2001 PDL season
Football league season
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The 2001 USL Premier Development League season was the 7th PDL season. The season began in April 2001 and ended in August 2001.
| Season | 2001 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Westchester Flames (1st Title) |
| Regular Season Champions | Calgary Storm (1st Title) |
| Matches | 442 |
| Goals | 1,790 (4.05 per match) |
| Best player |  Beau Brown Lafayette Lightning |
| Top goalscorer | Beau Brown Lafayette Lightning (21 goals) |
| Best goalkeeper |  Lars Hirschfeld Calgary Storm |
← 2000 2002 → | |
Westchester Flames finished the season as national champions, beating Calgary Storm 3–1 in the PDL Championship game. Calgary Storm finished with the best regular season record in the league, winning 18 out of their 20 games, suffering no losses, and finishing with a +38 goal difference.
Changes from the 2000 season
Name changes
- The Colorado Comets changed their name to the Denver Cougars.
- The Colorado Springs Stampede changed their name to the Colorado Springs Ascent
- The Dayton Gems changed their name to the Dayton Gemini.
- The Miami Tango changed their name to the Miami Strike Force.
- The Texas Rattlers (formerly of the USISL D-3 Pro League) changed their name to the Texas Spurs.
- The Twin Cities Tornado changed their name to the Twin Cities Phoenix.
New teams
11 teams were added for the season, including 8 expansion teams:
| Team name | Metro area | Location | Previous affiliation |
|---|---|---|---|
 Calgary Storm |
Calgary area | Calgary, AB | expansion |
 Cape Cod Crusaders |
Cape Cod area | Hyannis, MA | from USISL D-3 Pro League |
 Chesapeake Dragons |
Baltimore-Washington area | Germantown, MD | expansion |
 Chicago Eagles Select |
Chicago area | Chicago, IL | expansion |
| Chicago Fire Reserves |
Chicago area | Chicago, IL | expansion |
 Jersey Falcons |
North Jersey area | Jersey City, NJ | expansion |
 Okanagan Predators |
Okanagan Valley area | Kelowna, BC | expansion |
 Orange County Blue Star |
Orange County area | Irvine, CA | from A-League |
| Southern California Seahorses |
Los Angeles Metro area | La Mirada, CA | expansion |
 Texas Spurs |
Dallas-Fort Worth area | Bedford, TX | from USISL D-3 Pro League |
| West Dallas Kings |
Dallas-Fort Worth area | Dallas, TX | expansion |
Went on hiatus
- The Wisconsin Rebels went on hiatus for the season, and would return in 2002.
Folded
11 teams folded before the season:
- Abbotsford 86ers Select
- Alabama Saints
- Broward County Wolfpack
- Central Jersey Riptide
- Chicago Sockers
- Lexington Bluegrass Bandits
- Nevada Zephyrs
- New Brunswick Brigade
- Rockford Raptors
- South Florida Future
- Willamette Valley Firebirds
Standings
| Legend |
|---|
| Division champion |
| Team qualified for playoff berth |
Central Conference
Great Lakes Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | BP | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chicago Fire Reserves | 20 | 15 | 4 | 1 | 49 | 18 | +31 | 11 | 72 |
| 2 | West Michigan Edge | 20 | 13 | 7 | 0 | 50 | 42 | +8 | 10 | 62 |
| 3 | Mid-Michigan Bucks | 20 | 10 | 9 | 1 | 43 | 46 | −3 | 7 | 48 |
| 4 | Indiana Invaders | 19 | 9 | 9 | 1 | 37 | 41 | −4 | 9 | 46[a] |
| 5 | Kalamazoo Kingdom | 20 | 9 | 10 | 1 | 43 | 39 | +4 | 6 | 43 |
| 6 | Dayton Gemini | 19 | 5 | 14 | 0 | 24 | 48 | −24 | 3 | 23[a] |
- Dayton and Indiana had a game postponed and could not be rescheduled by season's end. Game in question was cancelled since it had no bearing on playoffs.
