2014–15 Oxford City FC of Texas season

The 2014–15 Oxford City FC of Texas season was the third season for the Beaumont, Texas-based professional indoor soccer franchise. Founded as the Texas Strikers in 2012, new ownership rebranded the team as Oxford City FC of Texas in July 2014.[2][3]

Oxford City FC of Texas
2014–15 MASL season
CEOThomas Anthony Guerriero
Head CoachChris "Topper" Cogan (games 1–11)
Mariano Bollella (games 12–20)
ArenaFord Arena
5115 IH-10 South
Beaumont, Texas 77705
Major Arena Soccer League3rd, Southern (regular season)
Ron Newman CupLost Division Semi-Final
Top goalscorerLucas Totti (35 goals, 20 assists)
Highest home attendance1,388 (November 8 vs. Hidalgo La Fiera)
Lowest home attendance0 (January 10 vs. Brownsville Barracudas)
Average home league attendance947 (10 games)[1]

The team was led by Oxford City Football Club, Inc. CEO Thomas Anthony Guerriero[4] and head coach Mariano Bollella. Texas was a Southern Division team in the Major Arena Soccer League and played their home games at Ford Arena in Beaumont, Texas.[5][6] They finished the regular season with a 12–8 record then fell to the Dallas Sidekicks in the first round of the MASL playoffs.

Season summary

Oxford City FC of Texas struggled to start the 2014–15 season, dropping their first two games, but rebounded with three consecutive wins. Although another loss briefly returned the team to .500, wins in their next two games gave the team more wins (5) by that point in the season than they earned in their two full seasons as the Texas Strikers (4). The team ended 2014 with a 7–4 record but with the new year (and the mid-season folding of Hidalgo La Fiera) came the addition of several former Hidalgo players and the replacement of head coach Chris "Topper" Cogan by former Hidalgo head coach Mariano Bollella.[7] The team began 2015 with a three-game winning streak, including a road win against the Dallas Sidekicks, before losing 5 of their remaining 6 games, including home and road losses to Dallas. Their 12–8 record was good enough for third place in the Southern Division and qualified the Beaumont-based team for the playoffs. They faced rival Dallas at the Allen Event Center and lost 5–6, ending their playoff run.

History
Ford Arena set up for soccer in December 2014.
Playoff game at Dallas on March 1, 2015.

The 2012–13 season was the first for the expansion Texas Strikers, Beaumont's first professional soccer team. The team struggled early on but split its final six regular season matches, finishing with a 3–13 record.[8] The Strikers stumbled from the start of the 2013–14 season, dropping 15 consecutive matches.[9][10] Only a home win over the Tulsa Revolution in their final match allowed them to earn a 1–15 record.[11] The team did not qualify for post-season play.

In May 2014, the Professional Arena Soccer League added six teams from the failed third incarnation of the Major Indoor Soccer League and reorganized as the Major Arena Soccer League.[12][13][14] With the league expansion and reorganization, Texas moved from the Central division to the new Southern division.[12] The other Southern teams for 2014–15 are Texas-based Brownsville Barracudas, Dallas Sidekicks, and Hidalgo La Fiera plus Mexico-based Monterrey Flash and Saltillo Rancho Seco.[15]

Off-field moves

In September 2014, the team announced that pre-game and post-game entertainment would be provided by a series of tribute bands. The announced acts include Back in Black, Rock and Roll Over, Light and Shade, and Van Hagar.[16]

On December 15, team owner Oxford City Football Club, Inc. announced that it had "successfully come to terms to sell" Oxford City FC of Texas to an unspecified "Latin American group", pending league approval. CEO Thomas Anthony Guerriero said that their "complete focus as an organization needs to be" on Oxford City F.C. which plays in Conference North, a division of Football Conference at Step 2 of the National League System and the sixth overall tier of the English football league system. The new owners were to have licensed the rights to use the "Oxford City FC of Texas" name through the end of the current MASL season.[7][17] The sale was not completed before the end of the season and the announcement removed from the team's website.

