After a summer layoff, Philadelphia’s Casa Soccer League is back in business! And the good news is that it’s bigger than ever.

CASA expanded by six teams and now has three divisions of twelve teams behind a ten-team Primera division. There are some new teams in the league and a lot of movement between divisions. Let’s have a look at how last season ended and what’s in store for Fall 2010.

Primera

After winning only one game during the regular season, AC Milan somehow changed their fortunes in the playoffs and walked away with the Primera playoff crown. AC Milan returns a strong squad in the fall, but new league rules means the regular season champ will raise the cup this year. Milan will have to improve on their 7th place finish if they want to get their names on the trophy again.

Primera was tight all season in the spring, and expect nothing to change. While Grey Lodge finished first in the regular season, West Philly and Real Optimus were right on their tail.

At the other end of the spectrum, four teams finished even with or one point above the relegation zone. Philly United and Drinkers Pub United survived but they’ll be fighting off NewPhillyUnited and Stoney United who arrive in the top flight determined to make an immediate impact. NewPhilly cruised through Segunda in the Spring but can they compete in Primera? Stoney earned promotion after their offense came alive in the playoffs. I spent all last year saying Segunda was strong. Prove me right, guys.

Prediction: I play in Primera, so I feel uncomfortable picking a winner here. So I asked Allison. She said, “Well who won the regular season? Grey Lodge? Then I pick them.” She’s dangerously logical.

Segunda

Five new squads in Segunda these time around as two teams come down from Primera, two are added to the new 12 team division, and one team replaces the departing Memphis Tap Room. Penn United and Cannons come down from Primera, but as noted above, they were tied for points with two other squads. These are two teams that have spent a lot of time in Primera, and they’ll be itching to get right back up.

United Nations is another favorite for promotion after losing 4-2 to Stoney in the playoff final. They’ll have to hold off a number of strong teams coming up from Tercera, led by Quaker City FC and Mt. Laurel FC. These two battled it out all season for the top spot in the third division and there is no doubt they’ll find themselves at home in Segunda. The other two teams joining Segunda are Tri-County United and Bayern Makefield. Makefield lost 3-2 in the playoff finals to Quaker City, but Tri-Co were bounced in the first round by Park Towne United. What do you say, Tri-Co? Are you ready for the big move?

Prediction: Quaker City and Mt. Laurel were so impressive in Tercera last season, but I’m putting my money on Nittany United. They scored a lot last year but gave up too many goals. If they can solve their defensive issues, they’ll be a tough group to beat.

Tercera

Park Towne United finished third last year, but the first, second, fourth and fifth place teams have all moved up to Segunda. Does this mean Park Towne will waltz through the leauge this season? Not if FC Spartans and Revolution 76 have anything to say about it. Spartans had no trouble scoring, but they couldn’t keep the ball out of their net last season. I remember watching a NOVA special on human beauty that listed Halle Berry as the most beautiful celebrity because her face was the most symmetrical. Congratulations, Rev76: You’re the Halle Berry of Casa. After a 3-3-3 record last year with 11 goals for and 11 goals against, Rev76 could make the next step and challenge for the title, or maybe they’re riding a lucky streak and it will all fall apart. I guess that’s why we play the games.

Prediction: Park Towne. PTU should be the best team in Tercera. The teams coming up from Abierto are very talented, but Casa is a strong league so AOH61, Spruce Goose and Sweet Lucy’s might not be the wrecking balls they were last year. Organized Chaos had a tough run in Segunda last season, so I think they’ll also make a push back to the second division.

Abierto

Without looking at rosters or last year’s records, it looks like the Sons of Ben have a 25% chance of winning Abierto this season. But will it happen? Sons of Ben Zolo finished in third place last year and should be favorites to grab a spot in Tercera. There was a lot of offense in Abierto last year, but a lot of the firepower has moved up to Tercera. Will we see a different story this year? Will the new teams provide the same high-scoring matches we saw last season? What’s the story, Abierto? Who’s going to step up?

Prediction: A lot of new teams here, and I’m not sure what the Sons of Ben teams will look like. How do you guys operate? Will it be the same rosters as last year? Has anybody moved around? The first 11 guys to show up are Zolo? I have no idea who the new teams in this division are. If you’re out there, introduce yourself. If you make a convincing argument, maybe I’ll change my prediction from FC Kilbanes. Kilbanes dropped 24 goals last term but somehow managed to let in 36. 36! I just don’t think they can do that again. The defense is better, Kilbanes are going up.

Primera

The big guns were silenced as Cannons lost a close match to Cracovia over the weekend. The 2-1 final ended Cannons magical playoff run and attempt to stave off relegation. It wasn’t the type of game CASA likes to promote, what with three red cards and copious amounts of chest puffing. Cracovia will face AC Milan in the final after the whites downed West Philly 1-0 in a tight, tense match.

Segunda

It will be an all United final in Segunda as United Nations FC defeated top seed NewPhilly to earn a shot at Stoney United this weekend. Stoney dropped Nittany in a shootout to make the big show. It will be a great match because both of these teams truly think they deserve to be in Primera and want the chance to prove it.

