1998 USISL A-League
Football league season
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The 1998 USISL A-League was an American Division II league run by the United Systems of Independent Soccer Leagues during the summer of 1998.
Season1998
ChampionsRochester Raging Rhinos
(1st Title)
(1st Title)
PremiersRochester Raging Rhinos
(1st Title)
(1st Title)
Matches392
| Season | 1998 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Rochester Raging Rhinos (1st Title) |
| Premiers | Rochester Raging Rhinos (1st Title) |
| Matches | 392 |
| Goals | 1,292 (3.3 per match) |
| Best player |  Mark Baena, Seattle Sounders |
| Top goalscorer | Mark Baena, Seattle Sounders (24 goals) |
| Best goalkeeper |  Pat Onstad, Rochester Raging Rhinos |
← 1997 1999 → | |
Regular season
Northeast Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | SOW | SOL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rochester Rhinos | 28 | 23 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 72 | 15 | +57 | 70 |
| 2 | Montreal Impact | 28 | 13 | 8 | 2 | 5 | 47 | 33 | +14 | 47 |
| 3 | Staten Island Vipers | 28 | 15 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 46 | 37 | +9 | 46 |
| 4 | Long Island Rough Riders | 28 | 14 | 3 | 1 | 10 | 46 | 35 | +11 | 45 |
| 5 | Worcester Wildfire | 28 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 14 | 37 | 50 | −13 | 32 |
| 6 | Toronto Lynx | 28 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 17 | 27 | 42 | −15 | 25 |
| 7 | Connecticut Wolves | 28 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 18 | 32 | 57 | −25 | 11 |
Atlantic Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | SOW | SOL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Richmond Kickers | 28 | 18 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 48 | 22 | +26 | 57 |
| 2 | Hershey Wildcats | 28 | 17 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 51 | 31 | +20 | 53 |
| 3 | Hampton Roads Mariners | 28 | 15 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 44 | 39 | +5 | 46 |
| 4 | Charleston Battery | 28 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 15 | 37 | 40 | −3 | 34 |
| 5 | Jacksonville Cyclones | 28 | 10 | 0 | 2 | 16 | 36 | 53 | −17 | 30 |
| 6 | Atlanta Ruckus | 28 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 20 | 31 | 67 | −36 | 21 |
| 7 | Raleigh Flyers | 28 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 21 | 31 | 66 | −35 | 15 |
Central Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | SOW | SOL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nashville Metros | 28 | 18 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 70 | 31 | +39 | 56 |
| 2 | Minnesota Thunder | 28 | 16 | 3 | 1 | 8 | 52 | 33 | +19 | 51 |
| 3 | Milwaukee Rampage | 28 | 16 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 61 | 39 | +22 | 49 |
| 4 | New Orleans Storm | 28 | 14 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 53 | 50 | +3 | 43 |
| 5 | Cincinnati Riverhawks | 28 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 48 | 65 | −17 | 33 |
| 6 | El Paso Patriots | 28 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 15 | 51 | 54 | −3 | 30 |
| 7 | Albuquerque Geckos | 28 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 22 | 39 | 100 | −61 | 15 |
Pacific Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | SOW | SOL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Diego Flash | 28 | 20 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 58 | 23 | +35 | 61 |
| 2 | Seattle Sounders | 28 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 63 | 28 | +35 | 52 |
| 3 | Orange County Zodiac | 28 | 15 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 49 | 43 | +6 | 46 |
| 4 | Vancouver 86ers | 28 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 12 | 55 | 42 | +13 | 41 |
| 5 | MLS Project 40 | 28 | 10 | 1 | 2 | 15 | 45 | 55 | −10 | 31 |
