RAPIDS FACE DO-OR-DIE GAME 3 IN DALLAS WEDNESDAY

Pivotal Quarterfinal Match at Cotton Bowl to Air Live on Fox Sports Rocky Mountain

DENVER (Monday, September 30, 2002) - The Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer will look to advance past arch-rival Dallas Burn when the two teams meet in the deciding game of the quarterfinal playoff series on Wednesday night at 6:30 p.m. at the Cotton Bowl. The first-to-five-points series is now tied at three points each.

With the thrilling late-game win over Dallas on Saturday at INVESCO Field, momentum swings back in favor of the Rapids, who will need to snap a five-game losing streak in Texas to advance. The Rapids and Burn have already met seven times this season in league, US Open Cup and playoff play, with Dallas holding a 4-2-1 advantage in head-to-head meetings.

The winner of the game will advance to the semifinals where they will square off against the winner of the Kansas City Wizards-Los Angeles Galaxy series for a spot in MLS Cup 2002, which will be played at New England's Gillette Stadium on Sunday, October 20 at 11:30 a.m. MT.

CRUCIAL GAME 3 LIVE ON FOX SPORTS ROCKY MOUNTAIN WEDNESDAY

The all-important match against Dallas on Wednesday will be shown live across the Front Range at 6:30 p.m. on Fox Sports Rocky Mountain. Be sure to tune in and catch Marc Stout and Dave Dir call the action from the Cotton Bowl.

PLAYOFF VIEWING PARTY AT CROC'S

While the team is in Texas battling the Burn, Rapids fans will again be at CROC'S, the team's official "Home Away From Home," for the viewing party. Featuring a giant screen and more than a dozen televisions around the restaurant showing the game, CROC's (located at 1630 Market St. in LoDo) is the perfect place to catch all the action. Also on Wednesday, CROC'S will feature $1.99 margaritas and $.99 tacos for soccer fans that join in the fun.

CARRIERI SAVES THE DAY, AGAIN

In what has become a regular feature of Rapids games this year, it was once again Chris Carrieri who saved the day with a late goal, this time against the Burn on Saturday. His first playoff goal, scored in the 78th minute, was the deciding margin of victory for the Rapids. Of Carrieri's 12 total goals this season, 6 have come in the final 15 minutes of the game, including an amazing five in the final eight minutes of regulation. Among his six game-winning goals are a pair of late strikes against Dallas (78th minute on Saturday and 87th minute on Sept. 1), an 87th minute winner against Chicago (July 4), and an 88th minute decider against the MetroStars.

TWO MORE PLAYOFF SERIES TO BE DECIDED ON WEDNESDAY

In addition to the third game of the Colorado-Dallas series, two more quarterfinal series will be decided on Wednesday, as the Kansas City-Los Angeles and New England-Chicago winners will be determined. The Kansas City Wizards forced a third game at the Rose Bowl with a convincing 4-1 home win over the Galaxy on Saturday, while the Fire evened the series with New England on Sunday. The New England-Chicago winner will meet Columbus in the semifinals after the Crew knocked off defending champs San Jose in two games.

RAPIDS PLAYOFF WIN IS FIRST SINCE 1997

Colorado's 1-0 quarterfinal playoff win over Dallas was the team's first post-season victory since October 15, 1997 when Chris Henderson's spectacular 87th minute goal gave the Rapids a 2-1 victory and a spot in the MLS Cup. That win capped an amazing run of four consecutive playoff wins for the underdog Rapids, with the last two coming over the Dallas Burn. All-time the Rapids have a 3-1 record against the Burn in post-season play, including a 1-0 shutout in the first playoff meeting between the teams at the Cotton Bowl in 1997.

KRAMER SHUTOUT AGAINST BURN IS THIRD WITH COLORADO

On Saturday Colorado goalkeeper David Kramer registered his third shutout against the Dallas Burn in six starts since joining the club via trade from San Jose in 2000. Kramer has allowed only eight goals in those six games (1.33 goals against average) and has posted a 4-1-1 record against Dallas.

RAPIDS ANNOUNCE 2002 AWARD WINNERS

The Colorado Rapids announced their annual regular-season award winners on Saturday, naming the recipients of the Honda Most Valuable Player, ADT Defensive Player of the Year, Budweiser Scoring Champion, and US Soccer Foundation Humanitarian of the Year. Mark Chung took home a pair of trophies, capturing the Honda Most Valuable Player and the Budweiser Scoring Championship. Rick Titus walked away with the ADT Defensive Player of the Year award and Steve Shak earned the US Soccer Federation Humanitarian of the Year honor. While the Budweiser Scoring Championship is determined by a player's point total during the year, the other three awards were selected by members of the local media, who voted following the conclusion of the season.

THE WEEK AHEAD

Monday, Sept. 30 - 10:00 a.m. training at Westminster Training Center
Tuesday, Oct. 1 - 8:30 a.m. training at Westminster Training Center
Tuesday, Oct. 1 - 12:45 p.m. flight to Dallas (United #1612 arrives DFW 3:32 p.m.)
Wednesday, Oct 2 - 6:30 p.m. MT match v. Dallas Burn
Thursday, Oct. 3 - 9:30 a.m. flight to Denver (United #453 arrives DIA 10:30 a.m.)

INJURY REPORT
Scott Garlick - OUT - left thumb fracture

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