Newsmaker
GRANGER — Pinnacle Sports co-owner Earl Stalter has acquired the Cleveland Internationals W-League soccer franchise. The W-League is the highest level of women’s outdoor soccer operated by the United Soccer Leagues (USL) in the United States and Canada. Previously owned by the Internationals Soccer Club Inc., the team will retain its name and be based out of the Pinnacle Sports Complex at 313 Medina Road. Stalter will serve as general manager, while Zdravko Popovic will continue as the team’s coach. Former Jackson High School star Keri Sarver will move to assistant coach this year from her previous role as team captain. The Internationals will play its home matches at various sites in 2007 but anticipate playing at Pinnacle Sports Complex in 2008. The announcement follows the formation of a partnership between Pinnacle Sports and America SCORES Cleveland to build a soccer field at the Pinnacle site, financed in part by a $100,000 grant from the U.S. Soccer Foundation. The Internationals’ W-League entry has compiled an aggregate 25-15-1 mark during the past three seasons and qualified for the playoffs in 2005. The 2007 campaign features a 35-team format in four conferences playing 12 or 14 regular season matches. Some of the top women’s players in the world compete in the USL’s W-League during the summer months. The Internationals will open its 2007 W-League season June 1 against the Chicago Gaels at St. Edward’s High School in Lakewood. Additional home matches are scheduled at John Carroll University and Valley View Woods Field. For more information, visit www. uslsoccer.com and click on W-League.
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