ST. LOUIS, MO (September 9, 2010) – AC St. Louis, playing in the USSF Division 2 Pro League, will have one last shot at beating the NSC Minnesota Stars this Saturday night, September 11, at The Anheuser-Busch Soccer Park. Kick-off is set for 7:10 p.m. CDT. The game can be viewed live via web streaming at www.ac-stlouis.com. This is the fourth and final meeting between these two clubs in league play this season, and the game has clear-cut playoff implications.

AC St. Louis enters Saturday night’s match just two points behind Minnesota in the playoff standings. The top eight teams in the league will make the USSF Division 2 Playoffs, and Minnesota currently sits tied for eighth with the Tampa Bay Rowdies. A win could mean St. Louis catapults past Minnesota, as well as Tampa, into eighth place, depending on the result of Tampa Bay’s match against Rochester. But beating Minnesota has proved to be the toughest obstacle AC St. Louis has faced all season.

AC St. Louis holds a record of 0-1-2 in three league games against the Stars so far. St. Louis did post a 1-0 victory over Minnesota in the second round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup back in June, so this team is indeed capable of beating the Stars. However, it is the way that AC St. Louis has arrived at the 0-1-2 record against Minnesota that makes this last encounter especially interesting. In the three games played AC St. Louis has held a late lead only to allow goals in the 87th minute, 90th minute, and 90th minute again. Minnesota has denied St. Louis a possible five extra points with those late goals, five points which now loom large in this team’s playoff hopes. That is a trend AC St. Louis knows they will have to stop this Saturday night.

“We have to stop them from scoring in the last couple minutes, or in stoppage time,” declared Head Coach Dale Schilly. “Minnesota is a good matchup for us. They want to put the ball on the ground and play. The key questions for us are can we put them out of the game earlier, or have we matured enough to manage the last couple minutes of the game?”

The answer to one of those questions lies with the team’s two leading scorers, Mike Ambersley and Luke Kreamalmeyer. The duo has tallied a total of 13 of AC St. Louis’ 25 goals. Including Kreamalmeyer’s five assists the duo has been directly involved in 18 of the teams 23 goals scored – excluding two own goals. Amberlsey and Kreamalmeyer have proven to be consistent contributors to the score sheet, and their ability to create a goal or finish off a chance will be in high demand this Saturday night. The same is true on the other end of the field as goalkeeper Alec Dufty will be needing to have one of his best performances of the year.

“I think for us to finally beat Minnesota it is going to take a full team effort for 90 minutes,” said Kreamalmeyer. “We will need to outwork them on the field, and to a better job of finishing off the game. We simply need to be more composed in the last ten minutes of games, and do a better job holding onto the lead.”

The St. Louis defense will be without central defender Chris Schuler, who was recalled by Real Salt Lake of the MLS, thereby ending his loan spell. However, the St. Louis backline is healthy, and eager to prove they can withstand the late challenges Minnesota will surely bring.

“This game could be different than all the other games we have had with Minnesota,” reflected Schilly. “It could be a low scoring game just because of what is riding on this particular match. We have a hurdle to overcome with holding onto leads. Three points would mean a lot to this team because they have invested a lot of effort to get here, and they have bought into everything this coaching staff is trying to do. It is a huge three points for these guys, and not just from a playoff perspective but from a professional perspective to reward the commitment they have shown.”

Saturday night’s match is Armed Forces Appreciation Night. All military personnel will receive a free ticket with a proper ID.

AC St. Louis next returns home on Saturday, September 18, against the Austin Aztex. Tickets for the match are still available. Call 1-888-STL-GOAL or visit www.ac-stlouis.com.