Wichita Wings
 | |
| Founded | 1979–2001 |
|---|---|
| Stadium | Kansas Coliseum |
| Capacity | 9,681 |
The Wichita Wings were a professional indoor soccer franchise based in Wichita, Kansas. The Wings were admitted to the Major Indoor Soccer League as an expansion team on August 21, 1979.[1] They played in the Kansas Coliseum, a venue that featured a 200-by-85-foot field and seating for 9,681 fans.
When the MISL (which had since been renamed the Major Soccer League) folded in 1992, the Wings moved to the National Professional Soccer League. At the time the Wings folded, after the 2000–2001 season, they were the oldest professional soccer franchise in the United States. Despite having some of the best records in US indoor soccer, the Wings never won a league championship or reached the league finals.
A new team named after the Wichita Wings began play in the 2011–12 season and shut down after the 2012–2013 season. They were in turn replaced by a new team called the Wichita B-52s who play in the Major Arena Soccer League.
The team hosted the NPSL All-Star Game in 1996 and 1999.
Ownership and staff
Mike Ferguson – General Manager- Dave Phillips – General Manager
- Randy Johnson – Owner (1999-01)
- Shirley Johnson – Owner (1999-01)
Statistics
| Head Coaches:[1] | |
|---|---|
| Roy Turner | 1979–86 |
| Charlie Cooke | 1986–88 (27 games into 1987–88 season) |
| Terry Nichol | 1988–91 (33 games into 1990–91 season) |
| Roy Turner | 1991–94 |
| Kim Roentved | 1994–98 |
| Kevin Kewley | 1998–2001 |
Coaching staff
- Sammy Lane – Assistant Coach
| Wings MISL or NPSL Yearly Award Winners | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1980–81 | Jørgen Kristensen | MISL Pass Master (most assists) |
| 1983–84 | Kim Røntved | Defender of the Year |
| 1984–85 | Kim Røntved | Defender of the Year |
| 1987–88 | Erik Rasmussen | Most Valuable Player |
| 1987–88 | Erik Rasmussen | Scoring Champion |
| 1987–88 | Nenad Zigante | Newcomer of the Year |
| 1988–89 | Hernan "Chico" Borja | MISL Pass Master (most assists) |
| 1996–97 | Jason Dunn | NPSL Rookie of the Year |
| 1999–2000 | James Dunn | NPSL Defender of the Year |
| 2000–2001 | James Dunn | NPSL Defender of the Year |
| Wings MISL All-Time Regular Season Career Leaders | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Category | Player | Rank | Record |
| Points | Hernan "Chico" Borja | #8 | 612 |
| Goals | Andy Chapman | #8 | 307 |
| Assists | Hernan "Chico" Borja | #4 (tied) | 338 |
| Assists | Jørgen Kristensen | #10 | 271 |
| Games Played | Kim Røntved | #1 | 494 |
| Games Played | Andy Chapman | #5 | 444 |
| Goalkeeper Games Played | Mike Dowler | #2 | 387 |
| Goalkeeper Games Played | Cris Vaccaro | #3 | 374 |
| Goalkeeper Games Played | Scott Manning | #3 | 353 |
| Goalkeeper Games Played | Keith Van Eron | #8 | 249 |
| Goalkeeper Wins | Mike Dowler | #1 | 197 |
| Goalkeeper Wins | Cris Vaccaro | #2 | 196 |
| Goalkeeper Wins | Scott Manning | #4 | 171 |
| Goalkeeper Wins | Keith Van Eron | #8 | 139 |
| Goals Against Average (Min. 9,500 minutes played) | David Brcic | #5 | 4.21 |
| Goals Against Average (Min. 9,500 minutes played) | Keith Van Eron | #10 | 4.3979 |
| Year | Division | Record | Playoffs | Average Home Attendance[2] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) | ||||
| 1979–80 | Central | 16–16 | Semifinals: Houston defeated Wichita in 2 games 5–4(OT), 4–3 | 3,851 |
| 1980–81 | Western | 23–17 | Semifinals: St. Louis defeated Wichita 8–7(SO) | 5,825 |
| 1981–82 | Western | 27–21 | Semifinals: St. Louis defeated Wichita in 3 games 10–5, 6–7(OT), 4–1 | 7,301 |
| 1982–83 | Western | 27–21 | Semifinals: San Diego defeated Wichita in 3 games 8–5, 5–2, 4–3 | 8,341 |
| 1983–84 | Western | 25–23 | Semifinals: St. Louis defeated Wichita in 3 games 4–3, 7–6, 5–4(OT) | 9,034 |
| 1984–85 | Western | 21–26 | Wildcard: Minnesota defeated Wichita in 3 games 2–1, 3–8, 3–2(OT) | 8,710 |
| 1985–86 | Western | 27–21 | Quarterfinals: Tacoma defeated Wichita in 4 games 5–6, 5–4, 5–4(OT), 3–2 | 8,447 |
| 1986–87 | Western | 27–25 | Division Semifinals: Tacoma defeated Wichita in 5 games 9–7, 9–1, 3–10, 2–6, 4–2 | 8,069 |
| 1987–88 | Western | 23–23 | Did not qualify | 9,003 |
| 1988–89 | N/A | 23–25 | Semifinals: Baltimore defeated Wichita in 6 games 5–4(OT), 6–4, 6–4, 3–6, 5–7, 11–1 | 8,635 |
| 1989–90 | Eastern | 26–26 | Division Semifinals: Kansas City defeated Wichita in 4 games 5–4, 4–3, 3–4, 5–4 | 7,445 |
| 1990–91 | Eastern | 21–31 | Division Semifinals: Kansas City defeated Wichita in 2 games 6–0, 9–8 | 6,309 |
| 1991–92 | N/A | 18–22 | Did not qualify | 8,206 |
| National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) | ||||
| 1992–93 | National | 27–13 | Quarterfinals: St. Louis defeated Wichita in 2 games 17–15(OT), 18–16(OT) | 5,516 |
| 1993–94 | National | 22–18 | First Round: Detroit defeated Wichita in 2 games 15–14, 19–16 | 6,672 |
| 1994–95 | National | 17–23 | Did not qualify | 5,817 |
| 1995–96 | National | 20–20 | Division Semifinals: Kansas City defeated Wichita in 2 games 10–9, 11–9 | 5,075 |
| 1996–97 | Midwest | 24–16 | Conference Quarterfinals: Kansas City defeated Wichita in 3 games 13–11, 13–14, 22–5 | 5,210 |
| 1997–98 | Midwest | 22–18 | Conference Finals: St. Louis defeated Wichita in 4 games 17–9, 10–8, 21–14, 19–11 | 5,426 |
| 1998–99 | Midwest | 18–22 | Conference Quarterfinals: Kansas City defeated Wichita in 3 games 18–10, 14–16(2 OT), 21–10 | 3,602 |
| 1999–2000 | Midwest | 21–23 | Conference Semifinals: Milwaukee defeated Wichita in 2 games 21–8, 9–6 | 3,573 |
| 2000–01 | National | 18–21 | Conference Semifonals: Toronto defeated Wichita in 3 games | 3,633 |
| Wichita Wings folded after the 2001 season and the NPSL reformed as the Major Indoor Soccer League (II) | ||||
Arenas
The Kansas Coliseum (Britt Brown Arena)
During home games in the mid-late 1980s, the Wings used the "Gonna Fly Now" theme from the movie "Rocky" to celebrate Wings' goals. For some time this music was also used for player introductions.
External links
References
- 1 2 Sidekicks Opponents: Wichita Wings at KicksFan.com
- ↑ MISL: Wichita Wings at OurSportsCentral.com