# 1990–91 Major Soccer League season

The 1990–91 Major Soccer League season was the 13th and penultimate in league history and would end with the San Diego Sockers winning their ninth NASL or MISL title in ten indoor seasons and fourth MISL title in a row.

## Recap

This was the first offseason in MISL history that did not have any franchise movement or collapse. After the season, however, the Kansas City Comets folded. In a nod to the burgeoning nationwide interest in outdoor soccer after the 1990 World Cup, the league's name was changed on July 24. Also, Commissioner Earl Foreman was selected to chair the United States Soccer Federation's exploratory committee for a first-division outdoor league.

## Teams

| Team | City/Area | Arena |
| Baltimore Blast | Baltimore, Maryland | Baltimore Arena |
| Cleveland Crunch | Cleveland, Ohio | Richfield Coliseum |
| Dallas Sidekicks | Dallas, Texas | Reunion Arena |
| Kansas City Comets | Kansas City, Missouri | Kemper Arena |
| San Diego Sockers | San Diego, California | San Diego Sports Arena |
| St. Louis Storm | St. Louis, Missouri | St. Louis Arena |
| Tacoma Stars | Tacoma, Washington | Tacoma Dome |
| Wichita Wings | Wichita, Kansas | Kansas Coliseum |

## Regular Season Schedule

The 1990–91 regular season schedule ran from October 19, 1990, to April 7, 1991. The 52 games per team was unchanged from the 1989–90 schedule.

## Final standings

Playoff teams in bold.
| Eastern Division | W | L | Pct. | GB | GF | GA | Home | Road |
| Cleveland Crunch | 29 | 23 | .558 | -- | 326 | 280 | 20-6 | 9-17 |
| Kansas City Comets | 26 | 26 | .500 | 3 | 263 | 283 | 17-9 | 9-17 |
| Wichita Wings | 21 | 31 | .408 | 8 | 257 | 308 | 17-9 | 4-22 |
| Baltimore Blast | 21 | 31 | .408 | 8 | 298 | 315 | 15-11 | 6-20 |
| Western Division | W | L | Pct. | GB | GF | GA | Home | Road |
| San Diego Sockers | 34 | 18 | .654 | -- | 302 | 250 | 20-6 | 14-12 |
| St. Louis Storm | 32 | 20 | .615 | 2 | 320 | 288 | 20-6 | 12-14 |
| Tacoma Stars | 25 | 27 | .481 | 9 | 254 | 259 | 17-9 | 8-18 |
| Dallas Sidekicks | 20 | 32 | .385 | 14 | 257 | 294 | 11-15 | 9-17 |

## Playoffs

| Division Semifinals | Division Semifinals | Division Semifinals | Division Finals | Division Finals | Division Finals | Championship Series | Championship Series | Championship Series |
| E2 | Kansas City Comets | 2 | | | | | | |
| E3 | Wichita Wings | 0 | | | | | | |
| E3 | Wichita Wings | 0 | E1 | Cleveland Crunch | 4 | | | |
| | | | E2 | Kansas City Comets | 3 | | | |
| | | | | | | E1 | Cleveland Crunch | 2 |
| | | | | | | W1 | San Diego Sockers | 4 |
| W2 | St. Louis Storm | 2 | | | | | | | W1 | San Diego Sockers | 4 |
| W3 | Tacoma Stars | 0 | | | | | | |
| W3 | Tacoma Stars | 0 | W1 | San Diego Sockers | 4 | | | |
| | | | W2 | St. Louis Storm | 1 | | | |

### Division Semifinals

Kansas City vs. Wichita :
| Date | Away | Home | Attendance |
| April 12 | Wichita 0 | Kansas City 6 | 6,144 |
| April 14 | Kansas City 9 | Wichita 8 | 4,737 |
| Kansas City wins series 2-0 ||||
St. Louis vs. Tacoma :
| Date | Away | Home | Attendance |
| April 9 | Tacoma 2 | St. Louis 9 | 5,832 |
| April 11 | St. Louis 3 | Tacoma 4 | 2,760 |
| | Gary Heale scored at 1:30 of overtime | Gary Heale scored at 1:30 of overtime | Gary Heale scored at 1:30 of overtime |
| April 13 | Tacoma 2 | St. Louis 9 | 7,084 |
| St. Louis wins series 2-1 ||||

