Brew City Legends FC claimed the the Midwest division championship title in the Premier Arena Soccer League (PASL) after beating the Great Lake Wanderers 11-9 Saturday night.
“I mean the first half was really tough. You know they had us,” Forward Abdikadir Muktar said after the match.
The Wanderers managed to score four goals against Brew City Legend’s Goalkeeper Michael Novak by the end of the first quarter and maintained a lead of at least two goals going into the second half..
“I think we got caught in the counterattacks,” Muktar said.
Novak said he blamed himself for the team lagging behind initially, however, he pulled through. Although the game started off rough for the Legends, the team pulled themselves back up in the right before the second half. Defender Hugo Barajas scored in the last minute of the second quarter causing the crowd to erupt in applause for the Legends.
“I’m just glad we were able to pull together. We worked hard this season,” Novak said.
Brew City Legends’ players have definitely prided themselves on their synergy this season. Players like Alex Kaul, Max Kundert and captain Amilcar Herrera continue to play supportive roles on the field. Muktar has been one of the team’s top scorers, catching the team up to their opponents two minutes before Barajas scored.
Herrera scored in the first two minutes of the last quarter placing the Legends ahead of the Wanderers, 9-8. Soon the Legends scored two more goals leaving the Wanderers behind by two.
“We always come back,” he said.
After an exciting inaugural season for Wisconsin’s first pro futsal team, the Legends advance to nationals while remaining undefeated at home. Owner and coach Denzel Pettigrew, the country’s only African American pro indoor soccer team owner, said he’s proud of the team’s accomplishments this season.
“It’s always fun to win but just the environment, starting the team and traveling to away games has been amazing,” he said.
Now, Pettigrew would like to continue to put the team on the map. The team will now prepare for an even bigger challenge, nationals. Muktar and Novak are confident in the squad’s ability to move forward.
“I’m proud of everybody,” Novak said.
Shortly after the game, the team and their families celebrated their victory — and Pettigrew’s 27th birthday — at Kiss Lounge.