Tercera

Bayern Makefield is the surprise of the Tercera tournament after beating Mt. Laurel and setting up a showdown with Quaker City in the final. QC and Mt. Laurel have been the two best teams all year, but Laurel already has their promotion spot secured. QC needs to beat Makefield if they want to move up after a dominating season ended with a last day defeat that handed the regular season title to Mt. Laurel. Makefield certainly won’t roll over though. They are a talented side and have proven adept at surviving pressure and finishing strong on the counterattack.

Abierto

Sweet Lucy’s and Spruce Goose have buzzed around the top of Abierto all year, and with a spot in Tercera at stake, this will be the game of the weekend. Both teams have stepped it up a notch in the playoffs and scored nine goals between them last weekend. There is nothing to suggest these offenses will slow down this weekend, so it is just a matter of who will make the chances count.

Primera

Cannons continued their improbable run to staving off relegation by knocking off #1 seed Grey Lodge 3-0. We all knew Cannons were a really good squad, so it’s curious why they waited until the playoffs to turn it on. They’re like the Italy of CASA. Cannons run into a tough semifinal test in Cracovia, who knocked off Philly Soccer Firm 1-0 in a tight game.  Sebastian Ostrowski’s goal pushed Cracovia over the top. The other semifinal will feature West Philly FC and AC Milan. Both teams defeated opponents with fewer than 11 players, WPFC beating 10-man Drinker’s Pub and Milan dropping 5 goals on a 9-man Real Optimus side.

Segunda

Riding a more predictable track, Segunda’s semifinals will feature the four top sides from the regular season. Nittany United defeated Skulls 4-2 and Stoney romped to a 6-2 win over Sporting Philly thanks to a Cory Schaeffer hat trick. According to World Cup announcer Ally McCloist, if you score a hat trick your teammates are supposed to sign the game ball and give it to you. Any luck, Cory? Nittany and Stoney will meet for the right to play the winner of regular season champ NewPhillyUnited and United Nations FC. Oliver Bolivia, whose name sounds like it should rhyme but doesn’t, notched the only goal of the match to squeeze UNFC into the semis.

Tercera

Thanks to some quirky scheduling, Bayern Makefield and Park Towne United were already in the semifinals, but the top two seeds had to win if they wanted to join them. Quaker City didn’t have too much trouble with feisty Revolution76, putting six in the net. Morgan Fischer had a hat trick while Dan Walsh powered home a consolation strike for Revs. John Kightlinger had to be on top of his game to send regular season champs Mt. Laurel through to the next round. Kightlinger’s goal was the only one of a tight match that ended the season of a proud Lot Lizards side. Mt. Laurel faces off against Makefield while Quaker City welcomes Park Towne United this weekend.

Abierto

AOH61 let in five goals all season, but nobody told The Incredibles. Behind two goals from Eliseu Quadros and a Man of the Match display in goal by Joe Debona, The Incredibles dropped the #1 seed 4-1 to set up a semifinal match against Sweet Lucy’s FC. This is my semifinal game to watch this weekend, it should be… incredible. The other matchup sees Revolving United look to continue their cinderella run against powerhouse Spruce Goose. Goose snuck by FC Kilbanes behind goals from dynamic duo and future buddy cop film stars Kwiatkowski and Pretz. These two will have to bring their A-games to knock off streaking Revolving.

And thus stands the playoffs. I hope nobody folds for no reason at all like the Celtics in game six. Good luck!

Full stats and scores: CASA homepage

Primera

Cannons began what has to be an epic run to the playoff championship with a win over Philly United last week. They earn the right to play regular season champs Grey Lodge this Saturday in a game that absolutely will not be scoreless after 90 minutes. Two very good offenses will face off and if you’re a fan of goals, this is your event (no, wait. The World Cup is your event. But this is cool too.) Drinker’s Pub beat Penn United last weekend, making Penn’s relegation official. Drinker’s gets West Philly United this weekend, looking to avenge a regular season loss. AC Milan faces off against Real Optimus in a game that will hinge upon whether AC Milan can control the midfield. Optimus is strong up the middle and it’ll take a Herculean, or Pirloean, effort to knock them off. In the most exciting game of the round Philly Soccer Firm and Cracovia take the field and I would highly suggest that everyone in this game wears shinguards, kneeguards and any other guards you can find. These teams play physical and that’ll be stepped up another notch in the playoffs.

Segunda

Sporting Philly won an epic 5-4 battle over Memphis Taproom last weekend with, according to the stats book, all the goals coming in the second half. Can that be right? Did these guys switch from soccer to foosball after 45? Sporting will look to continue their offensive spurt against Stoney United, another team that can get into a goalscoring groove. Skulls will face Nittany in a matchup that could very well end in a tie. It’s just something Skulls seems to do well. I would predict a 2-2 tie if I was a betting man. Which I haven’t been since Lichtenstein’s marathon 67-66 win over Djibouti in Team Handball. Hindsight is 20/20, right? United Nations and Steagles FC make up the last twosome of the weekend. UN was a powerful team when they put the pieces together, but they had some stumbles during the long season and Steagles will have to poke around and find the weaknesses if they want to move on.

