a] Division champion
2 San Francisco Bay Seals 14 10 0 4 35 15 +20 30 Team qualified for playoff berth
3
Colorado Springs Stampede
 14 8 1 5 20 12 +8 25[a]
4 Puget Sound Hammers 14 8 0 6 31 23 +8 24 Team qualified for playoff berth
5 Willamette Valley Firebirds 14 5 0 9 21 31 −10 15
6 Bellingham Orcas 14 3 0 11 17 50 −33 9
Source: [citation needed]
Notes:
  1. ^ a b Colorado Springs and Spokane were both penalized 3 points.

Southern Division

Pos Team Pld W PKW L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Central Coast Roadrunners 14 11 1 2 38 16 +22 34[a] Division champion
2 San Diego Top Guns 14 8 1 5 28 22 +6 25[a] Team qualified for playoff berth
3
Arizona Phoenix
 14 7 0 7 32 31 +1 21
4 Tucson Amigos 14 7 0 7 24 29 −5 21
5 Fontana Falcons 14 5 0 9 31 32 −1 15
6 Southern California Gunners 14 3 0 11 19 28 −9 9
Source: [citation needed]
Notes:
  1. ^ a b Central Coast and San Diego were both penalized 3 points

Playoffs

Format

Central Coast received a bye to the PDL Semifinals as the defending champion.
The top four teams from every division except the Southwest earn playoff spots. With Central Coast already receiving a bye, the top two teams from the Southwest Division will play each other, however if Central Coast is in the top two, then the third place team receives a playoff spot. The Division winners would then face each other in the Conference finals.

Divisional brackets

Division Semifinals Division Finals Finals
         
NC1 Michigan Michigan Madness
NC4
Mid-Michigan Bucks
0
NC1
PSO
) 		0 (1)
North Central Division
NC3 Michigan Kalamazoo Kingdom 0 (0)
NC2 Michigan Detroit Dynamite 0
NC3
AET
) 		1
 
 
C1 Nebraska Lincoln Brigade 0
C4 Iowa Des Moines Menace 4
C4 Iowa Des Moines Menace 6
Central Division
C2 Nebraska Omaha Flames 0
C2
Omaha Flames
5
C3 Iowa Sioux City Breeze 3

Central Conference Playoffs

North Division Playoffs
Semifinals
Mid-Michigan Bucks
Semifinals
Kalamazoo Kingdom4–5 (a.e.t.)Lexington Bluegrass Bandits
Report
Attendance: 1,142
North Division Final
Mid-Michigan Bucks
South Division Playoffs
Semifinals
Austin Lone Stars1–0 (OT)Des Moines Menace
Tranquility Park
Omaha, Nebraska
Semifinals
Omaha Flames
3–1Sioux City Breeze
 Report
Tranquility Park
Omaha, Nebraska
South Division Final
Omaha Flames
3–2 (OT)Austin Lone Stars
 Report
Tranquility Park
Omaha, Nebraska
Division Semifinals Division Finals Finals
SE1 Florida Cocoa Expos 3
SE1 Florida Cocoa Expos 5 SE3 Florida West Florida Fury 1
SE4
Miami Tango
2 SE1 Florida Cocoa Expos 2
MS2 Mississippi Jackson Chargers 1
MS1 Ohio Cincinnati Riverhawks 0
SE2 Florida South Florida Future 0 MS2 Mississippi Jackson Chargers 3
SE3 Florida West Florida Fury 4

Eastern Conference Playoffs

Eastern Conference Play In
Play-In
Roanoke River Dawgs1–2 (OT)Nashville Metros
 Report
Attendance: 1,010
Play-In
West Florida Fury3–4 (a.e.t.)Florida Strikers
Semifinal
Florida Strikers0–1Nashville Metros
The Sports Club
Jackson, Mississippi
Eastern Conference Final
Jackson Chargers3–2 (OT)Nashville Metros
 Report
The Sports Club
Jackson, Mississippi
Division Semifinals Division Finals Western Finals
         
NW1 Washington (state) Spokane Shadow 2
NW4
Puget Sound Hammers
1
NW1 Washington (state) Spokane Shadow 2
Northwest Division
NW2 Washington (state) Yakima Reds 0
NW2 Washington (state) Yakima Reds 1
NW3 Oregon Cascade Surge 0
NW1 Washington (state) Spokane Shadow 0
SW1
San Gabriel Valley Highlanders
1
SW1
San Gabriel Valley Highlanders
bye
 
SW1
San Gabriel Valley Highlanders
2
Southwest Division
SW2 Arizona Tucson Amigos 1
SW2 Arizona Tucson Amigos bye
 

Western Conference Playoffs

South Division Playoffs
Semifinals
Arizona Phoenix
Semifinals
Central Coast Roadrunners7–0Tucson Amigos
South Division Final
Central Coast Roadrunners3–2San Diego Top Guns
Report
Attendance: 1,100
North Division Playoffs
Semifinals
Puget Sound Hammers
Attendance: 1,712
Semifinals
Colorado Springs Stampede
North Division Final
San Francisco Bay Seals
 Report Part 1 Report Part 2
Attendance: 1,408
Referee: Neil Pinski

Premier Six Tournament

Six teams entered the Premier Six Tournament in Cocoa, Florida the weekend of August 16–18. Each of the five division playoff champions qualified for the tournament, along with the host Cocoa Expos. The teams were seeded in this order, based on their regular season points:

  • 1. Central Coast Roadrunners
  • 2. San Francisco Bay Seals
  • 3. Cocoa Expos
  • 4. Omaha Flames
  • 5. Jackson Chargers
  • 6. Mid-Michigan Bucks.

The Central Coast Roadrunners played the bottom two seeds (Jackson and Mid-Michigan). The San Francisco Seals played the #4 and #6 seeds (Omaha and Mid-Michigan). The Cocoa Expos played and #4 and #5 seeds (Omaha and Jackson).

Qualification to the finals

In order to determine the two teams to qualify for the finals, the league used the following point system during the Premier Six Tournament:

  • Win = 3 points
  • Shootout win = 2 points
  • Shootout loss = 1 point
  • Bonus points: Each team scoring three or more goals in regulation or overtime received one extra point.
Place Team W SW SL L BP PTS
1 Central Coast Roadrunners 2 0 0 0 1 7
2 San Francisco Bay Seals 1 0 1 0 1 5
3 Cocoa Expos 1 0 0 1 1 4
4
Omaha Flames
 0 1 0 1 0 2
5 Jackson Chargers 1 0 0 1 0 2
6
Mid-Michigan Bucks
 0 0 0 2 0 0

Friday

Omaha Flames (NE
)
Penalties
 1-2
Cocoa Expo Sports Center, Cocoa, Florida
Mid-Michigan Bucks (MI
)
Bryan Taylor
Cocoa Expos (FL)0-1Jackson Chargers (MS)
50' Sheldon Bennett

Saturday

Central Coast Roadrunners (CA)2-1 OTJackson Chargers (MS)
 42' Dwyane Demmin
Mid-Michigan Bucks (MI
)
Omaha Flames (NE
)

Final

Central Coast Roadrunners (CA)1-0San Francisco Bay Seals (CA)
Bryan Taylor 48'

Honors

[1]

References

  1. ^ USISL: 1996 Postseason Awards

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=1996_USISL_Premier_League_season&oldid=1172369278"