| Season | 1997 | 
|---|---|
| Champions | Milwaukee Rampage (1st title) | 
| Premiers | Montreal Impact (3rd title) | 
| Top goalscorer | Doug Miller (23 goals) | 
| 1998 →  | |
The 1997 USISL A-League was an American Division II league run by the United Systems of Independent Soccer Leagues during the summer of 1997.
Overview
At the end of the 1996 A-League season, the U.S. second division A-League collapsed. Six of the seven teams in the A-League then joined the USISL which had three leagues in 1996, beginning with the third division USISL Select League.[1] With the collapse of the U.S. second division and the transfer of most of its teams to the USISL, the USISL reorganized its divisions to include the new teams. It moved most of the old second division USISL Select League, plus a few new teams, up to a second division level and merged the old A-League teams into this new U.S. second division which was renamed the USISL A-League.
Regular season
Northeast Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | SW | SL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Montreal Impact | 28 | 20 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 58 | 19 | +39 | 61 | 
| 2 | Rochester Raging Rhinos | 28 | 14 | 0 | 5 | 9 | 56 | 47 | +9 | 42 | 
| 3 | Long Island Rough Riders | 28 | 13 | 3 | 2 | 10 | 44 | 36 | +8 | 42 | 
| 4 | Toronto Lynx | 28 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 14 | 44 | 43 | +1 | 38 | 
| 5 | Connecticut Wolves | 28 | 8 | 4 | 1 | 15 | 31 | 45 | −14 | 28 | 
| 6 | Worcester Wildfire | 28 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 19 | 26 | 61 | −35 | 19 | 
Atlantic Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | SW | SL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hershey Wildcats | 28 | 18 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 56 | 33 | +23 | 55 | 
| 2 | Carolina Dynamo | 28 | 16 | 2 | 2 | 8 | 63 | 33 | +30 | 50 | 
| 3 | Richmond Kickers | 28 | 15 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 41 | 35 | +6 | 45 | 
| 4 | Charleston Battery | 28 | 10 | 2 | 3 | 13 | 39 | 50 | −11 | 32 | 
| 5 | Raleigh Flyers | 28 | 8 | 4 | 3 | 13 | 34 | 52 | −18 | 28 | 
| 6 | Jacksonville Cyclones | 29 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 23 | 28 | 73 | −45 | 13 | 
Central Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | SW | SL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Orleans Riverboat Gamblers | 28 | 13 | 3 | 2 | 10 | 45 | 42 | +3 | 42 | 
| 2 | Nashville Metros | 28 | 10 | 7 | 2 | 9 | 42 | 34 | +8 | 37 | 
| 3 | Orlando Sundogs | 28 | 12 | 0 | 4 | 12 | 39 | 40 | −1 | 36 | 
| 4 | Milwaukee Rampage | 28 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 12 | 33 | 36 | −3 | 36 | 
| 5 | Minnesota Thunder | 28 | 11 | 2 | 5 | 10 | 22 | 30 | −8 | 35 | 
| 6 | Atlanta Ruckus | 28 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 15 | 39 | 48 | −9 | 30 | 
Pacific Division
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | SW | SL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California Jaguars | 28 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 48 | 34 | +14 | 52 | 
| 2 | Seattle Sounders | 28 | 16 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 42 | 19 | +23 | 50 | 
| 3 | Vancouver 86ers | 28 | 15 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 50 | 29 | +21 | 46 | 
| 4 | Colorado Foxes | 28 | 15 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 55 | 49 | +6 | 46 | 
| 5 | Orange County Zodiac | 28 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 17 | 35 | 62 | −27 | 31 | 
| 6 | El Paso Patriots | 28 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 17 | 30 | 50 | −20 | 18 | 
Division Semi-finals
Northeast Semifinal 1
| Long Island Rough Riders (NY) | 1–1 | Rochester Raging Rhinos (NY) | 
|---|---|---|