Schedule

  Win   Loss

Pre-season
Game Day Date Kickoff Opponent Results Location Attendance
Score Record
1 Sunday October 26 5:05pm at Baton Rouge IFC W 5–1 1–0 Premier Soccer Indoor Complex
1 Sunday November 2 3:05pm Houston La Juve W 15–4 2–0 Ford Arena

Regular season
Game Day Date Kickoff Opponent Results Location[18] Attendance
Score Record
1 Saturday November 8 7:05pm Hidalgo La Fiera L 7–13[19][20] 0–1 Ford Arena[21][22] 1,388[23]
2 Friday November 14 7:05pm at Tulsa Revolution[24] L 5–8[25] 0–2 Cox Business Center 562[26]
3 Sunday November 16 3:05pm at Wichita B-52s1 W 10–9 (SO) 1–2 Hartman Arena 885[27]
4 Saturday November 22 7:05pm Saltillo Rancho Seco W 9–7[28][29] 2–2 Ford Arena[30] 1,243[31]
5 Saturday November 29 6:00pm at Brownsville Barracudas W 5–4[32] 3–2 Barracudas Sports Complex 450[33]
6 Sunday November 30 3:00pm at Hidalgo La Fiera L 7–9[34] 3–3 State Farm Arena 426[35]
7 Saturday December 6 7:05pm Brownsville Barracudas W 7–4[36][37] 4–3 Ford Arena[38][39] 1,079[40]
8 Saturday December 13 7:05pm Tulsa Revolution W 17–4[41][42] 5–3 Ford Arena[43] 1,078[44]
9 Saturday December 20 7:05pm at Wichita B-52s W 8–7 6–3 Hartman Arena 1,340[45]
10 Saturday December 27 7:05pm Dallas Sidekicks L 4–15[46][47] 6–4 Ford Arena[6][48] 1,203[49]
11 Sunday December 28 3:05pm Saltillo Rancho Seco W 16–8[50][51] 7–4 Ford Arena[52] 986[53]
12 Saturday January 3 7:05pm at Dallas Sidekicks2 W 5–4[7][54] 8–4 Allen Event Center[55][56] 3,811[57]
13 Saturday January 10 2:30pm Brownsville Barracudas3 W 8–4[58] 9–4 Ford Arena[59] 0[60]
14 Saturday January 10 7:05pm Brownsville Barracudas3 W 10–3[58] 10–4 Ford Arena[59] 740[61]
15 Sunday January 18 3:00pm at Dallas Sidekicks L 4–5[62] 10–5 Allen Event Center[63] 2,344[64]
16 Saturday January 31 7:05pm Monterrey Flash L 2–5[65] 10–6 Ford Arena[66] 921[67]
17 Saturday February 7 7:05pm Dallas Sidekicks L 2–7[68][69] 10–7 Ford Arena[70] 840[71]
18 Friday February 13 8:35pm at Saltillo Rancho Seco W 13–7 11–7 Deportivo Rancho-Seco Saltillo ?[72]
19 Sunday February 15 5:05pm at Monterrey Flash L 3–5[73] 11–8 Arena Monterrey[74][75] 2,622[76]
20 Saturday February 21 6:00pm at Brownsville Barracudas W 9–6 12–8 Barracudas Sports Complex 240[77]

1 Originally scheduled for Saturday, November 15.
2 Rescheduled due to mid-season withdrawal of Hidalgo La Fiera, maintaining 20-game schedule.[56][78]
3 Replaces Hidalgo game originally scheduled for that date.

Post-season
Game Day Date Kickoff Opponent Results Location Attendance
Score Record
Division Semi-Final Sunday March 1 2:00pm at Dallas Sidekicks L 5–6[79][80][81] 0–1 Allen Event Center[82][83] 3,421[84]

Awards and honors

Texas forward Lucas Totti was selected for the 2014-15 MASL All-League Third Team.[85] Totti was also named to the league's all-rookie team for 2014–15. Texas goalkeeper Kyle Renfro earned honorable mention for the all-rookie team.[86]

On March 13, the MASL announced the finalists for its major year-end awards. These nominees included Texas forward Lucas Totti for both Most Valuable Player and Rookie of the Year.[87]

