2015–16 Major Arena Soccer League season

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CHI @ BAL
(November 7)
Lowest attendance104
BAJ @ SAL
(February 5)
Average attendance2,405 [1]
→

The 2015–16 Major Arena Soccer League season was the eighth season for the league and the second since six teams from the former

Professional Arena Soccer League
. The regular season started on October 24, 2015, and ended on March 4, 2016. Each team played a 20-game schedule. It was also the 38th season of professional indoor soccer in the United States.

Teams

Many of the 22 teams that completed the

Waza Flo.[6]

The expansion Sonora Suns based in Hermosillo, Connecticut-based Hartford City FC, Iowa-based Cedar Rapids Rampage, and Tijuana-based Atletico Baja were formally accepted for membership in the MASL.[7][8] The fledgling Youngstown Nighthawks based in Ohio aimed to join the league but encountered financial issues.[9]

On October 28, 2015, the MASL announced that Hartford City FC would not be permitted to enter the league this season and began league-wide schedule changes to replace the failed franchise.[10][11] A new ownership group hoped to revive the team for the 2016–17 season.[10]

Unlike last season where some Eastern Division teams played with a variable-point scoring system, for 2015–16 the whole MASL will play with standard soccer scoring using goals, not points.[3]

Standings

As of March 4, 2016
  2015-16 League Championship
  2015-16 Playoff Team
(Bold) Division Winner

Eastern Conference

Place Team GP W L Pct GF GA GB Home Road
Eastern Division
1 Baltimore Blast 19 15 4 .789 129 57 - 9-1 6-3
2
Syracuse Silver Knights
 20 11 9 .550 120 113 4.5 7-3 4-6
3
Waza Flo
 18 9 9 .500 101 119 5.5 5-3 4-6
4
Harrisburg Heat
 19 1 18 .053 75 152 14.0 0-10 1-8
Central Division
1
Missouri Comets
 		20 17 3 .850 153 95 — 7-3 10-0
2
Chicago Mustangs
 20 13 7 .650 152 123 4 7-3 6-4
3 Milwaukee Wave 20 13 7 .650 131 114 4 7-3 6-4
4 St. Louis Ambush 20 5 15 .250 104 138 12 3-7 2-8
5 Cedar Rapids Rampage 20 5 15 .250 117 160 12 3-7 2-8

Western Conference

Place Team GP W L Pct GF GA GB Home Road
Southwest Division
1 Las Vegas Legends 20 14 6 .700 141 106 — 8-2 6-4
2 Atletico Baja 20 12 8 .600 178 161 2 8-2 4-6
3
Brownsville Barracudas
 20 8 12 .400 134 145 6 6-4 2-8
4 Saltillo Rancho Seco 20 7 13 .350 150 170 7 5-5 2-8
5
Sacramento Surge
 20 3 17 .150 114 180 11 3-7 0-10
6
Turlock Express
 20 3 17 .150 98 174 11 3-7 0-10
Pacific Division
1 Sonora Suns 20 17 3 .850 219 134 — 9-1 8-2
2 San Diego Sockers 20 13 7 .650 138 111 4 7-3 6-4
3
Tacoma Stars
 20 13 7 .650 116 109 4 7-3 6-4
4
Ontario Fury
 20 12 8 .600 146 135 5 7-3 5-5
5
Dallas Sidekicks
 20 7 13 .350 114 134 10 4-6 3-7

2016 Ron Newman Cup

Playoff format

Top three finishers in each division qualify for the playoffs. The winner of the playoff between the second and third place teams will play the first place team for the division title.

Each round (including the Newman Cup Championship) will be a home and away series. Teams that win both games will advance. If the wins are split between the two teams, a fifteen-minute mini game will be played immediately after the second game to break the tie. The only exception will be the Eastern Division Semi-Final, where there will be a one-game playoff (Syracuse hosting Waza Flo) because of arena availability issues.[12][13]

Eastern Conference Playoffs

Eastern Division Semi-Final

Waza Flo
Report
Oncenter War Memorial Arena
Attendance: 1,815
Referee: Tim Tyma

Syracuse advances to the Eastern Division Final.

Eastern Division Final

Game 1
Syracuse Silver Knights
Report
Royal Farms Arena
Attendance: 4,041
Referee: Joe Della Penna
Game 2
Syracuse Silver Knights
3–4Baltimore Blast
Report
Oncenter War Memorial Arena
Attendance: 2,042
Referee: Rich Grady

Baltimore wins series 2–0.

