The 2001 USL A-League was an American Division II league run by the United Soccer Leagues during the summer of 2001.
Summary
The addition of the Portland Timbers saw the renewal of a Pacific Northwest rivalry between them, the Seattle Sounders and Vancouver Whitecaps which dated back to the North American Soccer League. Although Vancouver was not new to the league, this was the first season they competed in under the Whitecaps name, replacing the 86ers name used since 1986.
An ownership change in August 2000 brought a revival of the old Whitecaps name for the 2001 season. At the end of the regular season, the Richmond Kickers topped the league with seventy-six points. The playoffs were scheduled to begin on September 12, but those matches were postponed by a week due to the September 11 attacks. Midfielder Mickey Trotman, a starter for the Rochester Rhinos, was killed in an automobile accident two days before the team's first semifinal match with the Milwaukee Rampage. The Rhinos defeated the Hershey Wildcats to take its third league title in four seasons.
League standings
Northern Conference
Central Conference
Western Conference
Playoffs
Bracket
First round
Pittsburgh vs Charleston
San Diego vs Atlanta
Portland vs Charlotte
Milwaukee vs Nashville
Quarterfinals
Milwaukee vs Richmond
Hershey vs Portland
Vancouver vs San Diego
Rochester vs Pittsburgh
Semifinals
Semifinal 1
Semifinal 2
Final
Points leaders RankScorerClubGPGoalsAssistsPoints1 Paul Conway Charleston Battery25223472 Dustin Swinehart Charlotte Eagles23183393 Jakob Fenger Nashville Metros24146344 Jeff Houser Nashville Metros24145335 Digital Takawira Milwaukee Rampage20134306 Kevin Jeffrey Richmond Kickers 2411729 Leighton O'Brien Seattle Sounders 2411729 Mark Baena Portland Timbers24133299 Ignace MolekaAtlanta Silverbacks1912125 Luis MaciasEl Paso Patriots2312125 Chugger AdairSan Diego Flash2210525 Jason JordanVancouver Whitecaps189725 Rodrigo CostaIndiana Blast211132514 Mark RowlandEl Paso Patriots267102415 Josh HendersonRichmond Kickers2110323
Honors
Annual awards Most Valuable Player: Paul Conway Leading Goal Scorer: Paul Conway Goalkeeper of the Year: Jon Busch Defender of the Year: Rick Titus Rookie of the Year: Robbie Aristodemo Coach of the Year: Dale Mitchell First Team All A-League2001 A-League Awards Goalkeeper: Jon Busch Defenders: Scott Schweitzer, Rick Titus, Gilbert Jean-Baptiste Midfielders: Philippe Godoy, Stoian Mladenov, Leighton O'Brien, Temoc Suarez Forwards: Paul Conway, Kevin Jeffrey, Dustin Swinehart Second Team All A-League Goalkeeper: Matt Napoleon Defenders: James Wall, Brent Sancho, Jason Annicchero Midfielders: John Ball, Lenin Steenkamp, Kevin Knight, Steve Kindel Forwards: Jakob Fenger, Digital Takawira, Rodrigo Costa
External links 2001 A-League 2001 A-League season
References