References
  1. "2014-15 League Attendance". Major Arena Soccer League. Retrieved February 27, 2015.
  2. "New ownership for professional indoor soccer club at Ford Park". The Orange Leader. Orange, TX: Community Newspaper Holdings. July 22, 2014. Retrieved December 3, 2014.
  3. Zaleon, Avi (July 31, 2014). "Beaumont's indoor soccer team has a new owner". The Beaumont Enterprise. Beaumont, TX: Hearst Corporation. Retrieved November 4, 2014.
  4. Johnson, Jennifer (September 24, 2014). "Thomas Anthony Guerriero brings big talk, bad track record to Beaumont Indoor Soccer". The Examiner. Beaumont, TX: Examiner Corporation. Retrieved November 11, 2014.
  5. Mann, Tommy, Jr. (August 3, 2014). "Oxford City FC makes soccer success a goal at Ford Park". The Orange Leader. Orange, TX: Community Newspaper Holdings. Retrieved December 3, 2014.
  6. Dixon, Jeff (January 13, 2015). "Beaumont's indoor soccer draws small crowds, big fans". The Beaumont Enterprise. Beaumont, TX: Hearst Corporation. Retrieved February 5, 2015.
  7. Elam, Ashly (January 10, 2015). "More changes for Beaumont indoor soccer". Beaumont, TX: KBMT-TV. Archived from the original on January 19, 2015. Retrieved January 17, 2015.
  8. "Texas Strikers set for second season". Beaumont, TX: KBMT-TV. September 18, 2013. Archived from the original on November 11, 2013. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  9. "De Souza, La Fiera race past Texas". The Brownsville Herald. Brownsville, TX: American Consolidated Media. February 6, 2014. Retrieved February 14, 2014.
  10. Tovar, Miguel Ángel (February 11, 2014). "Está fuera de la liguilla". El Diario de Coahuila (in Spanish). Coahuila. Archived from the original on February 22, 2014. Retrieved February 14, 2014.
  11. "Box Score: Ford Arena - Sat, Feb 15, 2014". Professional Arena Soccer League. February 15, 2014. Retrieved February 15, 2014.
  12. Marshall, Raymond (July 29, 2014). "MASL Announces 2014-15 Alignment". The Dallas Morning News. Dallas, TX: A. H. Belo. Archived from the original on October 18, 2014. Retrieved September 4, 2014.
  13. Martinez, Jose Luis (August 21, 2014). "Anuncia Rancho Seco su acción". El Diario de Coahuila (in Spanish). Coahuila. Archived from the original on November 2, 2014. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  14. Spicciarello, Franco (September 10, 2014). "Soccer Indoor, al via la Major Arena Soccer League (MASL)". Soccer Italia (in Italian). Rome, Italy. Retrieved October 10, 2014.
  15. Dávila, José Luis (October 15, 2014). "Alista Rancho Seco temporada". El Diario de Coahuila (in Spanish). Coahuila. Archived from the original on November 2, 2014. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  16. Mann, Tommy, Jr. (September 18, 2014). "Oxford City FC of Texas announces entertainment lineup". The Orange Leader. Orange, TX: Community Newspaper Holdings. Retrieved December 3, 2014.
  17. Lovera, Diana (December 18, 2014). "Oxford City Football Club, Inc. (OTCQB:OXFC) Confirms That They Have Come To Terms To Sell Their Major Arena Soccer Team In Beaumont, Texas To A Latin American Group" (Press release). Beaumont, TX: Oxford City FC of Texas. Retrieved December 19, 2014 – via PRWeb.
  18. "Oxford City FC of Texas Schedule". Major Arena Soccer League. Retrieved January 6, 2015.
  19. Elam, Ashly (November 9, 2014). "Oxford FC of Texas falls in opener". Beaumont, TX: KBMT-TV. Archived from the original on November 17, 2014. Retrieved November 17, 2014.
  20. "Hidalgo La Fiera Win Season Opener". Our Sports Central. November 9, 2014. Retrieved November 12, 2014.
  21. Rankin, Beth (November 7, 2014). "Fútbol caliente: The international hotties of Oxford FC". The Beaumont Enterprise. Beaumont, TX: Hearst Corporation. Retrieved November 11, 2014.