Central Division Semi-Final

Game 1
Chicago Mustangs
Report
Attendance: 3,475
Game 2
Chicago Mustangs
7–2Milwaukee Wave
Report
Sears Centre
Attendance: 3,746
Referee: Ryan Cigich
Mini-Game
Chicago Mustangs
0–2Milwaukee Wave
Report
Sears Centre
Attendance: 3,746
Referee: Shane Butler

Milwaukee wins series 2–1.

Central Division Final

Game 1
Missouri Comets
Report
Attendance: 2,717
Game 2
Missouri Comets
8–2Milwaukee Wave
Report
Silverstein Eye Centers Arena
Attendance: 3,004
Referee: Shane Butler

Missouri wins series 2–0.

Eastern Conference Final

Game 1
Missouri Comets
3–4
(OT)		Baltimore Blast
Report
Silverstein Eye Centers Arena
Attendance: 3,011
Referee: Ryan Cigich
Game 2
Missouri Comets
Report
Royal Farms Arena
Attendance: 4,102
Referee: Rich Grady

Baltimore wins series 2–0

Western Conference Playoffs

Southwest Division Semi-Final

Game 1
Brownsville Barracudas
5–4Atletico Baja
Report
Barracudas Sports Complex
Attendance: 1,168
Referee: Francisco Meraz
Game 2
Brownsville Barracudas
Report
Unidad Deportiva Tijuana
Attendance: 1,760
Referee: Kia Depaneh

Brownsville wins series 2–0

Southwest Division Final

Game 1
Brownsville Barracudas
5–11Las Vegas Legends
Report
Barracudas Sports Complex
Attendance: 1,183
Referee: Francisco Meraz
Game 2
Brownsville Barracudas
Report
Las Vegas Sports Park
Attendance: 403
Referee: Ramiro Cruz

Las Vegas wins series 2–0

Pacific Division Semi-Final

Game 1
Tacoma Stars
7–8
(2 OT)		San Diego Sockers
Report
Report
ShoWare Center
Attendance: 2,036
Referee: Kia Depaneh
Game 2
Tacoma Stars
Report
Valley View Casino Center
Attendance: 2,774
Referee: Ron Cory

San Diego wins series 2–0

Pacific Division Final

Game 1
San Diego Sockers5–10Sonora Suns
Report
Valley View Casino Center
Attendance: 2,200
Referee: Ryan Cigich
Game 2
Sonora Suns10–13San Diego Sockers
Report
Centro de Usos Múltiples
Attendance: 7,000
Referee: Kelly Mock
Mini-Game
Sonora Suns6–0San Diego Sockers
Report
Centro de Usos Múltiples
Attendance: 7,000
Referee: Kelly Mock

Sonora wins series 2–1.

Western Conference Final

Game 1
Sonora Suns9–13Las Vegas Legends
Report
Centro de Usos Múltiples
Attendance: 6,841
Referee: Kia Depaneh
Game 2
Sonora Suns13–10Las Vegas Legends
Report
Centro de Usos Múltiples
Attendance: 7,487
Referee: Kia Depaneh
Mini-Game
Sonora Suns1–0
(2 OT)		Las Vegas Legends
Report
Centro de Usos Múltiples
Attendance: 7,487
Referee: Kia Depaneh

Sonora wins series 2–1.

Newman Cup Championship

Game 1
Baltimore Blast7–4Sonora Suns
Report
Royal Farms Arena
Attendance: 7,243
Referee: Rich Grady
Game 2
Sonora Suns13–14
(OT)		Baltimore Blast
Report
Centro de Usos Múltiples
Attendance: 8,324
Referee: Ryan Cigich

Baltimore wins Newman Cup 2–0.

Statistics

Top scorers

Rank Scorer Club Games Goals Assists Points
1 United States Franck Tayou
Sonora Suns
 20 47 15 62
2 United States Kraig Chiles San Diego Sockers 18 28 27 55
3 Canada Vahid Assadpour
Missouri Comets
 20 23 27 50
4 Brazil Mauricio Salles
Ontario Fury
 20 30 16 46
Mexico Efrain Martinez
Chicago Mustangs
 20 21 25 46
6 Canada Ian Bennett Milwaukee Wave 20 37 7 44
Liberia Leo Gibson
Missouri Comets
 18 21 23 44
8 Mexico Victor Baez Saltillo Rancho Seco 20 28 15 43
9 United States Moises Gonzalez
Brownsville Barracudas
 20 34 8 42
Brazil Hewerton Moreira Cedar Rapids Rampage 20 13 29 42

Last updated on March 4, 2016. Source: "Scoring Leaders". Major Arena Soccer League.

