The Official Site of Your Rockford Rampage

ROCKFORD, Ill. -- Following the toughest defeat in the Rockford Rampage's history, the team has nowhere to go but up.

The Rampage host their Stateline rivals, the Milwaukee Wave, in Major Indoor Soccer League play at 5:05 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 28, at the MetroCentre. It is Rockford's home finale of the regular season and Fan Appreciation Night.

Rockford (6-9) is coming off a 9-0 loss to the Baltimore Blast on Sunday, Feb. 21. It was the first time the Rampage had been shut out in their MISL/NISL history, and they now have to climb their way out of the league's cellar.

The Wave (9-6) sit in first place, but they have had their struggles against Rockford in this first season of play between the two squads. The Rampage are 3-1 against Milwaukee this season and a victory would clinch the season series for Rockford in head-to-head competition.

The Rampage won the first three meetings against the Wave. But in the midst of Rockford's current five-game slide, the Rampage finally fell to Milwaukee, 5-4, on Feb. 13 at the U.S. Cellular Arena.

Rockford hopes to cap off its home slate with a win, though victories at the MetroCentre have been hard to come by. The Rampage are 3-6 at home but 3-3 on the road. The Wave currently hold the league's best road record at 4-3.

Notes:
• Making their points: Rampage midfielder and team captain Matthew Stewart leads Rockford with 30 points this season, and he is only two points away from tallying 300 for his career. ... Milwaukee's Marco Terminesi still leads the Wave with 35 points in only nine games. But Terminesi was place on injured reserve last week. He is undergoing testing for what doctors believe could be a brain tumor.
• Familiar faces: Rockford midfielder Matthew Stewart played in a career-high 34 games during his lone 2003-04 season with the Wave. Rampage midfielder Semir Mesanovic started his MISL career with Milwaukee in 2003 and was traded to the Chicago Storm during the 2005-06 season. Rockford defender Tijani Ayegbusi played for the Wave from 2006 to 2008 before joining Rockford last season. Rampage defender Chris Brisson was part of the Milwaukee soccer landscape, playing collegiately for Wisconsin-Milwaukee's Panthers.
• Still top Cop: Rampage goalkeeper Ante Cop allowed nine points last week, and his points-allowed average actually went up. Cop continues to shine in the net with a league-best 8.14 points allowed, even though he holds a 2-5 record. Milwaukee's Nick Vorberg is second in the league with a 9.09 points-allowed average.
• Wave call on their reserves: Last week Milwaukee signed two Wave Reserve players to its first-team squad -- forward Alex Megson and midfielder Pablo. Their services were necessary with Terminesi's illness and defender Jonathan Santos' season-ending knee injury.

The Rockford Rampage are members of the Major Indoor Soccer League and play their home games at the MetroCentre. Rampage tickets for the 2009-2010 MISL season are on sale. Log on to www.RockfordRampage.com or call the Rampage at (779) 423-1082. Individual game tickets are available at www.MetroCentre.com or by calling (815) 968-5222. All Rampage home broadcasts are available online at http://www.depor13.com/rampage_prewebcast.htm.