Windsor’s own professional soccer team––the Windsor Stars––asks the community to be the team’s 12th player

In Play Magazine

Inaugural season kicks off on May 7, 2011, at Windsor Stadium

WINDSOR, Ontario, April 28, 2011 – Windsor brings back pro soccer to the border city following a

three-year absence. The Windsor Stars––the new Canadian Soccer League, professional soccer

team––will play its inaugural home opener, taking on the Montreal Impact Academy on May 7 at

Windsor Stadium.

Anticipation for the home opener is growing for Filip Rocca, restaurateur and president of the Stars.

It’s taken nearly a year, but Rocca’s efforts have paid off. “As with any new experience, you never

know what to expect. I’m very proud of what we have achieved so far in terms of our team and

sponsors. As a non-profit, the support from our sponsors and the community is fundamental to our

success. The hard work involved in making this team a reality is well worth the effort seeing the

excitement from the kids and having a professional soccer team in Windsor.” says Rocca.

“It is truly something special to see your dreams unfold before your eyes. It is an honour to bring

professional soccer back to Windsor and restore the prestigious sport of soccer in our community. I

cannot wait to start working with the youth in the city and helping them achieve their dreams.” vice

president, Gino Berardi explains.

The team was born out of a need to create an avenue for youth players in Windsor-Essex, both girls

and boys, to advance in their soccer careers and to continue chasing their dreams through

development and recruitment.

“It’s exciting to have pro soccer back in Windsor. The team will be very competitive and enjoyable to

watch.” says Coach Jeff Hodgson.

The team looks forward to entertaining fans on the field and giving back to the community off the field.

They hope that the experience you take home with you after a game keeps you coming back to enjoy

more games with your family and friends. They are also excited to be offering special events and

services for youth in Windsor-Essex, including meet the players nights, year-round youth camps,

game-day youth matches, ‘Practice with the Stars,’ scholarship services, and much more.

The team asks for support from the residents of Windsor-Essex. “It will be a long, tough road ahead,

but we look to take one step at a time.” says Coach Steve Vagnini. “[Our] first step is the Montreal

Impact Academy on May 7, and we need as much support from the community as we can get. That

support will be our 12th player on the field and will make all the difference for us and the experience

everyone takes away from each game.”

Ticket information

Tickets can be purchased at Centro located at 770 Erie Street

East for $7 in advance for adults, $5 for children 12 and under.

Game day tickets will be $10 for adults, $7 for children 12 and under.

Season tickets are also available: Pre-season sale for family pass (4

people access) is $120. Single Pass (1 person access) is $60.

Complimentary shuttle service will be offered every game day from

Centro starting at 6 p.m. with the opportunity to meet the players before every game starting at 5 p.m.

Season schedule can be found online at: windsorstarssoccer.com and you can follow the team on

Facebook at: facebook.com/WindsorStarsSoccer

Player Roster

Name  Jersey #

Anthony Santilli  1

Sam Habib  3

Filip Rocca  4

David Kadoic  5

Chris Suta  6

Daniel Fernandez  7

Ciprian Codea  8

Rob Malbasic  9

Cristian Danny Dragoi  10

Mohamad Saffiedine  11

Ryan Wise  12

Eric Kiebert  13

Ricardo Castaneda  15

Gino Berardi  16

Corey Vickers  17

Aaron Byrd  18

Franco Girogi 20

Emilio Giorgi  21

Justin Danelon  84

About the Canadian Soccer League

The Canadian Soccer League (CSL) is Canada's only professional soccer league and is a

continuation of earlier leagues, the National Soccer League (NSL), the Canadian National Soccer

League (CNSL) and the Canadian Professional Soccer League (CPSL), going back more than 80

years.

The league is in direct membership with the Canadian Soccer Association, Canada`s national

governing soccer body and has a mandate for expansion on a regional basis across Canada.

The Canadian Soccer League is a very physical league with a lot of back and forth excitement. It is a

fast paced league with a lot of chances at both ends of the field. The league features many

professional players from overseas and Canadian Internationals with a great mix of young and

experienced players.