Tercera

Revolution 76, Lot Lizards, Park Towne United and Bayern Makefield all picked up wins last weekend. Park Towne and Makefield were playing quarterfinal matches (moved up a week so everybody can watch USA/England dive in the box play soccer on Saturday.  Rev76 and Lot Lizards, the wild card winners, face Quaker City and Mt. Laurel respectively in quarterfinal matches this weekend, with the winners meeting PTU and Makefield on June 19.

Abierto

Kilbanes and The Incredibles got big wins and Sweet Lucy’s put together a strong performance to knock off Pennypack Park Rangers, but the big upset in the first round of the Abierto playoffs was Revolving Orange knocking off Sons of Ben Zolo. Orange had a sub-500 record while Zolo came in with a single loss. The Incredibles draw AOH61 in the next round while Kilbanes finds Spruce Goose waiting. Orange and Sweet Lucy’s are through to the semis. Sweet Lucy’s will be raring to go no matter who they play, as I’m pretty sure they think they deserve another shot at promotion. Revolving Orange will look to continue their cinderella run, a run that I assume is quite dainty since they have to wear those ridiculous slippers.

Primera

The round-up doesn’t give out much advice, but after looking at the tiebreaker scenarios last week Penn United received this sage nugget: “Just don’t lose to Drinkers Pub and you’re fine.” And much like the time I told Robert Pires that Philadelphia was the perfect town for a whiny old French midfielder, my advice was ignored. Full props are due to Drinkers, who jumped three spots on the last day of the season to end the year in seventh place. Joining Penn United in the drop zone is Cannons. Despite pulling off a 2-2 tie against Philly Soccer Firm behind two penalties from Scott Miller, Cannons finished even with Philly United but two behind in the goal differential category. A tough pill to swallow, but few doubt they’ll be back up soon.

West Philly swept a pair of big matches this weekend. A 2-0 shutout of Philly United behind a great second half performance by goalie Mike “Big Daddy” Halenar was followed by a 2-1 Sunday win over first place Real Optimus. Ben Bowens handed West Philly all three points with terrific finishes in both halves. WPFC takes the Primera title if AC Milan wins or ties against Grey Lodge in their make up game, which will be played…?

Only four Primera teams secured more than two wins this season, which is either a testament to the division’s parity, or a sign of weakness that NewPhillyUnited will look to exploit next season. That’s right, Casa’s top division will feature both Philly United and NewPhillyUnited (now with fresh Primera scent).

Segunda

NewPhilly wrapped up a one-loss season with a 4-2 win over Sporting Philly. Riding Segunda’s best defense (8 goals allowed) to the automatic promotion spot, NewPhilly will look to make the fall season more than a quick visit to the top division. Stoney United didn’t need to play stellar defense to take the second spot in Casa’s second division. The only 30-goal offense in the top three divisions, Stoney is the favorite to take the second promotion spot. But it won’t be a walk in the Pennypack Park for Stoney: Nittany United and United Nations FC round out the top four in Segunda and will look to sneak into Primera with good playoff runs. United Nations ended the season strong with a 3-0 shutout over Steagles. The victory earns UNFC the right to play Sporting Philly in the first round. Steagles loss matches them up with Skulls in a game that I wouldn’t put money on unless… I hated money.

In the biggest Segunda match of the day Philadelphia Athletic pounded Organized Chaos, thus ensuring Tercera will have one more oxymoronic team in its ranks next year. Rumor has it that OC fought through a rash of injuries this year, so Tercera beware – this team will be ready to roll in the fall. Memphis Taproom will also be going down, and they should be a competitive squad in a strong Tercera division.

Tercera

This is why you play the games. FC Spartans scored nine goals over their first eight games. Quaker City allowed only three. You’ve got to figure that that if QC scores three goals, they’re headed to Segunda, right? Quaker City giving up four would be madness…

Madness? THIS IS SPARTA(ns)!!!

Wow, that felt great. Spartans FC pulled off the upset of the season by jumping out to a 3-1 halftime lead and holding on against first place QC. Mt. Laurel took care of business against Lot Lizards, and – coupled with the QC loss – earned the right to do their business in Segunda next year. Park Towne’s strong defense will face Lot Lizards in the first round of the playoffs after they wrapped up third place and sent Loose Cannons down. If any new teams join Casa next year, you might not want to use “Cannons” in your name – it seems to be a bad luck charm. Revolution 76 wins this season’s milquetoast award with a 0-0 tie against Tri-County Red. Revs finished 3-3-3 with a 0 goal differential. Fans of symmetry raise their equally-filled, perfectly-round cups to you, boys.

Abierto

AOH61 will be in Tercera next year after putting five past Sweet Lucy’s FC. AOH secured Casa’s best goal differential and will be a lot to handle as they move into the third division. It will be an exciting postseason for Abierto, as the four other teams with winning records all think they have a good chance to grab the second promotion spot. Early money should be on Spruce Goose, but Zolo, Sweet Lucy’s and Pennypack Rangers should all challenge. While Lucy’s dropped to AOH, Spruce, Zolo and Rangers all picked up big wins and should have great momentum heading into the playoffs.

