The 1995 USISL Professional League was the higher of the two outdoor men's leagues run by the United Systems of Independent Soccer Leagues during the summer of 1995.
Overview From its beginnings in 1986 as a semi-professional indoor league in the American Southwest, the USISL had grown over the last decade. In 1989, the league added a summer, outdoor competition which had grown in popularity as the indoor league slowly shrank. By 1994, the outdoor season included 69 teams with various levels of professionalism. In 1995, the USISL decided to split the summer schedule into two different leagues, the Professional and the Premier Leagues. The Professional League was fully professional while the Premier League continued to allow amateur and semi-professional teams to compete.
Regular season Regulation win = 6 points Shootout win (SW) = 4 points Shootout loss (SL) = 2 points Regulation loss = 0 points Bonus points (BP): An additional one point per goal up to a maximum of three points per game.
Northeast Division
Coastal Conference
Capital Conference
Atlantic Division
Midwest Division
East Conference
West Conference
Southeast Division
South Central Division
Western Division
North Conference
South Conference
Northwest Division
Playoffs
Northeast Division
First round
Second round
According to the available records, the Delaware Wizards defeated the Cape Cod Crusaders 5-4 (SO).
Final
The New York Fever advanced.
Atlantic Division
Final
The teams played a mini-game to decide who advanced after finishing the series tied at one game apiece.
The Myrtle Beach Boyz advanced.
Midwest Division
First round
The game was suspended late in the match due to darkness. On August 10th, the league announced the Xoggz and Thoroughbreds would finish their game on August 11th. The team which won would then immediately play the Milwaukee Rampage in the first game of the second round series. The Thoroughbreds, facing the requirement to make short-notice travel plans in order to play the last few minutes of the suspended game, then play their "home game" in Columbus in the event they won, chose to forfeit instead.
Second round The Midwest Division second round matchups featured two-game series. All other divisions had single elimination matchups.
The Minnesota Thunder advanced to the Midwest Division final.
The Milwaukee Rampage advanced.
Final
The Minnesota Thunder advanced.
Southeast Division
Final
The Tampa Bay Cyclones advanced.
South Central Division
Final
The New Mexico Chiles advanced to the Sizzlin' Nine Tournament.
Western Division
First round
Second round
Final
The Monterey Bay Jaguars advanced.
Northwest Division
Final
The Hawaii Tsunami advanced.
Sizzlin' Nine Championship The Sizzlin' Nine Championship was a three-group round robin tournament featuring nine teams. The Long Island Rough Riders received a bye into the Sizzlin' Nine Championship. The other eight teams were the seven divisional champions and the divisional finals runner-up with the highest total points during the regular season. Each of the three groups played at a single location. The top four teams then advanced to the playoff semifinals.
Group 1
Group 2
When the game ended in a tie, the referee chose to go directly to penalty kicks because the field had no lights and it was difficult to see.
Group 3
Semi-finals
Final
Points leaders RankScorerClubGPGoalsAssistsPoints1 Flavio Ferri San Antonio Pumas 19298662 Rito Delgado El Paso Patriots182611613 Paul Young Charleston Battery19239554 Giovanni Savarese Long Island Rough Riders20238545 Darren Eales Hampton Roads Mariners19244526 Ivailo Ilarionov Chattanooga Railroaders 151814507 Billy Thompson Hawaii Tsunami14217498 Duane RobinsonNew Jersey Imperials17215479 Manny LagosMinnesota Thunder171974510 John van BuskirkLouisville Thoroughbreds1921344
Honors MVP: Giovanni Savarese Points leader: Flavio Ferri, San Antonio Pumas (66 points) Goals leader: Flavio Ferri, San Antonio Pumas (29 goals) Assists leader: Wayne Lobring, Louisville Thoroughbreds (18 assists) Defender of the Year: Troy Edwards Goalkeeper of the Year: Jim Adams Rookie of the Year: Wellijohn Dominiciano Jr., Coach of the Year: Buzz Lagos Organization of the Year: Tampa Bay Cyclones
External links United Soccer Leagues (RSSSF) The Year in American Soccer – 1995 1995 USISL Awards 1995 USISL Standings
References