Heartland Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | BP | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sioux Falls Spitfire | 20 | 17 | 2 | 1 | 54 | 19 | +35 | 9 | 78 |
| 2 | Des Moines Menace | 20 | 11 | 7 | 2 | 38 | 23 | +15 | 6 | 52 |
| 3 | Chicago Eagles Select | 20 | 8 | 10 | 2 | 33 | 33 | 0 | 4 | 38 |
| 4 | Thunder Bay Chill | 20 | 6 | 13 | 1 | 26 | 48 | −22 | 3 | 28 |
| 5 | Twin Cities Phoenix | 20 | 3 | 17 | 0 | 34 | 61 | −27 | 3 | 15 |
Mid-South Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | BP | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Texas Spurs | 20 | 16 | 3 | 1 | 68 | 22 | +46 | 12 | 77 |
| 2 | Lafayette Lightning | 20 | 13 | 5 | 2 | 50 | 49 | +1 | 11 | 65 |
| 3 | Louisiana Outlaws | 20 | 7 | 12 | 1 | 40 | 56 | −16 | 7 | 36 |
| 4 | West Dallas Kings | 20 | 6 | 14 | 0 | 33 | 49 | −16 | 4 | 28 |
Eastern Conference
Northeast Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | BP | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Westchester Flames | 20 | 13 | 4 | 3 | 48 | 25 | +23 | 10 | 65 |
| 2 | Brooklyn Knights | 19 | 12 | 6 | 1 | 48 | 27 | +21 | 8 | 57[a] |
| 3 | Vermont Voltage | 20 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 51 | 25 | +26 | 8 | 51 |
| 4 | New York Freedom | 19 | 10 | 7 | 2 | 41 | 33 | +8 | 8 | 50[a] |
| 5 | North Jersey Imperials | 20 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 42 | 40 | +2 | 7 | 50 |
| 6 | Cape Cod Crusaders | 20 | 9 | 8 | 3 | 39 | 36 | +3 | 5 | 44 |
| 7 | Chesapeake Dragons | 18 | 4 | 12 | 2 | 30 | 45 | −15 | 4 | 22[a] |
| 8 | Jersey Falcons | 20 | 1 | 19 | 0 | 19 | 89 | −70 | 2 | 6 |
- Both Brooklyn and New York had games against Chesapeake postponed and could not be rescheduled by season's end. Games in question were cancelled since they had no bearing on playoffs.
Southeast Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | BP | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cocoa Expos | 20 | 14 | 5 | 1 | 55 | 37 | +18 | 9 | 66 |
| 2 | Miami Strike Force | 20 | 13 | 7 | 0 | 46 | 38 | +8 | 8 | 60 |
| 3 | Bradenton Academics | 19 | 9 | 9 | 1 | 40 | 34 | +6 | 6 | 43[a] |
| 4 | Central Florida Kraze | 20 | 8 | 11 | 1 | 37 | 36 | +1 | 4 | 37 |
| 5 | Tampa Bay Hawks | 20 | 6 | 12 | 2 | 39 | 41 | −2 | 6 | 32 |
| 6 | Palm Beach Pumas | 19 | 6 | 12 | 1 | 30 | 58 | −28 | 4 | 29[a] |
- Bradenton and Palm Beach had a game postponed and could not be rescheduled by season's end. Game in question was cancelled since it had no bearing on playoffs.
Western Conference
Rocky Mountain Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | BP | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Denver Cougars | 20 | 15 | 4 | 1 | 63 | 28 | +35 | 11 | 72 |
| 2 | Boulder Nova | 19 | 11 | 8 | 0 | 46 | 35 | +11 | 10 | 54[a] |
| 3 | Wichita Jets | 19 | 7 | 12 | 0 | 29 | 52 | −23 | 5 | 33[a] |
| 4 | Colorado Springs Ascent | 19 | 4 | 14 | 1 | 32 | 63 | −31 | 6 | 23[a] |
| 5 | Kansas City Brass | 17 | 2 | 15 | 0 | 27 | 53 | −26 | 4 | 12[a] |
- Boulder, Colorado Springs, and Wichita all had games with Kansas City postponed and could not be rescheduled by season's end. Games in question were cancelled since they had no bearing on playoffs.
Northwest Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | BP | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Calgary Storm (R) | 20 | 18 | 2 | 0 | 47 | 9 | +38 | 8 | 80 |
| 2 | Seattle Sounders Select | 19 | 14 | 5 | 0 | 42 | 23 | +19 | 7 | 63[a] |
| 3 | Spokane Shadow | 20 | 12 | 8 | 0 | 42 | 31 | +11 | 6 | 54 |
| 4 | Cascade Surge | 20 | 7 | 13 | 0 | 27 | 42 | −15 | 3 | 31 |
| 5 | Yakima Reds | 19 | 5 | 13 | 1 | 20 | 44 | −24 | 1 | 22[a] |
| 6 | Okanagan Predators | 20 | 2 | 17 | 1 | 18 | 47 | −29 | 1 | 10 |
- Seattle and Yakima had a game postponed and could not be rescheduled by season's end. Game in question was cancelled since it had no bearing on playoffs.