  22. Sanchez, Juan Carlos (November 5, 2014). "Lista La Fiera para entrar en acción". El Nuevo Heraldo (in Spanish). Brownsville, TX: AIM Media Texas. Retrieved November 16, 2014.
  23. "Box Score: Ford Arena - Sat, Nov 08, 2014". Major Arena Soccer League. November 8, 2014. Retrieved November 9, 2014.
  24. Lohman, Rich (November 15, 2014). "Hat-trick lifts Revs over Oxford City". Tulsa Today. Tulsa, OK. Retrieved November 18, 2014.
  25. "Soccer: Revolution beats Oxford City". Tulsa World. Tulsa, OK: World Publishing Company. November 16, 2014. Retrieved November 16, 2014.
  26. "Box Score: Cox Business Center - Fri, Nov 14, 2014". Major Arena Soccer League. November 14, 2014. Retrieved November 15, 2014.
  27. "Box Score: Hartman Arena - Sun, Nov 16, 2014". Major Arena Soccer League. November 16, 2014. Retrieved November 17, 2014.
  28. Arancivia, Gerardo (November 26, 2014). "Equipos de Rancho Seco apoya al Teletón". Vanguardia (in Spanish). Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  29. Elam, Ashly (November 22, 2014). "Oxford FC tops Saltillo". Beaumont, TX: KBMT-TV. Archived from the original on November 26, 2014. Retrieved November 25, 2014.
  30. Arancivia, Gerardo (November 22, 2014). "Rancho Seco, por su primer triunfo en la Major Arena Soccer League". Vanguardia (in Spanish). Retrieved November 24, 2014.
  31. "Box Score: Ford Arena - Sat, Nov 22, 2014". Major Arena Soccer League. November 22, 2014. Retrieved November 23, 2014.
  32. "Barracudas go 0-2 during weekend". The Brownsville Herald. Brownsville, TX: American Consolidated Media. December 1, 2014. Retrieved December 2, 2014.
  33. "Box Score: Estadia Barracudas - Sat, Nov 29, 2014". Major Arena Soccer League. November 29, 2014. Retrieved November 30, 2014.
  34. "RGV News: Hidalgo La Fiera defeats Oxford City". The Brownsville Herald. Brownsville, TX: American Consolidated Media. November 30, 2014. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
  35. "Box Score: State Farm Arena - Sun, Nov 30, 2014". Major Arena Soccer League. November 30, 2014. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
  36. Elam, Ashly (December 6, 2014). "Oxford FC gets home win". Beaumont, TX: KBMT-TV. Archived from the original on December 14, 2014. Retrieved December 7, 2014.
  37. "Barracudas FC takes road loss". The Brownsville Herald. Brownsville, TX: American Consolidated Media. December 7, 2014. Retrieved December 8, 2014.
  38. Hofferth, Dave (December 3, 2014). "Oxford City FC set to face Brownsville". Beaumont, TX: KBMT-TV. Archived from the original on December 11, 2014. Retrieved December 5, 2014.
  39. Sanchez, Juan Carlos (December 3, 2014). "Barracudas reconoce su deuda". El Nuevo Heraldo (in Spanish). Brownsville, TX: AIM Media Texas. Retrieved December 5, 2014.
  40. "Box Score: Ford Arena - Sat, Dec 6, 2014". Major Arena Soccer League. December 6, 2014. Retrieved December 7, 2014.
  41. "Oxford City FC of Texas cruises against Tulsa". Beaumont, TX: KFDM. December 13, 2014. Archived from the original on December 15, 2014. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  42. Elam, Ashly (December 13, 2014). "Oxford FC of Texas hammers Tulsa". Beaumont, TX: KBMT-TV. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  43. "Seahawks Dance Team steps out at soccer game". The Orange Leader. Orange, TX: Community Newspaper Holdings. December 8, 2014. Retrieved December 11, 2014.
  44. "Box Score: Ford Arena - Sat, Dec 13, 2014". Major Arena Soccer League. December 13, 2014. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  45. "Box Score: Hartman Arena - Sat, Dec 20, 2014". Major Arena Soccer League. December 20, 2014. Retrieved December 21, 2014.