Looking at the rest of Abierto, Revolving United and FC Kilbanes both averaged over two goals per game and could challenge at the top if their defenses improve. If either team puts together a strong defensive performance in the playoffs, expect an early round upset.

That’s it for the round-up. If you’ve been ignoring us all year, you’ll have to keep it up one more week because we’ll be back next week with previews of the first round playoff matchups.

Full stats and scores at Phillysoccer.org

Primera

West Philly shut out Philly Soccer FiRM 2-0 behind goals from Carlos Clay and Ben “cheeky-chip” Bowens in the EFFOTTNDA derby. Fantastic defense from Ben Shapero and strategic goaltending from Nate Monahan keyed the West Philly victory while Dave Scott worked tirelessly on the FiRM wing.

Elsewhere, both relegation spots are up for grabs after Cannons rocked Penn United behind goals from Scott Miller and Mysterious Number 00 (oooh). It was only the second win of the season for Cannons but boy-oh-boy was it a big one. Cannons win makes an incredible SIX Primera teams that are in danger of relegation during the final week of the season. Safest are AC Milan and Philly Soccer Firm with 9 points apiece. Maybe Milan has more than 9 points, but we don’t know because somebody hasn’t reported their sco-ores. they didn’t play and didn’t update their twitter.

Philly United and Penn United have 8 points apiece, although Philly has a 4 goal advantage in the goal differential tie-breaker. Penn United faces Drinkers Pub in the final week while Philly United faces West Philly FC. Drinkers is doomed to go down unless they take down Penn United and West Philly beats Philly United. So here is the relegation breakdown for Primera:

Milan: 9 points.

• Fill out your score! DNP
• Face first place Real Optimus on Saturday.
• Go down if: They lose to Real Optimus and at least two of the following win: Philly United, Penn United, Cannons.

FiRM: 9 points.

• Lost 0-2 to West Philly last Sunday.
• Face 9th place Cannons on Saturday.
• Go down if: They lose to Cannons and Philly United and Penn United win.

Penn United: 8 points.

• Lost 0-2 to Cannons last Saturday.
• Face 10th place Drinkers Pub on Saturday.
• Go down if: Holy crap, this one is complicated. Just don’t lose to Drinkers Pub and you’re fine. If Penn loses and West Philly crushes Philly United (big, big if), all holy tie-breaking hell breaks loose.

Philly United

• Lost 3-2 to Real Optimus last Saturday.
• Face 4th place West Philly on Saturday
• See Penn United. Or go to www.phillysoccer.org and figure it out for yourself. Both Penn and Philly control their own destiny, unlike Cannons.

Drinkers Pub

• Tied Cracovia 1-1 last Saturday.
• Face 7th place Penn United on Saturday.
• Go down if: They lose, or they beat Penn and Philly United and Cannons both lose.

I’m not going to get into the top of Primera because Grey Lodge hasn’t reported their week 8 score yet. didn’t play last Saturday.

Segunda

Can you taste it, NewPhillyUnited? You’re a tie or win away from the regular season segunda championship and an automatic promotion spot. Unfortunately you’re playing Sporting Philly, a team I couldn’t figure out with Fox Mulder and a team of statisticians. Sporting has been all over the place this year, from big losses to huge wins and everything in between. I’m betting they give NewPhilly a good run for their money.

If NewPhilly stumbles, Nittany will be ready to grab the title. Only three points back, Nittany actually has a better goal differential than the Segunda leaders. However, they face the second most confusing team in Casa, Skulls. After tying last place Memphis Taproom in late April, Skulls whacked Sporting 5-1 before dropping their first game of the year to Stoney. Apparently enamored with this new feeling, they dropped two games last weekend and a potential run at first place has turned into a chance to hand NewPhilly the title with a win.

There is one game that stands above all others in Segunda: Organized Chaos vs. Philadelphia Athletic. Philadelphia Athletic sits in the relegation zone, two points behind Chaos. They need to win – a tie means relegation. It should be noted that we have Memphis Taproom to thank for this match. Their valiant tie against Chaos last Saturday set up this showdown.

Stoney, Steagles, United Nations: Start prepping for the playoffs. Primera calls you!

Tercera

Lot Lizards gave up a second half goal and lost 1-0 to Bayern Makefield last weekend. That goal… it was a big one. Lizards needed one point to get clear of the drop after Mt. Laurel took care of business against Loose Cannons. The loss to Makefield leaves Lizards 3 points ahead of Cannons going into the final week. And while Cannons face Park Towne United, who have nothing to play for besides playoff position, Lizards take on the aforementioned Mt. Laurel, who need a win to push Quaker City for the top spot. Just an idea, Lizards: If Park Towne takes care of business, the comments section is a good place to say, “Thanks.”

Back to Mt. Laurel, they need a win coupled with a Quaker City loss or tie to grab that coveted promotion spot. Quaker City faces Spartans, who have slumped since shutting out Makefield on May Day. A QC win guarantees them promotion, but a tie leaves the door wide, wide open.

