PEORIA — The Peoria City delivered a drama-filled performance over the weekend in the USL2 playoffs , and now the second-year team will move on to a bigger stage.
Shea Stadium will again serve as host site for multiple playoff games in the upcoming weekend, as Peoria City hosts the Flint City Bucks in the Central Conference Finals.
That match will be at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Shea. Before that is a 3:30 p.m. Western Conference Finals between Project 510 and FC Tucson. The 510 club is based in Oakland, while Tucson will travel from Arizona. The winner of that match will face the winner of the Peoria-Flint City match on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. in the USL2 national semifinals.
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How Peoria City got here
Peoria outlasted rival and division winner Des Moines on Sunday in a 5-5 (4-2 on penalty kicks) decision at Shea. That victory came two days after a 2-0 home win over the Thunder Bay Chill.
On Sunday, Peoria City got two goals from scoring ace Luke Persenico against Des Moines, whom they played to two tie decisions in in regular-season matches. Persenico finished the regular season with 11 goals, the 15th-most among the 128 teams in the USL2.
Peoria gave up a goal in extra time Sunday to fall behind, 5-4. The City literally were saved at the last second when Peoria-born Fritz Volmar scored on what officials ruled was the last touch of extra time at 2:45, knotting the game at 5-5 and forcing penalty kicks.
Washington native and former Notre Dame High School star Myles Sophanavong , now on the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay roster, sent a penalty kick into the net to seal the victory and advance Peoria to this weekend's playoff rounds.
Just the ticket
Tickets for Friday's conference finals (Project 510 vs FC Tucson and Peoria vs Flint City Bucks) are at early bird pricing through 11:59 p.m. Wednesday. Those prices are $6 for general admission; $10 for Shea Brigade End Zone; $18 for Field Side Grandstand, and $30 for Volkswagen Peoria Field Side Club.
From Thursday on, prices shift upward to $8, $12, $20 and $40. Tickets can be purchased through the team's website . Tickets for Sunday's league national semifinals are $10, $12, $20 and $40.
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About Flint City
The Bucks went 10-3-1 this season to win the Great Lakes Division in the USL2. Their roster includes four players from the University of Michigan, including goalkeeper Jacob Nunner, plus three players from Michigan State, four from Marshall and three from Wright State.
They play at Atwood Stadium in Flint, Mich.
The head coach is Paul Doroh, who is head coach at Oakland University. Flint's leading scorer is Ault Palmer , a Butler University product who has 5 goals and 10 assists in 11 games for the Bucks this season.
Dave Eminian is the Journal Star sports columnist, and covers Bradley men's basketball, the Rivermen and Chiefs. He writes the Cleve In The Eve sports column for pjstar.com. He can be reached at 686-3206 or deminian@pjstar.com. Follow him on X.com @icetimecleve.
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Inside Peoria City soccer's dramatic playoff weekend and what it means
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