Augusta FireBall continue to turn up heat on pitch

With an undefeated 5-0-1 record, the Augusta FireBall are blazing through the Professional Development League. The soccer team picked up another win last weekend with a 2-1 victory in Nashville, Tenn., and hopes to do the same to finish the week with games on Thursday and Sunday.

FireBall head coach Alec Papadakis said the success that his team has seen this season isn't a surprise.

"I knew right away that we had a very talented team," he said. "The unknown was whether they had the chemistry to play as a team. Every game the answer's becoming more obvious."

The FireBall will hit the road Thursday for a game against the Atlanta Silverbacks - a team Augusta already has defeated once this season.

The Fireball will then return home for an important South Atlantic Division rematch against Raleigh on Father's Day. Raleigh also has fallen victim to the FireBall this season.

A pair of Augusta wins this weekend would put the FireBall a few steps closer to clinching a playoff berth in their first year of postseason eligibility.

"Every game is important right now," Papadakis said. "When you're undefeated, every team is gunning for you. As a coach, I cannot afford to look beyond the next game."

Papadakis said he hopes to have midfielder Karl Dix back in the lineup by the weekend. Dix scored a goal in the FireBall's win over Nashville last weekend but later left with a foot injury. Papadakis said the foot was only bruised.

Sunday's home game against Raleigh will be held at Patriots Park starting at 3 p.m. FireBall Director of Operations Phil Sines said as part of the Father's Day celebration, all fathers with children will get into the game for free.

Super-Y League kicks off

Sunday's Augusta FireBall game won't be the only soccer played at Patriots Park over the weekend. Friday marks the beginning of the Augusta FireBall United Super-Y League for select girls and boys ages 12-17. The league is the first of its kind in Columbia County and will take place at Patriots Park with six games Friday and four Sunday.