Paul Kowalczyk

Miami FC vs. Cleveland SC

This Saturday, Miami FC will host Cleveland SC in the NPSL National Semifinal game at Florida International University’s Soccer Stadium at 7:00 p.m. ET. Miami, who is coming off a 12 game win-streak with a +33 goal differential in the regular season, is my pick to move on to the finals. Cleveland won’t back down easy, however, coming off a win decided by penalty kicks against one of the best teams in the NPSL, Detroit City FC.

Earlier today, the NPSL 2019 Team of the Year was announced with Miguel Gonzalez and Dylan Mares from Miami FC making the XI as well as Antonio Manfut from Cleveland SC. With each team ranked in the Top 5 of both the NPSL.com Power Rankings and GSMU rankings, it will definitely be an exciting game to watch. The winner of this game will play the winner of the NY Cosmos v ASC San Diego game which will be on August 3rd.

My score prediction for the game: 3-1 Miami FC

Dan Creel

UPSL National Semifinal

On Saturday, Florida’s Tropics SC battle Milwaukee’s Bavarian SC in what should be a great game. Tropics are on a 16-game UPSL win streak. They took the UPSL Florida Central West with an 11-0-0 record and have won all five of their playoff games.

Bavarian’s 6-1-1 record in the Central Division may pale in comparison to the Tropics, but that doesn’t nearly tell the whole story. The Milwaukee crew have won all three of their playoff games including a 10-1 drubbing of a good Vlora City FC club. And, this season, the Bavarians have also made runs at the USASA’s Amateur Cup and Steinbrecher Cup which shows their pedigree runs deeper than just league play.

My guess is that this will be a tight, back-and-forth battle. And, I’ll take the winner of this semifinal to be crowned the 2019 UPSL champions.

Both semis and the final will be played at Kangaroo Stadium in Weatherford, Texas.

Shawn Laird

Bavarians SC vs. Tropics SC

While the NPSL playoffs are ongoing, with some of the strongest teams in recent years tearing up the competition, the UPSL has quietly gone about their business with their own playoffs. This weekend, perennial powerhouse and eight time National Champions Bavarians SC take on Tropics SC, a first year surprise still turning heads, in the UPSL national semifinals in Texas.

Bavarians SC clinically tore through their conference during the regular season, going 6-1-1, scoring 22 goals and only allowing five. They carried that form through the playoffs outscoring their opponents 18-3 through three matches.

However, they face some stiff competition in Tropics SC.

Tropics SC, for their part, have absolutely destroyed the Florida Central West Division in their inaugural season. They went undefeated, scoring an astounding 37 goals while allowing four goals along the way. Like Bavarians, Tropics SC continued to destroy the competition through the playoffs. Through five matches, Tropics has scored 14 goals and giving up only three goals.

Overall, both clubs’ defenses have been their bread and butter throughout this long journey but I believe this match will come down to penalties. In the end, I have to give the edge to the newcomers, Tropics SC, on penalties 4-3.