Abierto

We knew it would be a good game and it was. Spruce Goose got a first half strike from Arindam Biswas and held on for the biggest win of their season over Sweet Lucy’s. How angry was Sweet Lucy’s? Let’s just say it’s the first time we’ve seen “goose” on the menu at a BBQ joint. The win leaves the Geese and AOH61 tied for the top spot going into the final week of the season. Wouldn’t it be ironic if Sweet Lucy’s had a chance to hand the title to the team that just knocked them out of the hunt for the top spot…

Well pull out your Alanis Morissette CDs and take those black flies out of your chardonnays because Sweet Lucy’s takes on AOH61 at 9:20am on Saturday. Spruce Goose takes on The Incredibles at the same time. AOH has a five goal cushion in the goal differential department, but if they take all three off of an angry Sweet Lucy’s team that stat won’t matter.

The Incredibles are fresh off ending Sons of Ben Zolo’s title challenge by forcing a 2-2 tie last week. Zolo will end up in fourth place, and have to settle for knowing they’re the best SoB team in Abierto. Sons of Ben Union have an absurd (sorry, guys) -49 goal differential this year with a game to play. We’ll call this a rebuilding year for SoB Union and count them lucky they don’t have Chris Seitz in goal to make it worse (oh yeah, one good game and everybody’s back on the Seitzwagon. Not this rec soccer summarizer!) SoB Union face Pennypack Park Rangers this weekend and I’m picking them to win. You’re going to lead off the Round-Up next week, Union. So give us something spectacular to write about!

Only one more Round-Up to go before the playoffs start. None of the promotion or relegation battles have been decided yet so it will be a huge week at Pennypack Park this week. Bring your boy/girlfriends out to the games! Let’s get some fans!

More importantly, bring your puppies and let me pet them.

Primera

Cracovia and Grey Lodge secured their hold on the top two spots with big wins over West Philly and Cannons. Both teams put in four, showing that they are rounding into offensive form just in time for the playoffs. Elsewhere, Penn United and Philly Soccer Firm solidified their places in Primera next year by pulling off huge victories over Real Optimus and Philly United respectively.

The Penn United win leaves Drinker’s Pub and Cannons in the two relegation spots, although neither team is out of it yet. Both teams play Penn United – Cannons this week and Penn in the final week – and if they both win, one will escape the drop. Cannons needs to win out in order to have a chance to stay up. If Penn United can secure all three points in either of the last two weeks, they’re assured of a spot in Primera next season.

In other notable matches, AC Milan looks to creep into the top four with a win over first place Grey Lodge. Milan has yet to lose so Grey Lodge will have to keep the offense firing on all cylinders if they want to remain kings of the mountain. And in a match so big they had to move it to Sunday to accommodate the fanbases, West Philly and Philly Soccer Firm face off in the biannual Ed Farnsworth’s Footy On The Telly No Divers Allowed 700 Derby.

Segunda

There are three teams with a winning record in Segunda and they’re pulling away from the pack. NewPhillyUnited, Stoney United, and Nittany United all posted big victories, with shutouts for Stoney and Nittany. This puts third place Nittany five points above fourth place United Nations, so it’s looking like all three of these teams will have home field advantage come playoff time.

Organized Chaos and Memphis Taproom took tough losses to top three opponents and remained in the drop zone. But they can take heart from United Nations FC’s 3-0 win over Philadelphia Athletic. It keeps everyone alive for the last two weeks of the year. A big thumbs up to Sporting Philly, who secured their Segunda future with an enormous 2-1 win over Steagles. With nine points, they’re clear of the drop and can start looking to make a playoff run.

Looking forward, it’ll be an amazing race at the bottom of Segunda. Organized Chaos and Memphis Taproom face off this weekend and one team needs all three points to put themselves in a good position going into the final week. If Chaos can win this weekend, they’ll set up a huge showdown with Philadelphia Athletic in the final week that could very easily determine which team goes down. Chaos has a game in hand on the other two teams, and that game is against Skulls this Sunday. Skulls have been treading water in the middle of the pack all year, but now they have a chance to make a big impact in the race to stay up.

Tercera

Revolution 76 continued to struggle through tough seas as they lost for the second straight week to a top two opponent, thanks in part to the refs disallowing their second goal. That 2-1 loss, coupled with wins by Bayern Makefield (over Loose Cannons) and Lot Lizards (over Spartans) leaves three teams with eight points, only three above the drop zone with two games to go. The crazy stat here: All three teams have the same -2 goal differential. Coughcoughcopycats.

The top of Tercera is quite clear: Quaker City has 19 points while Mt. Laurel is right behind with 18. Only one team will gain promotion from the regular season, so expect one of these teams to make a huge push to hit their stride during the playoffs. Of the two, Quaker City has the tougher schedule. After facing off with Tri-County this week they head to Spartans for the final game of the season. Both opponents are middle-of-the-pack and always dangerous. Mt. Laurel has Loose Cannons this week. It’s a game they should win, but Cannons have everything to play for, as a win can put them into position to climb out of the drop. With five points, they really need to win out if they want to stay up.