  46. Elam, Ashly (December 27, 2014). "Sidekicks end City's winning streak". Beaumont, TX: KFDM. Archived from the original on December 28, 2014. Retrieved December 28, 2014.
  47. Thornton, Matt (December 27, 2014). "Dallas Sidekicks Overtake Oxford City 15-4, Freddy Moojen Nets Record-breaking 7 Goals". Dallas Entertainment Journal. Dallas, TX. Retrieved December 28, 2014.
  48. Chernoff, Andrew (December 23, 2014). "Ox City uses unicorn to distract visiting teams". Beaumont, TX: KFDM. Archived from the original on December 25, 2014. Retrieved December 24, 2014.
  49. "Box Score: Ford Arena - Sat, Dec 27, 2014". Major Arena Soccer League. December 27, 2014. Retrieved December 28, 2014.
  50. Dávila, José Luis (December 30, 2014). "Sufre Rancho Seco otro revés". El Diario de Coahuila (in Spanish). Coahuila. Archived from the original on December 31, 2014. Retrieved December 31, 2014.
  51. Chernoff, Andrew (December 29, 2014). "Oxford City FC of Texas gets back on winning track against Saltillo". Beaumont, TX: KFDM. Archived from the original on December 31, 2014. Retrieved December 31, 2014.
  52. Dávila, José Luis (December 27, 2014). "Va Rancho Seco por triunfo". El Diario de Coahuila (in Spanish). Coahuila. Archived from the original on December 27, 2014. Retrieved December 27, 2014.
  53. "Box Score: Ford Arena - Sun, Dec 28, 2014". Major Arena Soccer League. December 28, 2014. Retrieved December 29, 2014.
  54. Marshall, Raymond (January 4, 2015). "Sidekicks Get Wake Up Call in 5-4 Loss To Texas". The Dallas Morning News. Dallas, TX: A. H. Belo. Archived from the original on April 14, 2015. Retrieved January 4, 2015.
  55. Marshall, Raymond (December 23, 2014). "BREAKING: Hidalgo La Fiera Ceases Operations". The Dallas Morning News. Dallas, TX: A. H. Belo. Archived from the original on December 24, 2014. Retrieved December 24, 2014.
  56. "MASL Announcement Regarding Hidalgo". Major Arena Soccer League. December 23, 2014. Archived from the original on 2014-12-24. Retrieved December 24, 2014.
  57. "Box Score: Allen Event Center - Sat, Jan 03, 2015". Major Arena Soccer League. January 3, 2015. Retrieved January 4, 2015.
  58. Elam, Ashly (January 10, 2015). "Oxford City FC of Texas takes two from Brownsville". Beaumont, TX: KBMT-TV. Archived from the original on January 11, 2015. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  59. Sanchez, Juan Carlos (January 10, 2015). "Viaja Barracudas con doble reto". El Nuevo Heraldo (in Spanish). Brownsville, TX: AIM Media Texas. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  60. "Box Score: Ford Arena - Game 1/2 - Sat, Jan 10, 2015". Major Arena Soccer League. January 10, 2015. Retrieved January 11, 2015.
  61. "Box Score: Ford Arena - Game 2/2 - Sat, Jan 10, 2015". Major Arena Soccer League. January 10, 2015. Retrieved January 11, 2015.
  62. Thornton, Matt (January 21, 2015). "Dallas Sidekicks Freddy Moojen Scores Again While Megson and Molano Make Debuts in Win Over Oxford City". Dallas Entertainment Journal. Dallas, TX. Retrieved January 22, 2015.
  63. "Dallas Sidekicks Schedule". Dallas Sidekicks. Archived from the original on 2014-10-16. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  64. "Box Score: Allen Event Center - Sun, Jan 18, 2015". Major Arena Soccer League. January 18, 2015. Retrieved January 19, 2015.
  65. Garza, Jose Luis (February 1, 2015). "Monterrey Flash derrota al Oxford City" (in Spanish). Monterrey: Grupo Multimedios. Archived from the original on February 1, 2015. Retrieved February 1, 2015 – via XHAW-TV.
  66. Hofferth, Dave (January 28, 2015). "Oxford City FC set to host Monterrey". Beaumont, TX: KBMT-TV. Archived from the original on February 3, 2015. Retrieved January 31, 2015.
