PDL Central Conference semifinals Saturday

Story courtesy Michigan Bucks Public Relations

Pontiac, MI (July 24, 2008) - After midweek play-in games, the Central Conference Final Four is set for this weekend at Ultimate Soccer Arenas in Pontiac on Saturday and Sunday. The United Soccer League's (USL) Premier Development League (PDL) #1 overall seed for the post-season tournament Michigan Bucks will play host to the Kalamazoo Outrage on Saturday (7:30 PM kickoff). The Bucks first playoff game will be the second game of the Central Conference doubleheader that will feature the Cleveland Internationals against the Thunder Bay Chill at 5:30. The two winners will face off on Sunday at Ultimate Soccer at 7:00 PM for the right to represent the Central Conference in the PDL Final Four.

The Bucks look to continue their dominance over the Outrage, after having swept the season series (3-1 in Kalamazoo and 2-1 at home) this season en route to a league leading 13-1-2 overall record in regular season play. Ticket prices for playoff games are the same as regular season tickets and are on sale now at Ultimate Soccer Arenas and online through Ticketmaster. VIP tickets (all ages) are $14 each day, $10 Adult reserved and $5 Youth. Children 5 and under are always free to Bucks games.

Kalamazoo reached the playoffs in their first season by beating Midwest Division champion Chicago Fire 2-0 on Tuesday in Chicago. Thunder Bay showed that they earned their #2 seed by beating Heartland Division second place team Colorado Rapids 3-1 while the Cleveland Internationals defeated the Toronto Lynx at home Wednesday night by the score of 2-1 to join the Great Lakes Division Michigan Bucks in the four team playoff. Tickets have been going fast to this Saturday's two semi-final matches, as the Bucks are expecting their largest crowd of the season this weekend to help support the PDL's winningest franchise in their effort to reach an unprecedented third consecutive North American Championship game on August 9 (to be televised on Fox Soccer Channel).

For further information about the upcoming playoff games and all the tickets still available to this weekend's huge playoff matches, please visit the Bucks web site at buckssoccer.com.

CLARK NAMED TO PDL TEAM OF THE WEEK AS LEAGUE'S TOP GOAL KEEPER; EXTENDS RECORD STREAK

Bucks goalkeeper Steve Clark (Mason, Oakland University) completed his last week of regular season play in the PDL this week in style, as he shut out the Toronto Lynx and helped the Michigan side claim the #1 overall seed in the PDL's sixteen team playoffs. The final week of Clark's three year stint with the Bucks ended with recognition from the USL as he was selected PDL goal keeper of the week. Clark finished this regular season with a record of 13-0-2 and has now been in goal for the Bucks for over two years without a loss. The standout goalkeeper who has trained with the Columbus Crew and Chivas USA of Major League Soccer (MLS) is slated to spend a week with the Colorado Rapids in Denver following the Bucks post season run. Although Clark has flown underneath the radar the past three seasons for the Bucks as far as media are concerned, the standout keeper has been the backbone of the best three year team in PDL history. Winning the MVP in the Championship game in 2006 was the only real recognition the Oakland University goal keeper has received over the years. In the course of the last three seasons, Clark overtook current US national team pool goalkeeper Dominic Cervi in 2006 as the Bucks number one keeper and has set a USL record unbeaten streak of 33-0-8 since he was charged with his last loss in goal on July 8, 2006. Michigan is relying heavily on the college senior to continue his playoff superiority to lead the team through a very difficult upcoming weekend in the Central Conference championships in Pontiac before moving on to the next level of professional soccer in 2009.