For the three teams at 8 points, every game matters. Makefield and Lot Lizards face off this weekend and a win by either team puts them in great position to avoid the drop. Lizards really need to win now, as they will have to take on Mt. Laurel in the final week while Makefield gets last place SoB – Independence. Revs76 have an interesting set of games ahead of them. They get SoB – Independence this weekend, which should be a welcome change after the gauntlet of top teams they’ve been through recently. Then they hit Tri-County in the final week. Tri-County shouldn’t have much to play for by then, but that won’t mean they’ll take it easy.

Abierto

While AOH61 and Sweet Lucy’s took care of business, Spruce Goose was busy knocking SoB – Zolo from their precarious perch atop the division. That big win leaves Goose, AOH, and Sweet Lucy’s tied atop Abierto with two games to play. But don’t count Zolo out. They’re only two points back and face two bottom half teams to close out the year. The Abierto playoffs are going to be ridiculously exciting so set your DVRs.

The bottom half of Abierto has a chance to play spoiler in the race for the top spot. The Incredibles can make the biggest impact as they play Sons of Ben – Zolo and Spruce Goose to close out the season. A win in either game would really shake up the top. Of the four battling it out for the division, it’s clearly Sweet Lucy’s with the toughest road ahead. A visit to Spruce Goose this weekend is followed by a tough match against AOH61 to close out. AOH61 gets Revolving United before the showdown with Spruce, so they need to be in top form this weekend.

So there you have it! All to play for as the season winds down. Everybody wants to secure their future before the playoffs, and time is running out.

Primera

AC Milan remained the only undefeated team in Primera after a 2-2 tie with Cannons. The point wasn’t enough to pull Cannons out of the relegation zone; Penn United remained a point above them after coming back to tie Philly Soccer Firm 2-2. Goals from Freddy Ali and Darin Carminati weren’t enough to earn Firm their first win since week one. West Philly continued to climb the table after a 3-0 win over Drinker’s Pub. Jireh Chao, Jeremy Lane and Yusef Morant scored for West Philly and Morant won a deserved Man of the Match award. Grey Lodge sustained their first loss of the season, falling 1-0 to Real Optimus. Rob Tuttle’s goal puts Optimus in first place and they haven’t lost since giving up a goal directly off a corner kick in the first week of the year. Philly United evened up their record at 2-2-2 with a 3-1 win over Cracovia. It was Cracovia’s second loss and sets up a battle for 3rd place with West Philly this weekend at 9am.

Segunda

Skulls put five past Sporting Philly and continued to do their AC Milan impression: Remaining undefeated while sitting in the middle of the table. The rest of the Segunda games established some division between the top and bottom half of the table and gave some hints as to who we’ll see battling it out for regular season champ and who will be fighting for survival down the stretch. NewPhillyUnited and Stoney United kept up their battle at the top. Stoney seems to get better every week and a 5-0 win over Organized Chaos gives them a +16 goal differential on the year. Their 23 goals scored is a whopping 13 more than NewPhilly, yet NPU refuses to relinquish the top spot. They put three past Memphis Taproom for a 3-1 win. Memphis sits at the bottom of the Segunda table, but deserves more props than they get. Aside from a 3-0 loss to United Nations in week three, Memphis hadn’t lost by more than one goal this season. The problem? They’ve only scored more than one once.  In third and fourth place, Nittany United and Steagles did nothing to suggest they won’t make strong runs come playoff time. Steagles shut out Philadelphia Athletic 3-0 while Nittany did one better, posting a 4-0 win over United Nations FC.

Tercera

Shutouts dominated the Tercera lineup on Saturday with four of the five games featuring a goose egg on one side. Quaker City defies the trend set by Milan and Skulls by keeping a perfect record and sitting atop the table. They have given up one goal all year. Tom Nevinger – consider yourself special. You’re the only man, woman, child, or genetically engineered superhero to score on QC this season. Quaker City’s win pushed Park Towne further down the table. They won’t get relegated, but they’ll have to regroup and make a big run through the playoffs if they want to roll Segunda-style in the fall. Maybe Nevinger didn’t play, or maybe FC Spartans defense is just that good because they found a way to shut out Tremendous Tom and the Makefield men 2-0. Goals from Kevin Bloc and Marquis Ryan-Walker pushed Spartans up the table. Lot Lizards got a much-needed win over Sons of Ben Independence behind a Jeremy Samet game-winner. Lizards, Makefield, and Loose Cannons are tied for the second relegation spot above SOB-I. Loose Cannons fell 3-2 to Tri-County but get a shot at Makefield this Saturday. Lizards will have to take points off Spartans if they want to climb (leap? skitter? what do lizards do?) to safety. Mt. Laurel held onto second place with three second half goals on Revolution 76.