  67. "Box Score: Ford Arena - Sat, Jan 31, 2015". Major Arena Soccer League. January 31, 2015. Retrieved February 1, 2015.
  68. Marshall, Raymond (February 7, 2015). "Dallas Sidekicks Shut Down Oxford City FC of Texas, 7-2". The Dallas Morning News. Dallas, TX: A. H. Belo. Archived from the original on February 10, 2015. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
  69. Elam, Ashly (February 7, 2015). "Sidekicks pull away from Oxford City". Beaumont, TX: KBMT-TV. Archived from the original on February 11, 2015. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
  70. "Ox City FC of Texas falls in regular season home finale". Beaumont, TX: KFDM. February 7, 2015. Archived from the original on February 17, 2015. Retrieved February 16, 2015.
  71. "Box Score: Ford Arena - Sat, Feb 07, 2015". Major Arena Soccer League. February 7, 2015. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  72. "Box Score: Deportivo Rancho-Seco Saltillo - Fri, Feb 13, 2015". Major Arena Soccer League. February 13, 2015. Retrieved February 14, 2015.
  73. Medina, Diego Armando (February 15, 2015). "Flash toma ritmo para los Playoffs" (in Spanish). Monterrey: Grupo Multimedios. Archived from the original on February 16, 2015. Retrieved February 15, 2015 – via XHAW-TV.
  74. Graciano, Brenda (September 9, 2014). "Anuncia Flash su calendario". El Horizonte (in Spanish). Monterrey, Nuevo León. Retrieved October 30, 2014.
  75. Cedillo, Martha (February 10, 2015). "Monterrey Flash intensifica su preparación" (in Spanish). Monterrey: Grupo Multimedios. Archived from the original on February 11, 2015. Retrieved February 11, 2015 – via XHAW-TV.
  76. "Box Score: Arena Monterrey - Sun, Feb 15, 2015". Major Arena Soccer League. February 15, 2015. Retrieved February 16, 2015.
  77. "Box Score: Estadia Barracudas - Sat, Feb 21, 2015". Major Arena Soccer League. February 21, 2015. Retrieved February 22, 2015.
  78. Sanchez, Juan Carlos (December 24, 2014). "La Fiera FC deja de existir". El Nuevo Heraldo (in Spanish). Brownsville, TX: AIM Media Texas. Retrieved December 25, 2014.
  79. Pagliuca, Silvana (March 1, 2015). "Dallas Sidekicks remontan y avanzan a final de su división". Al Dia (in Spanish). Dallas, TX: A. H. Belo. Archived from the original on March 20, 2015. Retrieved March 8, 2015.
  80. Welch, Matt (March 2, 2015). "Survive and advance: Sidekicks rally in fourth, shake off playoff hex". Allen American. Allen, TX: Star Local News. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
  81. Cedillo, Martha (March 1, 2015). "El Flash ya conoce a su rival para la final divisional" (in Spanish). Monterrey: Grupo Multimedios. Archived from the original on March 3, 2015. Retrieved March 8, 2015 – via XHAW-TV.
  82. "Major Arena Soccer League Announces Division Playoff Formats and Scenarios". Major Arena Soccer League. February 13, 2015. Archived from the original on February 15, 2015. Retrieved February 14, 2015.
  83. Welch, Matt (February 17, 2015). "Dallas Sidekicks to host playoff match". Allen American. Allen, TX: Star Local News. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
  84. "Box Score: Allen Event Center - Sun, Mar 01, 2015". Major Arena Soccer League. March 1, 2015. Retrieved March 2, 2015.
  85. "MASL Announces 2014/15 All-League Teams". Major Arena Soccer League. March 9, 2015. Archived from the original on 2015-03-11. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
  86. "MASL Announces 2014/15 All-Rookie Team". Major Arena Soccer League. March 5, 2015. Archived from the original on 2015-03-07. Retrieved March 6, 2015.
  87. "Gibson a finalist for MVP; four other Comets up for MASL awards". The Examiner. Independence, MO: GateHouse Media. March 13, 2015. Retrieved March 14, 2015.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.