Columnist Ron Kantowski: Semi-pro Strikers getting kicks in Summerlin

Tuesday, May 11, 2004 | 9:11 a.m.

Ron Kantowski is a Las Vegas Sun sports writer. Reach him at ron@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4088.

Forget what Paul Revere and his Raiders said. Kicks really aren't that hard to find for Las Vegas soccer fans, who just have to know where to look for them.

For instance, they could begin at the Crossings Soccer Complex in Summerlin, where the Las Vegas Strikers have begun their second season in the Men's Premier Soccer League.

The MPSL, featuring 10 "franchises" in West Coast cities, is considered semi-pro soccer, with most teams composed of former American college standouts.

"It's a league for transition players," said Steve Lazarus, who is listed as the Strikers' co-owner as well as one of its sweepers on defense.

In other words, the quality of play isn't exactly up to Arsenal or Real Madrid standards. Or for that matter, even D.C. United. But it's not as if the players haven't been exposed to the game, and for local fans requiring a soccer fix, the Strikers may be just the ticket.

"It's a good way for the players to stay sharp before A-league or MLS tryouts," Lazarus said, noting the two professional club circuits in the U.S. to which MPSL players aspire.

The Strikers are off to a 1-3 start. They are coached by Victor Arbelaez, the longtime Bishop Gorman coach, whose son, Boomer, is one of the team's midfielders and best players. Reno also has an entry (Nevada Aces) playing under the MPSL banner. The others teams are the Sacramento Knights, Albuquerque Asylum, Arizona Sahuaros, Salinas Valley Samba, Utah Salt Ratz, Sonoma Valley FC, Idaho Wolves and Chico Rooks, whose baseball card I think I still have.

Check that. It's Chico Ruiz, the former Reds' utility infielder, whose card resides in my shoebox. The Chico Rooks, based in Northern California, are one of the MPSL's top teams.

The Strikers, who were beaten 2-0 by Sacramento here Saturday, will play their next three games on the road before entertaining the Nevada Aces on May 28 at The Crossings.

For more information on the Strikers, visit the club's Web site at lvstrikers.com.

Around the horn

Maybe the judges arrived at the proper verdict in spite of themselves. But the fact that one didn't know he could score Manny Pacquaio's first-round Saturday night blitzkrieg of Juan Manuel Marquez at the MGM Grand a 10-6 round leads me to believe there should be some sort of prefight meeting between the judges, Nevada State Athletic Commission officials and/or that wacky Harold Lederman guy -- you know, just to make sure the guys marking the scorecards at a significant championship fight know the rules. ... Future baseball Hall-of-Famer Tony Gwynn watched Sunday's UNLV-San Diego State game from the Fred Dallimore section -- the shaded, closest-to-home-plate corner of the third-base dugout at Wilson Stadium favored by Dallimore during his 23-year tenure as Rebels coach. In his second year as Aztecs coach, Gwynn's weight s eems to be closing in on his lifetime batting average of .338. ...

As USA Today TV columnist Michael Hiestand put it, there's good news if you drafted former Channel 3 sports director Colin Cowherd in your media fantasy league. The World's Most Dangerous Sportscaster, as some of us used to refer to Cowherd during his reign of terror at "The Big Threeski," has improved ESPN's daytime radio sports talk presence since taking over for predecessor Tony Kornheiser in March. Cowherd's show can now be heard in 282 markets compared to 276 when Kornheiser left. ... The Harlem Globetrotters have found a home in Las Vegas, only it's not at the fictional downtown arena, where there once was talk of the basketball nomads establishing a permanent home. The Trotters' Feb. 18 game at a sold-out Orleans Arena was so well received that they will play twice at the Orleans in 2005, with dates to be determined. Las Vegas j oins Chicago, Dallas, Kansas City and Sacramento on the short list of American cities that will be whistling "Sweet Georgia! Brown" twice. ...

Kids from kindergarten through eighth grade will have a chance to design the tickets used for UNLV men's basketball games next year, marking their first involvement with the program since they designed Bill Bayno's offense when Shawn Marion and Keon Clark were here. ... For years, we were told that if UNLV only had a full-fledged softball stadium, it would be able to compete with UCLA, The King and His Court and the other giants of the softball world. On Saturday, the Rebels, rebuilding under first-year coach Lonni Almeda, beat Utah twice in their final at-bat to close the season at 25-34, which aren't exactly UCLA numbers. As a headline from the school's sports information office so indifferently put it, "Win Some, Lose Some." ... On the shiny side of UNLV's Olympic sports coin, at least there's the women's golf team. In just i ts third year of existence, the Rebels' women have qualified for the May 18-21 NCAA women's championship tournament in Alab! ama. ...

Clarification: In a recent column, I mentioned Arsenal's bid to become the first soccer team in England's Premier League to go undefeated since 1889-89. In reality, the Premier League wasn't established until 1992; before then, the top league in England simply was known as the first division. Arsenal, by the way, needs only to beat or tie relegated Leicester at home on Saturday to cap its remarkable unbeaten season. ... Spotted: Las Vegas Gladiators head coach Frank Haege, wearing a New Jersey Gladiators practice jersey, having a gordita (or maybe it was a chalupa) at the Taco Bell on Boulder Highway. I guess if I were the head coach of a team struggling to make the playoffs in a made-for-TV football league, I'd make a run for the border, too.

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