| 6 | San Francisco Bay Seals | 28 | 9 | 1 | 5 | 13 | 31 | 47 | −16 | 28 |
| 7 | California Jaguars | 28 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 21 | 32 | 95 | −63 | 18 |
Conference Quarterfinals
Eastern Conference
| Rochester Rhinos (NY) | 3–0 | Charleston Battery (SC) |
|---|---|---|
Yari Allnutt  Jimmy Glenn (35:10)Mike Kirmse (81:20) |
Report |  44' Robert Rosario 66' Todd Miller |
Attendance: 9,673
| Hershey Wildcats (PA) | 1–1 | Hampton Roads Mariners (VA) |
|---|---|---|
| Kyle Swords 49' |
18' Greg Richards |
|
| Penalties | ||
| 4–3 | ||
Attendance: 2,089
| Montreal Impact (QC) | 3–1 | Staten Island Vipers (NY) |
|---|---|---|
| Giuliano Oliviero 3' Kevin Lamey 66'Kevin Wilson 90' |
2' Marvin Oliver |
Attendance: 9,673
| Richmond Kickers (VA) | 0–0 | Long Island Rough Riders (NY) |
|---|---|---|
| Penalties | ||
| 4–3 | ||
Attendance: 1,798
Western Conference
| San Diego Flash (CA) | 3–1 | Vancouver 86ers (BC) |
|---|---|---|
| Nate Hetherington 22', 74' Jamie Munro  41' Carlos Farias 51'Jerome Watson 90' |
Report | 19' Jason Jordan |
Devore Stadium, Chula Vista, California
Attendance: 4,178
| Nashville Metros (TN) | 2–2 | New Orleans Storm (LA) |
|---|---|---|
| Vince Martinez 35' Martin Reynders 41' 78' (pen.) |
23' Ricardo Blanchard 53' (pen.) Gabe Gentile |
|
| Penalties | ||
| 2–4 | ||
Columbia/HCA Complex, Nashville, Tennessee
Attendance: 650
| Seattle Sounders (WA) | 2–1 | Orange County Zodiac (CA) |
|---|---|---|
| Peter Hattrup 63' Brandon Prideaux 73'Dick McCormick 76' (pen.) |
Report | 22' Eddie Soto 60' Steve Patterson 67' Ken Hesse |
Conference semifinals
Eastern Conference semifinal 1
| Hershey Wildcats (PA) | 0–0 | Richmond Kickers (VA) |
|---|---|---|
| Penalties | ||
| 3–2 | ||
Attendance: 2,296
| Richmond Kickers (VA) | 2–4 | Hershey Wildcats (PA) |
|---|---|---|
| Rob Johnson 82' Tony Williams 84' |
15' Lee Tschantret 45' Don D'Ambra 81' Jamel Mitchell 90' Jakob Fenger |
Attendance: 1,800
The Hershey Wildcats advance to the Eastern Conference final.
Eastern Conference semifinal 2
| Montreal Impact (QC) | 2–2 | Rochester Rhinos (NY) |
|---|---|---|
| Elvis Thomas (42:29) Patrick Diotte (54:41)Nick De Santis 90' |
Report | (15:24) Darren Tilley (20:09), 46' Tommy Tanner 72' Nate Daligcon 86' Tim Hardy |
| Penalties | ||
Giuliano Oliviero  Nevio Pizzolitto Patrick Diotte  Elvis Thomas Onandi Lowe |
2–3 | Carlos Zavala Doug Miller Patrick Diotte Scott Schweitzer Darren Tilley |
Attendance: 4,360
| Rochester Rhinos (NY) | 4–1 | Montreal Impact (QC) |
|---|---|---|
| Tim Hardy 36' Lenin Steenkamp (44:02)Scott Schweitzer (60:45)Yari Allnutt (67:50)Mike Kirmse 84' |
Report | (22:25) Elvis Thomas 24' John Limniatis 56' Nevio Pizzolitto 59' Nick De Santis |
Attendance: 7,529
Western Conference semifinal 1
| Minnesota Thunder (MN) | 2–1 | Seattle Sounders (WA) |
|---|---|---|
| Stoian Mladenov 49' Amos Magee 73' |
Report | 2' Dick McCormick 28' Scott Jenkins 61' Peter Hattrup |
Attendance: 2,084
| Seattle Sounders (WA) | 1–2 | Minnesota Thunder (MN) |
|---|---|---|
| Dick McCormick 13', 84' Jason Annicchero 27'Scott Jenkins 30'David Hoggan 66'Neil Megson 84' |
Report | 19' Gerard Lagos 25' Don Gramenz 62' Morgan Zeba 73' (pen.) Kevin Anderson |
The Minnesota Thunder advanced 4-2 on aggregate.
Western Conference semifinal 2
| San Diego Flash (CA) | 2–1 | New Orleans Storm (LA) |
|---|---|---|
| Antonio Robles 18' Carlos Farias 73' |
60' Glenn Benjamin |
Devore Stadium, Chula Vista, California
Attendance: 4,043
| New Orleans Storm (LA) | 3–3 | San Diego Flash (CA) |
|---|---|---|
| Gabe Gentile 46' Chris Veselka 61', 89'Colin Rocke 63'Andrew Restrepo 69' |
7' Jerome Watson 53' Mauricio Alegre 75' Carlos Farias |
|
| Penalties | ||
| 2–3 | ||
Attendance: 1,104
The San Diego Flash advance to the Western Conference championship.