Awards

Individual awards

Award Name[14] Team
League MVP Franck Tayou Sonora Suns
Goalkeeper of the Year Danny Waltman
Tacoma Stars
Defender of the Year Pat Healey Baltimore Blast
Rookie of the Year Alejandro Leyva Sonora Suns
Coach of the Year Darren Sawatzky
Tacoma Stars
Aaron Susi Trophy (Playoff MVP) Lucas Roque Baltimore Blast

All-League First Team

Name[15] Position Team
Kraig Chiles F San Diego Sockers
Franck Tayou F Sonora Suns
Vahid Assadpour M
Missouri Comets
Damian Garcia D Sonora Suns
Eric Guzman D Las Vegas Legends
Danny Waltman GK
Tacoma Stars

All-League Second Team

Name[15] Position Team
Leo Gibson F
Missouri Comets
Mauricio Salles F
Ontario Fury
Ian Bennett M Milwaukee Wave
Victor Baez D Saltillo Rancho Seco
Pat Healey D Baltimore Blast
William Vanzela GK Baltimore Blast

All-League Third Team

Name[15] Position Team
Efrain Martinez F
Chicago Mustangs
Max Ferdinand M Milwaukee Wave
Moises Gonzalez M
Brownsville Barracudas
Luis Ortega D
Chicago Mustangs
John Sosa D
Missouri Comets
Boris Pardo GK
Missouri Comets

All-Rookie Team

Name[16] Position Team
Alejandro Leyva F Sonora Suns
Adolfo Bautista F
Chicago Mustangs
Mike Ramos M
Tacoma Stars
Thiago Gonçalves D
Waza Flo
Roberto Medina D Sonora Suns
Andrew Coughlin GK
Syracuse Silver Knights

References

  1. ^ "2015-16 League Attendance". Major Arena Soccer League. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  2. Las Vegas, NV: GateHouse Media
    . Retrieved March 19, 2015.
  3. ^
    Independence, MO: GateHouse Media
    . April 30, 2015. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
  4. Tacoma Stars
    . May 19, 2015. Retrieved May 20, 2015.
  5. ^ Krieger, Dan (May 11, 2015). "Weekly Sports League and Franchise Report". Our Sports Central (Press release). Retrieved May 14, 2015.
  6. Booth Newspapers
    . Retrieved October 29, 2015.
  7. ^ Cano, Guillermo (March 5, 2015). "MASL: Viene a Hermosillo el Comisionado Milliken". Triunfo Deportivo. Retrieved March 5, 2015.
  8. ^ "Soles de Sonora Introduced as First 2015/16 Expansion Team". Major Arena Soccer League. March 6, 2015. Archived from the original on December 24, 2015. Retrieved March 6, 2015.
  9. Youngstown, OH
    : Vindicator Printing Company. Retrieved March 17, 2015.
  10. ^
    Hartford, CT: Tribune Publishing
    . Retrieved October 29, 2015.
  11. Hartford, CT
    : Connecticut Public Radio. Retrieved October 29, 2015.
  12. ^ "MASL Owners Announce Plans for 2015-16 Season". Major Arena Soccer League. April 29, 2015. Archived from the original on May 1, 2015. Retrieved April 29, 2015.
  13. ^ "MASL Announces 2016 Ron Newman Cup Playoffs Schedule". Major Arena Soccer League (MASL). March 2, 2016. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved March 2, 2016.
  14. ^ "MASL Announces Major Award Winners for 2015/16 Season". Major Arena Soccer League (MASL). March 17, 2016. Archived from the original on March 23, 2016. Retrieved March 17, 2016.
  15. ^ a b c "MASL Announces 2015/16 All-League Teams". Major Arena Soccer League (MASL). March 15, 2016. Archived from the original on March 17, 2016. Retrieved March 15, 2016.
  16. ^ "MASL Announces Major Awards Finalists and 2015/16 All-Rookie Team". Major Arena Soccer League (MASL). March 11, 2016. Archived from the original on March 12, 2016. Retrieved March 11, 2016.

External links

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