| Carlos Ledesma  62:26' (pen.) Ernest Inneh  29' Dahir Mohammed  ?'  88' Travis Rinker  | Report 1 Report 2 |  7:43' Nate Daligcon  ?'  82' Leon Minott  Fuseini Dauda  Nate Houser  Jimmy Glenn | 
| Penalties | ||
| Travis Rinker  Hector Wright  Daniel Leon  | 3–1 |  Mali Walton  Garth Miller  Nate Houser  Kevin Koetters | 
Long Island advances to the Division final
Northeast Semifinal 2
| Toronto Lynx (ON) | 1–2 | Montreal Impact (QC) | 
|---|---|---|
| Terry St. Louis  13' Peyvand Mossavat  31' Martin Dugas  42' Franco Spadafina  43' Paul Stalteri  45' | Report |  8' Onandi Lowe  13' John Limniatis  25' Onandi Lowe  62' Mauro Biello | 
| Montreal Impact (QC) | 4–0 | Toronto Lynx (ON) | 
|---|---|---|
| Darren Tilley  17' (pen.), 25', 26' Bill Sedgewick  45' | 
Montreal advances to the Division final
Atlantic Semifinal 1
| Richmond Kickers (VA) | 1–2 | Carolina Dynamo (NC) | 
|---|---|---|
| Rob Ukrop  63' |  23' Robert Rosario  31' Yari Allnutt | 
| Carolina Dynamo (NC) | 1–4 | Richmond Kickers (VA) | 
|---|---|---|
| Keiran Breslin  32' |  14' Dian Anguelov  72' Brian Kamler  75' Mario Lone  82' Mac Cozier | 
| Carolina Dynamo (NC) | 0–0 | Richmond Kickers (VA) | 
|---|---|---|
| Penalties | ||
| 3–1 | ||
Carolina advances to the Division final
Atlantic Semifinal 2
| Charleston Battery (CA) | 1–1 | Hershey Wildcats (PA) | 
|---|---|---|
| Juan Castillo  38' Michael Anhaeuser  50' Patrick Olalere  85' | Report |  78' Mark Waite | 
| Penalties | ||
| 1–3 | ||
| Hershey Wildcats (PA) | 1–1 | Charleston Battery (CA) | 
|---|---|---|
| Lee Tschantret  89' | Report |  Juan Castillo  75' Patrick Olalere | 
| Penalties | ||
| 0–1 | ||
| Hershey Wildcats (PA) | 0–0 | Charleston Battery (CA) | 
|---|---|---|
| Report | ||
| Penalties | ||
| 4–2 | ||
Hershey advances to the Division final
Central Semifinal 1
| Orlando Sundogs (FL) | 1–2 | New Orleans Riverboat Gamblers (LA) | 
|---|---|---|
| Dylan Lewis  ?'  34' Greg Brick  54' | Report |  12', 23' Stern John | 
| New Orleans Riverboat Gamblers (LA) | 6–2 | Orlando Sundogs (FL) | 
|---|---|---|
| Gabe Gentile  2' Stern John  10', 89' Louie Smothermon  23' Mickey Trotman  39' | Report |  29' Sebastian Barnes  67' Sheldon Lee | 
New Orleans advances to the Division final
Central Semifinal 2
| Nashville Metros (TN) | 1–2 | Milwaukee Rampage (WI) | 
|---|---|---|
| Tim Geltz  2' |  81' Nick Igel  85' David Marshall | 
| Milwaukee Rampage (WI) | 3–0 | Nashville Metros (TN) | 
|---|---|---|
| Travis Roy  27' Dan Stebbins  81', 83' | 
Milwaukee advances to the Division final
Pacific Semifinal 1
| Colorado Foxes (CO) | 0–3 | Seattle Sounders (WA) | 
|---|---|---|
| Rivers Guthrie  | Report |  Vicente Figueroa  20' Erik Storkson  26' Mike Gailey  84' (pen.) David Hoggan | 
| Seattle Sounders (WA) | 2–0 | Colorado Foxes (CO) | 
|---|---|---|
| Henry Gutierrez  Vicente Figueroa  Vicente Figueroa  70' Esmundo Rodriguez  89' | Report |  Chad Ashton  87'  88' Ray Tomlin | 
Seattle advances to the Division final
Pacific Semifinal 2
| Vancouver 86ers (BC) | 4–1 | California Jaguars (CA) | 
|---|---|---|
| Domenic Mobilio  2' (pen.)  54' (pen.) Steve Kindel  35' |  86' Paul Holocher | 
| California Jaguars (CA) | 2–2 | Vancouver 86ers (BC) | 
|---|---|---|
| Mark Baena  55' Rick Iversen  89' |  22' Steve Kindel  73' Domenic Mobilio | |
| Penalties | ||
| 1–2 | ||
Vancouver advances to the Division final
Division Finals
Northeast Division final
| Long Island Rough Riders (NY) | 2–1 | Montreal Impact (QC) | 
|---|---|---|
| Hector Wright  4' Flavio Ferri  55' |  5' Lloyd Barker | 
| Montreal Impact (QC) | 2–0 | Long Island Rough Riders (NY) | 
|---|---|---|
| Mauro Biello  34' Lyndon Hooper  77' | 
| Montreal Impact (QC) | 0–0 | Long Island Rough Riders (NY) | 
|---|---|---|
| Penalties | ||
| 1–4 | ||
Atlantic Division final