Abierto

An interesting scheduling note in Abierto: Apparently AOH 61 has been the home team for all but one of their games this season. That one away game? A 1-0 shutout loss to Sons of Ben Zolo. Coincindence? Yeah, probably. In their home games, AOH has scored fewer than 4 goals just once, and that trend continued Saturday with a 7-2 win over FC Kilbanes. Four goals from Matt Sosalski and two from Mike Donahue gave AOH a cushion they couldn’t lose, even after Kilbanes tried to come back with second half strikes from Bill Essuunni and Dan MacDonald. Elsewhere in Abierto, Pennypack Park Rangers made the AOH offensive output seem downright pedestrian with an 8-3 win over The Incredibles. Abinathab Bennet and Lukasz Zuzanski (Z-3PO?) were hat trick heros for PPR. Not to be outdone, Spruce Goose and SOB-Zolo put six each past Sidewinders FC and SOB-Union. Sabatino Mangini had the lone goal for Union while Claude Reifsnyder led the charge for Zolo with a brace. Sweet Lucy’s blanked Revolving United 3-0 to remain tied for second with AOH and Spruce Goose. While Lucy’s doesn’t have the firepower of the other two, they keep finding ways to win. Mysterious Number Six scored the first goal and was Man of the Watch for Lucy.

Previewing this week’s games

Only three weeks left before the playoffs, and some huge games in store for May 8th. Pennypack Park Rangers scored 8 last weekend but face the best defense in Casa as they take on AOH 61. AOH looks to win their first away game of the year. Spruce Goose will look to knock SOB-Zolo from their Abierto perch while Revs 76 will try for the same against Quaker City in Tercera. Streaking Stoney will try to hand Skulls their first loss in Segunda while Memphis Taproom takes their strong D to Nittany’s home turf. In Primera, Cracovia and West Philly do battle while Firm tries to get its first win since week one. Penn United can give themselves some breathing room above the relegation zone by taking down top dogs Real Optimus.

Full stats and scores at Phillysoccer.org

Primera

As the Union and Red Bulls opened a new rivalry, an old one was renewed in Primera. Cannons FC and West Philly FC have been around since the beginning and they’ve played no shortage of epic matches. As Cannons striker Tony Mitchell said during the game, “I’ve scored on these guys like 8000 times.” But after going down by one on a first half penalty, West Philly pulled two back in the second half to grab the points. An incredible defensive effort from the back four sealed the win as Cannons pushed for a late equalizer. Cannons’ loss was Penn United’s gain. Penn tied AC Milan 2-2 behind goals from Joe Colduvell and Drew Rinaldi. Randy MacTough led Cracovia to a… (mac)tough win over Philly Soccer Firm 2-1. MacTough picked up a goal, a yellow card, and Man of the Match honors for his efforts. Firm faces Penn United next week with both teams needing points to stay above the relegation zone.  Grey Lodge remained undefeated by securing a 2-2 tie against Philly United. Philly equaled their goal total from previous games this year with strikes from Wade Gehrhardt and Leo Otero. Real Optimus joined Grey Lodge and Cracovia with three wins by defeating Drinker’s Pub 3-1.

Segunda

Stoney held onto second place by dropping five on Nittany United in a 10v10 game. The win extends Stoney’s league leading goal differential, which could come into play in this tight division. NewPhilly continues atop the Segunda table thanks to a 1-0 win over United Nations FC. Leo Mosquera bagged the only goal of the match. Steagles shut out Organized Chaos with Sal Saladino and Chris Piuggi filling the stat sheet. The loss drops Chaos into the relegation zone, and they’ll have a tough time climbing out with matchups against Stoney and NewPhilly over the next fortnight. Sporting Philly just continues to confound. They are 2-3 after a 4-2 loss to Philadelphia Athletic, and they can’t seem to find a rhythm. They’ll look to continue their loss-win-loss-win pattern next week against Skulls FC. Skulls tied Memphis Taproom 1-1. Mike Gellar scored for Taproom to cancel out Matthew Wienclawski’s strike.

Tercera

The big matchup of the Tercera season was everything we expected it to be. Quaker City eked out a 1-0 win over Mt. Laurel FC to take a one point lead in the table. Chris Rio put home the biggest goal of his team’s season thus far while John Casparro walked away with Man of the Match honors. Mt. Laurel will look to bounce back next week against Revolution 76. The Revs tied Lot Lizards 0-0 and cemented their place in the middle of the table. While they not have the flash of the top four, it’s starting to look like the Revs are a team to avoid come playoff time. Sneaky, they be. A big 1-0 win for Bayern Makefield over Park Towne United kept them out of the relegation zone. Brian Drissel and Sean Reichert had two apiece for Loose Cannons as they upended SoB Independence while Tri-County was upset by FC Spartans 3-1. Tom Teschner stayed hot for Spartans with two goals and the imaginary Man of the Match golden sash.