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U.S. Women Fall to Canada, 3-1, in Game Prior to 2011 IIHF World Women's Championship

The Windsor Sports Scene by
In Play Magazine 

ANN ARBOR, Mich. - The U.S. fell to Canada by a 3-1 score here tonight at the Ann Arbor Ice Cube in a game prior to the 2011 International Ice Hockey Federation World Women's Championship. The U.S. squad was made up of 20 of the 30 players vying for a spot on the U.S. Women's National Team, while Canada was skating with its final 21-player tournament roster. The two teams will face off again tomorrow night at 7 p.m. EDT before the U.S. roster is announced on Saturday (April 9). The game can be viewed live at USAHockey.FASTHockey.com. Jen Schoullis (Erie, Pa.) scored for the U.S., while Brianne McLaughlin (Sheffield Village, Ohio) made 18 saves in her first-ever action against the Canadian National Team. In a scoreless opening frame, the shots were 9-8 in favor of Canada. The U.S. penalty kill was successful on the team's only infraction of the frame, holding the Canadians shotless during the two-minute advantage. Canada scored three consecutive goals in the second period to take a 3-0 lead before the U.S. tallied late in the stanza to make it 3-1. First, Canada's Sarah Vaillancourt drove up the left side and shot the puck inside the near post at 1:55, then Meaghan Mikkelson notched a goal just after the Americans' first power play had expired at 9:14. Jayna Hefford kept the Canadian momentum going at 13:40 when she scored on a shorthanded breakaway, but the U.S. responded less than three minutes later as Schoullis, who is looking make the U.S. Women's National Team roster for the first time, scored at 16:39. The 3-1 score held through the third period, during which time Canada held a 6-4 edge in shots.

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Volleyball Players Wanted

The Windsor Sports Scene

In Play Magazine

Biz X and In Play! Magazines are looking for volunteers to

form two co-ed volleyball teams of six players.

Interested players please contact us HERE.

Event takes place Saturday June 18th, 2011 at the brand new

state of the art On The Beach venue in Tecumseh.

Registration for all participating teams will begin

May 2 on the Biz X and In Play! websites.

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City Sport Fields Remain Closed

The Windsor Sports Scene by
In Play Magazine

Baseball diamonds will officially open Saturday, April 30 and soccer fields will open Saturday, May 14, weather permitting.

                

Parks and Recreation limits access to the fields in early spring to allow the grass to re-establish itself after winter.  In early spring, the turf is young and very tender and susceptible to damage.  After a few weeks of warmer dry weather, the grass has grown stronger and more mature.  The fields are then ready for active play. Allowing teams to play on wet fields could have long-term effects that seriously damage the turf.

Organized play on citywide baseball, soccer and cricket grounds should be avoided until the fields have an opportunity to dry and the grass to grow.

For questions about specific sport fields, please call Linda McLeod, Seasonal and Sport Facilitator, at 519-253-2300 x 6714.

For more information, call 311 or visit http://www.citywindsor.ca/.

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5/10km Run, Walk or Wheel for Family Respite Services Windsor

The Windsor Sports Scene by
In Play Magazine

Alexandria Fischer, Events/Fundraising Coordinator

Family Respite Services

Family Respite Services invites the public to walk, run, or wheel 5 or 10km along the Riverside Trail on

Riverside Drive

and Huron Church, on Saturday, April 2nd, 2011. The race begins at 11:00 a.m.

This event is sponsored by the University of Windsor Law Students and it’s called the Ambulance Chaser Run. All proceeds will go directly to families caring for children with disabilities in our community.

Registration $25.00 or $100 in pledges.

For more information contact Family Respite Services

519-972-9688 x156

info@familyrespite.org          

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ASSIST program earns charitable organization status

The Windsor Sports Scene by
In Play Magazine

(Windsor, Ontario, Thursday, March 10, 2011) – The ASSIST program should be able to help even more children from financially vulnerable families participate in organized sports now that it has been officially granted charitable organization status, according to one of its founders.

“Up until now we’ve had to turn money away from potential donors because we were unable to issue tax receipts,” explained ASSIST board chairman Mike Dugal. “Now that we can do this, we expect we’ll be able to collect more donations and ultimately help a lot more families.”

ASSIST is a grassroots group of people with a lifelong passion for sports committed to raising funds to help kids experience the joy of participating in organized games. Since its inception in 2007, ASSIST has raised thousands of dollars and helped more than 70 families by defraying some of their expenses so their kids could register to play in organized sports leagues.