Southwest Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | BP | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Orange County Blue Star | 20 | 14 | 6 | 0 | 51 | 34 | +17 | 10 | 66 |
| 2 | Southern California Seahorses | 20 | 13 | 6 | 1 | 56 | 30 | +26 | 9 | 62 |
| 3 | Central Coast Roadrunners | 20 | 12 | 8 | 0 | 53 | 35 | +18 | 8 | 56 |
| 4 | San Fernando Valley Heroes | 20 | 7 | 11 | 2 | 38 | 43 | −5 | 5 | 35 |
| 5 | San Gabriel Valley Highlanders | 20 | 1 | 17 | 2 | 12 | 83 | −71 | 1 | 7 |
Playoffs
| Conference Semifinals | Conference Finals | National Semifinals | PDL Championship Game | ||||||||||||||||
| H |  Des Moines
| ||||||||||||||||||
| bye | |||||||||||||||||||
| H | Des Moines
| 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| NW | Calgary
| 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| NW | Calgary
| 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| SW | Orange County
| 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| NW | Calgary
| 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| WC |  Seattle
| 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| RM |  Denver
| 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| WC | Seattle
| 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| NW | Calgary
| 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| NE1 |  Westchester
| 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| HL |  Sioux Falls
| 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| WC |  Lafayette
| 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| HL | Sioux Falls
| 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| GL | Chicago
| 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| MS | Texas
| 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| GL | Chicago
| 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| HL | Sioux Falls
| 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| NE1 | Westchester
| 5 | |||||||||||||||||
| SE1 |  Cocoa
| 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| NE2 | Brooklyn
| 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| SE1 | Cocoa
| 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| NE1 | Westchester
| 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| NE1 | Westchester
| 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| SE2 | Miami
| 1 | |||||||||||||||||
Third place game
| Third Place Game | ||||
| H | Des Moines
| 0 | ||
| HL | Sioux Falls
| 1 | ||
Conference semifinals
| Orange County Blue Star | 1–2 | Calgary Storm |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
|
| Westchester Flames | 2–1 | Miami Strike Force |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
|
| Texas Spurs | 0–1 (OT) | Chicago Fire Reserves |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
|
| Cocoa Expos | 3–2 | Brooklyn Knights |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
| Sioux Falls Spitfire | 3–1 | Lafayette Lightning |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
|
Conference Finals
| Calgary Storm | 3–0 | Seattle Sounders Select |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
| Cocoa Expos | 1–3 | Westchester Flames |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
|
| Sioux Falls Spitfire | 1–0 | Chicago Fire Reserves |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
National Semifinals
| Sioux Falls Spitfire | 1–5 | Westchester Flames |
|---|---|---|
|
|
| Des Moines Menace | 1–2 (OT) | Calgary Storm |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
|
Third Place Match
PDL Championship Game
| Calgary Storm | 1–3 | Westchester Flames |
|---|---|---|
|
|
Championship MVP: 
Evaud Thompson Westchester Flames
Awards
Year End Awards
Scoring Champion: Beau Brown (Lafayette Lightning) 46 Points (21 Goals, 4 Assists)[2]
Golden Boot: Beau Brown (Lafayette Lightning) (21 Goals)[2]
Assists Champion: Chris Veselka (Lafayette Lightning) (13 Assists)[2]
GAA Champion: Lars Hirschfeld (Calgary Storm) 0.46 GAA[2]
MVP: Beau Brown (Lafayette Lightning)[3]
Rookie of the Year: TJ Rolfing (Sioux Falls Spitfire)[3]
Defender of the Year: Burch Wylie (Texas Spurs)[3]
Goalkeeper of the Year: Lars Hirschfeld (Calgary Storm)[3]
Coach of the Year: Bret Hall (Chicago Fire Reserves)[3]
All-League First Team
[2]
F: Beau Brown (LAF) (League MVP, Scoring Champion, and Golden Boot); James Farrell (VER) ; Luis González (MIA)
M: 
Patrick Shamu (TEX); 
Leo Peirano (IND); TJ Rolfing (SFS) (Rookie of the Year); Mike Mariscalco (KAL)
D: Burch Wylie (TEX) (Defender of the Year); Matt Bobo (CHI); Dustin Branan (TCP)
G: Lars Hirschfeld (CAL) (Goalkeeper of the Year and GAA Champion)
All-League Second Team
[2]
F: 
Paul Snape (MMB); 
Arshak Abyanli (SFV); Radoslav Bojovic (WES)
M: Anthony Maher (WME); David Atkinson (COA); Danny Risch (CCR); Chris Veselka (LAF) (Assists Champion)
D: Ryan Hammer (KAL); 
Roger Groome (CAS); Gary Sullivan (BRO)
G: Jeff Richey (SFS)
All-Tournament Team
F: 
Barry Lavety (DMM); Radoslav Bojovic (WES); Evaud Thompson (WES) (Championship Game MVP)
M: Oliver Medina (WES); 
Damir Jesic (CAL); Dan Watson (SFS); Nicolas Reyes (CAL)
D: 
Omar Chavez (WES); Jamie Auvigne (CAL); 
John Fosu (SFS)
G: Lars Hirschfeld (CAL) [4]