Abierto

No ties in Abierto this week as everyone was in a high scoring mood. Only the Sweet Lucy’s FC 1-0 win over Pennypack Park Rangers broke the offense-heavy mold. But as goalscorer Jonas The Hawk will tell you, a one goal win is still a win. AOH 61 was ready to roll Saturday and used the slick PSC fields to move the ball fast and often around Sons of Ben Union. The 9-0 scoreline lifted AOH into second place, just ahead of Spruce Goose on goal differential. Lauren Bayne and Nicole Marotta both scored a brace for AOH. Spruce isn’t a team to rest on its pine needles though. They took care of business against Revolving United with a 3-1 victory. Despite taking the loss, Chris Bird had a fantastic game in net for the orange. Sons of Ben Zolo overcame a strong effort from Sidewinders to grab all three points. The win keeps Zolo in first place and the only undefeated team in Abierto. The SoB derby next week is a wonderful chance for SoB Union to flip the script and knock Zolo from its perch. In a battle of two teams hovering above the relegation zone, Kilbanes shut out The Incredibles 4-0.

Everybody returns to Pennypack Park on May 1 for week six games.

We’re about halfway through the season now – anybody have nominations for division/team MVP?

Abierto

Spruce Goose: Let’s make up and move on, starting with your 13-0 victory over Sons of Ben Union. Four goals from Lamar Arrington and a hat trick from Brad Perry gave the Geese a goal differential that puts them above AOH61 in the table. AOH – the only team to beat the Geese – dropped points for the first time this season as Sons of Ben Zolo’s Dave “Remdawg”Remm scored the only goal of the game to move Zolo to the top of the table. Zolo has been playing a dangerous game this year, while Spruce Goose wins with great offense and AOH wins with great D, Zolo just keeps finding ways to win. This was their first shutout of the year, and they’re a team that nobody will want to meet in the playoffs. Elsewhere in Abierto, Sweet Lucy’s FC beat Sidewinders 2-0 behind a goal from Jonas Persson, whose CASA bio reads: “Wingspan and agility of a HAWK”. Revolving United beat The Incredibles 4-1 to stay one point behind Pennypack Park Rangers, who snuck by FC Kilbanes 3-2.

Tercera

In a battle of the top and bottom teams, Mt. Laurel dispatched Sons of Ben Independence 5-1. Patrick Bisignaro scored the lone goal for Independence while Ian Zolty put in two for Mt. Laurel, who remain at the top of the Tercera, ahem, mountain. FC Spartans and Loose Cannons battled to a 0-0 draw in a game so tight that no Man of the Match was named! Spartans, Loose Cannons: Who were the men/women of the match? Let us know in the comments. Bayern Makefield and Quaker City also drew, with goals from Tom Nevinger and Chris Herting canceling each other out. Nevinger won Man of the Match, and if we don’t hear from Spartans or LC, we’ll give him MotM for that game too. We can do that because Messi said we could. Tri-County and Park Towne United both took full points over the weekend with Tri-Co knocking off Lot Lizards while PT pulled out a tight win over Revolution 76, Andrew Hale netting the winner for Park Towne.

Segunda

Segunda is an offensive division, and three teams have already hit double-digits in goals.  Nittany United and Stoney United can aspire to score 30 apiece this season at the pace they’re on. With that in mind, it is the defenses that dominate the Segunda headlines in week four. Four of the five matches were shutouts, with only Skulls and Steagles 2-2 tie to break the pattern. By knocking off NewPhillyUnited 1-0, Nittany moved into a first place tie with NPU. Unfortunately the goalscorer, #12, is not named on the Nittany roster, so we’re going to assume it was the kid from Ladybugs until clarification. This also opened the door for Stoney United, who dropped six on Philadelphia Athletic and sit only two points behind the co-leaders. Matt Fiedler had a Man of the Match performance to lead the Stones. United Nations kept pace with Stoney with a 2-0 win over Organized Chaos The winning goal was put home by the mysterious #21, whose number honors the legal American drinking age. Cheers, mate. Sporting Philly is a hard team to get a handle on. They gave up 5 in week one, scored 7 in week 2, then let seven in a week later. The only guarantee seemed to be that their matches would be high scoring affairs. Now even that guarantee is void, as Sporting closed ranks and earned a tough 1-0 win over Memphis Taproom. Keelan McWilliams netted the only goal to earn Man of the Match honors.

Primera

Primera remains a tight division. Grey Lodge stayed on top after a 2-2 tie with West Philly. Sebastian Sanchez scored the first for Grey Lodge with a fantastic volley into the top corner. Real Optimus handed KS Cracovia their first loss with a 3-1 win, while Cannons grabbed their first points behind two goals from Brian Kenyon in a 4-1 victory over Drinker’s Pub. Cannons can crawl out of the relegation zone if they pick up points against West Philly this week. Penn United also got their first win by dropping Philly United 1-0 in the State/City derby. Philly Soccer Firm and AC Milan tied at 1 apiece. Tom Gritter netted for Firm, and he remains the only player to score for them this year. Coach Dave Scott returned from Rafa Benitez’s Coaching Seminar determined to bench Gritter in favor of Leiva Lucas.

This upcoming week will be huge in Segunda, with the top 4 teams squaring off. Stoney takes on Nittany United while United Nations travels to NewPhillyUnited. If Stoney and United Nations are winners, the top 4 will flip like a Nani goal celebration.

A reminder that Casa games will be played at Philadelphia Soccer Club fields, not Pennypack Park this week. Directions are here.

Full stats and standings on the Casa homepage.