[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 17]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 23639-23640]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       TRIBUTE TO THE LAREDO HEAT

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. HENRY CUELLAR

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, September 5, 2007

  Mr. CUELLAR. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the players, 
coaches, owners and staff of the Laredo Heat Soccer Club in their 
stunning 4-3 victory rematch against the Michigan Bucks in the 2007 
Premier Development League soccer final.
  The story of the Laredo Heat Soccer Club is of a team that fought 
against the odds to receive the PDL Championship. The pivotal moment 
came when the Laredo Heat played

[[Page 23640]]

against the Michigan Bucks, a team that they had lost a game to the 
previous year. The excitement of the crowd exploded when goalkeeper 
Ryan Cooper registered 2 saves as the game went into the sixth round of 
penalty kicks and finished 4-3 in favor of the Heat. Coopers' efforts 
would gamer the PDL Championship MVP honors.
  In the final seconds of the game, 16-year-old Laredoan Felix Garcia 
became the star of the night as he buried the winning spot kick in the 
sixth round, thus ensuring the U.S. PDL Championship for the Laredo 
Heat. Theirs was a story that echoed the classic underdog against the 
presumptive winner, but due to remarkable coaching by Coach Collazo and 
his coaching staff, hard work by staff and owners, Shashi and Priya 
Vaswani, and of course the determination of these talented and hard 
working players to win, they came out on top. I am very proud that 
these remarkable players have won the PDL Championship, and that they 
are from Laredo in my congressional district.
  Madam Speaker, I am honored to recognize the Laredo Heat Soccer Club 
team, and I thank you for this time.

                          ____________________