St. Louis Ambush goalkeeper Jeff Richey has been named to the Major Indoor Soccer League’s Team of the Week for the eighth week of the 2013-14 regular season.
Richey had a busy weekend, recording 37 saves in a pair of games January 3 and 4 at the Family Arena. In the January 3 contest, Richey turned in a stellar performance, saving 25 on 31 attempts against the first-place Milwaukee Wave. Jeff kept St. Louis in the game against the league’s best-scoring team. Unfortunately, the Ambush fell short, losing 13-11. In the January 4 match against the Rochester Lancers, Richey made 12 more saves on 18 attempts and his efforts kept the game close enough that the Ambush were able to stage a dramatic comeback on goals by Dan Antoniuk and Kory Dowell in the last two minutes of the game.
Ambush forwards Kory Dowell and Odaine Sinclair each earned Honorable Mention for their performances. Sinclair contributed two goals and an assist for a five point performance in the January 4 duel. Dowell had a seven-point week starting with a three point goal and an assist on January 3 and the three point game winning goal in the January 4 battle. Dowell is currently tied for the most three point goals in the league with five and Saturday’s three pointer marks the second time he has done so in the last minute of a game.
Missouri Comets midfielder Vahid Assadpour captured the MISL Player of the Week honor. Assadpour scored 15 points in three games and notched a pair of game-winning goals as the Comets remained firmly in a playoff position at the midway point of the season.
Assadpour, who now leads the MISL with 47 points, opened the New Year in outstanding form as he posted a hat trick and an eight-point game to lead the Comets past the Rochester Lancers, 19-17. Assadpour had the first and last goals in the contest, with his fourth-quarter finish proving to be the winner.
After recording a pair of assists in the Comets’ loss against the Baltimore Blast on Friday night, Assadpour again had a strong performance on Sunday as the Comets edged past the Lancers in the second game of their home-and-home series. The Comets’ captain scored the overtime winner in an 11-9 victory as he led the side with five points in the game.
The Milwaukee Wave and Baltimore Blast each had a pair of players named to the team, with the Wave’s Carlos Munoz and Pablo both earning selection after strong individual performances in a pair of wins. Munoz had a hat trick for Milwaukee as it defeated the Syracuse Silver Knights 20-10 on New Year’s Eve, while Pablo had a hat trick to rally the Wave past the St. Louis Ambush on Friday night at the Family Arena.
Baltimore’s Tony Donatelli and Mike Lookingland were also selected, with Donatelli earning his berth after a seven-point game led the Blast to a 14-6 win against Missouri. Lookingland was strong in each of the Blast’s three victories, and had a hat trick as his side defeated Pennsylvania 16-5 on Saturday night.
MISL Team of the Week
| Pos. | Player | Team | Highlights |
| GK | Jeff Richey | St. Louis | Had 37 saves in two games as Ambush split a pair of contests |
| D | Mike Lookingland | Baltimore | Led the Blast to three wins, including a hat trick against Roar |
| M | Vahid Assadpour | Missouri | Scored a pair of game-winning goals in 15-point week |
| F | Carlos Munoz | Milwaukee | Had a hat trick as Wave claimed first in the standings |
| F | Tony Donatelli | Baltimore | Seven-point game led the Blast past the Comets |
| F | Pablo | Milwaukee | Scored a hat trick to lead Wave to comeback win vs. Ambush |
Honorable Mention – Baltimore: Diego Zuniga, Lucio Gonzaga; Milwaukee: Victor Quiroz, Marcio Leite; Missouri: Robert Palmer, Coady Andrews; Pennsylvania: Chris Williams; Rochester: Elliot Fauske, Gary Boughton; St. Louis: Odaine Sinclair, Kory Dowell. Syracuse: Machel Millwood, Kenardo Forbes.