### Division Finals

Cleveland vs. Kansas City :
| Date | Away | Home | Attendance |
| April 18 | Kansas City 2 | Cleveland 7 | 5,357 |
| April 20 | Kansas City 5 | Cleveland 7 | 10,021 |
| April 24 | Cleveland 6 | Kansas City 7 | 4,639 |
| | Carl Valentine scored at 11:26 of overtime | Carl Valentine scored at 11:26 of overtime | Carl Valentine scored at 11:26 of overtime |
| April 26 | Cleveland 5 | Kansas City 4 | 9,451 |
| April 28 | Cleveland 4 | Kansas City 5 | 3,889 |
| | Ted Eck scored at 4:27 of overtime | Ted Eck scored at 4:27 of overtime | Ted Eck scored at 4:27 of overtime |
| May 1 | Kansas City 8 | Cleveland 6 | 7,239 |
| May 4 | Kansas City 6 | Cleveland 7 | 12,718 |
| Cleveland wins series 4-3 ||||
San Diego vs. St. Louis :
| Date | Away | Home | Attendance |
| April 18 | St. Louis 6 | San Diego 9 | 5,157 |
| April 20 | St. Louis 4 | San Diego 5 | 8,534 |
| | Rod Castro scored at 3:58 of overtime | Rod Castro scored at 3:58 of overtime | Rod Castro scored at 3:58 of overtime |
| April 21 | San Diego 4 | St. Louis 5 | 5,751 |
| April 25 | San Diego 11 | St. Louis 4 | 4,633 |
| April 27 | San Diego 7 | St. Louis 4 | 6,032 |
| San Diego wins series 4-1 ||||

### Championship Series

San Diego vs. Cleveland :
| Date | Away | Home | Attendance |
| May 10 | Cleveland 4 | San Diego 8 | 7,785 |
| May 12 | Cleveland 4 | San Diego 3 | 6,996 |
| May 17 | San Diego 6 | Cleveland 5 | 14,571 |
| May 19 | San Diego 5 | Cleveland 7 | 10,831 |
| May 21 | San Diego 6 | Cleveland 1 | 12,102 |
| May 23 | Cleveland 6 | San Diego 8 | 12,073 |
| San Diego wins series 4-2 ||||

### Scoring leaders

GP = Games Played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts |
| Tatu | Dallas Sidekicks | 51 | 78 | 66 | 144 |
| Zoran Karic | Cleveland Crunch | 47 | 73 | 48 | 121 |
| Preki | St Louis Storm | 52 | 68 | 53 | 121 |
| Jan Goossens | Kansas City Comets | 41 | 53 | 58 | 111 |
| Hector Marinaro | Cleveland Crunch | 45 | 63 | 44 | 107 |
| Thompson Usiyan | St Louis Storm | 51 | 64 | 38 | 102 |
| Dale Ervine | Wichita Wings | 52 | 62 | 30 | 92 |
| Dale Mitchell | Baltimore Blast | 51 | 42 | 40 | 82 |
| Domenic Mobolio | Baltimore Blast | 50 | 49 | 33 | 82 |
| Brian Quinn | San Diego Sockers | 45 | 19 | 55 | 74 |

## All-MISL Teams

| First Team | Position | Second Team |
| Victor Nogueira, San Diego | G | Cris Vaccaro, Tacoma |
| Kevin Crow, San Diego | D | Bernie James, Cleveland |
| Fernando Clavijo, St Louis | D | Ralph Black, Tacoma |
| Zoran Karic, Cleveland | M | Brian Quinn, San Diego |
| Tatu, Dallas | F | Thompson Usiyan, St Louis |
| Preki, St Louis | F | Jan Goossens, Kansas City |

## League awards

Most Valuable Player: Victor Nogueira, San Diego
Scoring Champion: Tatu, Dallas
Pass Master: Tatu, Dallas
Defender of the Year: Kevin Crow, San Diego
Rookie of the Year: David Banks, San Diego
Newcomer of the Year: Paul Peschisolido, Kansas City
Goalkeeper of the Year: Victor Nogueira, San Diego
Coach of the Year: Trevor Dawkins, Cleveland
Championship Series Most Valuable Player: Ben Collins, San Diego
Championship Series Unsung Hero: Glenn Carbonara, San Diego

## Team Attendance Totals

| Club | Games | Total | Average |
| St. Louis Storm | 26 | 200,769 | 7,722 |
| Baltimore Blast | 26 | 193,223 | 7,432 |
| San Diego Sockers | 26 | 187,000 | 7,192 |
| Kansas City Comets | 26 | 184,678 | 7,103 |
| Dallas Sidekicks | 26 | 179,864 | 6,918 |
| Wichita Wings | 26 | 164,033 | 6,309 |
| Tacoma Stars | 26 | 142,523 | 5,482 |
| Cleveland Crunch | 26 | 120,630 | 4,640 |
| OVERALL | 208 | 1,372,720 | 6,600 |