| Charleston Battery (SC) | 3–3 | Carolina Dynamo (NC) | 
|---|---|---|
| Todd Miller  37' Juan Castillo  52' (pen.) Alvin Boisson  53' |  43' Danny Care  54' John Ball  81' Mike Saunders | |
| Penalties | ||
| 4–3 | ||
| Carolina Dynamo (NC) | 2–1 | Charleston Battery (SC) | 
|---|---|---|
| Maher Atta  29' Yari Allnutt  89' |  27' (pen.) Andy Schmetzer | 
| Carolina Dynamo (NC) | 1–0 | Charleston Battery (SC) | 
|---|---|---|
| Ed Radwanski  12' | 
Central Division final
| Milwaukee Rampage (WI) | 2–1 (OT) | New Orleans Riverboat Gamblers (LA) | 
|---|---|---|
| Nick Igel  81',  92' |  9' Ricardo Blanchard | 
| New Orleans Riverboat Gamblers (LA) | 3–4 | Milwaukee Rampage (WI) | 
|---|---|---|
| Stern John  64' (pen.) Gabe Jones  67' Mickey Trotman  78' |  51' (pen.), 78' (pen.) Jon Szczepanski  60' Dan Stebbins  74' David Marshall | 
Pacific Division final
| Vancouver 86ers (BC) | 3–0 | Seattle Sounders (WA) | 
|---|---|---|
| Craig Dalrymple  Domenic Mobilio  62' Nico Berg  70' Chris Clarke  86' | Report |  Henry Gutierrez  Kieran Barton  Vicente Figueroa | 
Conference finals
Eastern Conference
| Long Island Rough Riders (NY) | 1–2 | Carolina Dynamo (NC) | 
|---|---|---|
| Laurence Piturro  71' |  72', 89' (pen.) Brian Loftin | 
| Carolina Dynamo (NC) | 2–0 | Long Island Rough Riders (NY) | 
|---|---|---|
| Brian Loftin  84' Laurence Piturro  86' (o.g.) | 
The Carolina Dynamo advance.
Western Conference
| Milwaukee Rampage (WI) | 3–1 | Vancouver 86ers (BC) | 
|---|---|---|
| Dan Stebbins  65', 82', 87' |  51' Domenic Mobilio | 
| Vancouver 86ers (BC) | 1–0 | Milwaukee Rampage (WI) | 
|---|---|---|
| Domenic Mobilio  63' (pen.) | 
The Milwaukee Rampage advance, winning two out of three games.
Final
| Milwaukee Rampage (WI) | 1–1 (a.e.t.) | Carolina Dynamo (NC) | 
|---|---|---|
| Dan Stebbins  65' | Report |  80' Brian Loftin | 
| Penalties | ||
| Jon Szczepanski  Dan Stebbins  Nick Igel  | 3–0 |  Maher Atta  Yari Allnutt  Ed Radwanski | 
MVP: Carmine Isacco, Milwaukee Rampage
Points leaders
| Rank | Scorer | Club | Goals | Assists | Points | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Doug Miller | Rochester Rhinos | 23 | 5 | 51 | 
| 2 | Mark Baena | California Jaguars | 20 | 4 | 44 | 
| 3 | Stern John | New Orleans Riverboat Gamblers | 16 | 5 | 37 | 
| 4 | Steve Patterson | Colorado Foxes | 16 | 3 | 35 | 
| 5 | Jamel Mitchell | Nashville Metros | 17 | 0 | 34 | 
| Jimmy Glenn | Rochester Rhinos | 13 | 8 | 34 | |
| 7 | Yari Allnutt | Carolina Dynamo | 12 | 9 | 33 | 
| Domenic Mobilio | Vancouver 86ers | 14 | 5 | 33 | |
| Darren Tilley | Montreal Impact | 13 | 7 | 33 | |
| Gustavo Leal | Orange County Zodiac | 16 | 1 | 33 | |
| 11 | Sebastian Barnes | Orlando Sundogs | 14 | 3 | 31 | 
| 12 | Garret Kusch | Vancouver 86ers | 10 | 10 | 30 | 
| 13 | Mike Gailey | Seattle Sounders | 10 | 7 | 27 | 
| Rob Ukrop | Richmond Kickers | 12 | 3 | 27 | 
Honors
- MVP: Doug Miller
- Leading goal scorer: Doug Miller
- Leading goalkeeper: Dusty Hudock
- Rookie of the Year: Stern John
- Coach of the Year: Bob Lilley
- First Team All League
- Goalkeeper: Dusty Hudock
- Defenders: John Limniatis, Scott Schweitzer, Mark Watson, Travis Rinker
- Midfielders: Yari Allnutt, Mauro Biello, Garret Kusch
- Forwards: Mark Baena, Doug Miller, Stern John
 
- Second Team All League
- Goalkeeper: Paolo Ceccarelli
- Defenders: Don Gramenz, Robert Rosario, Bill Sedgewick, Dian Anguelov
- Midfielders: John Smith, Nick DeSantis, Domenic Mobilio
- Forwards: Steve Patterson, Darren Tilley, Mike Gailey
 
- Organization of the Year: Rochester Raging Rhinos
- Executive of the Year: Todd Smith, Hershey Wildcats
- Fair Play Award: Colorado Foxes
References
- ↑ "The Year in American Soccer – 1996". Archived from the original on July 13, 2013. Retrieved August 8, 2011.