The Kansas City Wizards will play their final preparation matches for the 2009 Major League Soccer (MLS) season Saturday against the Minnesota Thunder (USL-1) at Prairie High School in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The Wizards and Thunder will play their first-team squads at 5:30 p.m. CT, with a match for reserves from both teams to follow at 8 p.m. CT. Wizards team blog Hillcrest Road will provide live running commentary during the opening match Saturday at www.hillcrestroadblog.com. Prairie Soccer Club is hosting the day-long event, which includes a youth clinic in the morning with Wizards players and staff.
Kansas City enters Saturday's games 4-0-4 in preseason play. The Wizards have scored 28 goals in their eight matches, while allowing only 11. Sixteen different Kansas City players have scored goals thus far in exhibition games. The preseason campaign includes wins over the Chicago Fire, the New York Red Bulls and Atlas AC of the Mexican First Division and a 1-1 tie against Club Deportivo Guadalajara (Chivas) of the Mexican First Division.
The Wizards defeated Minnesota 5-0 on July 17, 2007 in a friendly at the National Sports Center in Blaine, Minn. The teams have also faced one another in one competitive match, with the Thunder capturing a 3-1 victory against the Wizards in 2005 in a Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup contest.
The Wizards open the season next Saturday, March 21 at 7:30 p.m. CT against Toronto FC at CommunityAmerica Ballpark. The first 5,000 fans into the stadium will receive water bottles and schedule magnets courtesy of Providence Medical Center. Season ticket packages for Kansas City Wizards 2009 home games are still available, starting as low as $180. Contact the Wizards at (913) 387-3400 for tickets or visit www.kcwizards.com. For individual tickets, contact Ticketmaster via phone at (816) 931-3330 or online at Ticketmaster.com.