The organization has relied mainly upon individual donations while many corporate donations were turned down because businesses require receipts for income tax purposes, a service ASSIST was unable to provide without charitable organization status.

The move has already borne fruit. Dana Young, a lawyer from Clarks Barristers and Solicitors, the law firm which handled the legal process of incorporating the organization celebrated the group’s new status by coordinating the its first tax-receiptable donation of more than $2,000 to the cause, which came at the recommendation of her 14-year-old son who plays hockey with a local minor association.

“We were happy to help out,” said Young. “ASSIST does so many wonderful things for our community and we wanted to celebrate the group’s new success by being the first to contribute in its new form.”

Earning its new status couldn’t have come at a better time. This Saturday, the group will host 24 Hours of Hockey, its annual premiere fundraiser, at South Windsor Arena. The format is simple: teams that register play in one-hour-long three-on-three games and a continuous tally is kept for each side. Players are required to submit a minimum pledge of $20 and previous events have generated average revenue for the association of about $10,000.

“We’re hoping that having charitable status may increase the amount of corporate donations that we’re able to accept for this and other fund-raising events,” said Dugal.

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2011 WMHA Pinnacle Chrysler Day of Champions

The Windsor Sports Scene by
In Play Magazine

2011 Windsor Minor Hockey Association Pinnacle Chrysler Day of Champions Huge Success!
By Dean Lapierre

Novice Minor Sponsored by Buskers Submarine

Digi Print (7) Brendan Guinn 4, Zachery Vaillancourt, Matthew Mongeau, Carl Labelle
Windsor Firefighters Benefit Fund (6) Zander Latreille 3, Tyler Sterling, Tyson Dorey, Konnor Smith

Novice Major Tier 1 Sponsored by Valente Travel
Sports Club 444 (2) Julien Gervais 2
Dave Pickford Sports Photography (0) Shut out by Alex Murray

Novice Major Tier 2 Sponsored by Rose City Hockey
Club 200 Youth Activities (3) Tyler Leach, Andy Liu, Nicolas Zinyk
Winmar (1) Connor Smith

Atom Tier 1 Sponsored by Nantais Source for Sports
Windsor Choristers Athletic Club (5) Anthony Coral 2, Justin Brierley, Noah Harper, Josepy Uras
Perani's Hockey World (3) Spencer Grey 2, Ryan Hubberstay

Atom Tier 2 Sponsored by Essex County Locksmiths
Performance Ford (5) Ryan Patterson 2, Stephanio Kerr, Andrew Papas, Pietro D'Agostini
McDonalds (1) Andrew Kopcok

Peewee Tier 1 Sponsored by Advance Business Systems
Cornerstone Insurance Brokers (4) Brady Olar, Mitchell Shields, Alec Dupre, Adam Sghaier
Performance Ford Lincolin (0) Shut out by Alex Acton & Jonathan Little

Peewee Tier 2 Sponsored by All-Risks Insurance Brokers
MCM Collectibles (6) Dylan Fox 2, Jacob Gauthier 2, Aidan Rocheleau, Curtis Cacihas
Bantam Tier 1 Sponsored by Dak's Flowers Club 240 (7) Isaac Lewis 2, Andrew Murray 2, Brett Boissonneau 2, Alexander Blak, Niko Suski (2) Steve Jaworski, Dante Lapico

Bantam Tier 2 Sponsored by Sun Life Financial
Arby's (2) Ted Felet, Giordano La Civita
Auto MAXX (1) Quinn Hunt

Midget Minor Tier 1 Sponsored by Mont's On Time Express Inc
Crescent Television Service (1) Matt Lockwood
Mic Mac Club (0) Shut out by Mitchell Coovert

Midget Minor Tier 2 Sponsored by The Trophy Boys
Windsor Truck & Storage (7) Hugh Paulin 2, Quinn Perfetto 2, Ryan Storey, Tyler Tesolin, David Mammarello
Summit Floor & Wall Coverings (1) Robert Appleyard

Midget Major Sponsored by Lifestyle Family Fitness
Walker Road Automotive (5)
Accurate Embroidery & Screenprinting Scores (1)

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