Conference finals
Eastern Conference
| Rochester Rhinos (NY) | 3–1 | Hershey Wildcats (PA) |
|---|---|---|
| Jimmy Glenn (2:30), 27' Darren Tilley (60:20)Yari Allnutt 41' |
Report | 18' Mike Williams (83:01) Lee Tschantret |
Attendance: 8,212
| Hershey Wildcats (PA) | 0–1 | Rochester Rhinos (NY) |
|---|---|---|
| Report | (74:16) Darren Tilley |
Attendance: 1,847
The Rochester Rhinos advanced to the finals.
Western Conference
| Minnesota Thunder (MN) | 2–1 | San Diego Flash (CA) |
|---|---|---|
| John Coughlin 22' Gabe Garcia 87' |
Report | 55' Daniel Sinouhi |
Attendance: 2,743
| San Diego Flash (CA) | 1–2 | Minnesota Thunder (MN) |
|---|---|---|
| Jerome Watson 68' |
Report | 18' Constantin Stănici 42' Morgan Zeba |
Attendance: 3,183
The Minnesota Thunder advanced to the final.
Final
| Rochester Rhinos (NY) | 3–1 | Minnesota Thunder (MN) |
|---|---|---|
| Darren Tilley (19:02) Scott Schweitzer 51'Tim Hardy 77' |
Report | 1' Morgan Zeba (33:09) Tim Hardy |
Attendance: 13,772
MVP: Darren Tilley
Points leaders
| Rank | Scorer | Club | Goals | Assists | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mark Baena |
Seattle Sounders | 24 | 5 | 53 |
| 2 |  Darren Tilley |
Rochester Rhinos | 21 | 6 | 48 |
| 3 | Amos Magee |
Minnesota Thunder | 15 | 10 | 40 |
| 4 | Kirk Wilson |
El Paso Patriots | 15 | 7 | 37 |
| 5 | Mauro Biello |
Montreal Impact | 11 | 13 | 35 |
| 6 | Mike Burke |
Charleston Battery | 16 | 2 | 34 |
 Gary Glasgow |
New Orleans Storm | 15 | 4 | 34 | |
| Antonio Robles |
San Diego Flash | 15 | 4 | 34 | |
| 9 | Yari Allnutt |
Rochester Rhinos | 14 | 5 | 33 |
| 10 | Jon Szczepanski |
Milwaukee Rampage | 8 | 14 | 30 |
| Jason Cairns |
Cincinnati Riverhawks | 8 | 14 | 30 | |
| 12 |  Luis Labastida |
Albuquerque Geckos | 9 | 11 | 29 |
| John Smith |
Nashville Metros | 9 | 11 | 29 | |
| 14 |  Patrick Beech |
Seattle Sounders | 12 | 4 | 28 |
| Steve Patterson |
Orange County Zodiac | 11 | 6 | 28 | |
 Martin Reynders |
Nashville Metros | 11 | 6 | 28 | |
| 17 | Giuliano Oliviero |
Montreal Impact | 8 | 11 | 27 |
| 18 | Gino DiFlorio |
Cincinnati Riverhawks | 12 | 2 | 26 |
| Jimmy Glenn |
Rochester Rhinos | 10 | 6 | 26 |
Honors
- MVP:
Mark Baena - Leading goal scorer: Mark Baena
- Leading goalkeeper:
Pat Onstad - Defender of the Year: Scott Schweitzer
- Rookie of the Year: Mike Burke
- Coach of the Year: Pat Ercoli
- First Team All League
- Goalkeeper: Pat Onstad
- Defenders: Gabe Eastman, Scott Schweitzer,
Craig Demmin - Midfielders: Yari Allnutt, Mauro Biello, John Ball, Lee Tschantret
- Forwards: Mark Baena,
Darren Tilley, Amos Magee
- Goalkeeper:
- Second Team All League
- Goalkeeper: Joe Cannon
- Defenders: Carl Fletcher, Steve MacDonald, Omid Namazi
- Midfielders: Kevin Anderson, Jason Cairns, Antonio Robles, Kirk Wilson
- Forwards: Gary Glasgow, Mike Burke, Josh Wolff
- Goalkeeper:
- Organization of the Year: [1] Vancouver 86ers
- Executive of the Year: Jim Harwood, Milwaukee Rampage
- Fair Play Award: Rochester Raging Rhinos
- Key Grip Award: Matthew Ford, Hershey Wildcats