The whistle blows for a foul on the Baltimore Blast?s offensive end of the field. The opposing defense scrambles to set up a wall and find a man todefend. The Blast gets into position for a free kick. Who gets the ball to re-start play?
Robbie Aristodemo.
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On a team full of all-stars and standout scorers, Aristodemo is often the overlooked man on offense. But Aristodemo leads the Blast (15-9) with 15 assists and is third on the club with 37 points.
“I?m more of a passer than a scorer for sure,” said Aristodemo, 29, who played point guard for his high school basketball team in Canada.
Aristodemo enjoys the role of being the unofficial point guard for the Blast power play and the free-kick specialist on most of the team?s set plays.
“We?ve struggled a bit on set pieces because younger guys may not know where to be on the field,” Blast coach Danny Kelly said. “We still need to improve on our free kicks, and that?s one area where Robbie has helped us out.”
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On Sunday at California, Aristodemo recorded a pair of assists in an 8-6 Blast win, helping the team to sole possession of first place with a half-game lead over Philadelphia (15-10) and Detroit (15-10), where Baltimore travels this week for a Friday night game.
Kelly also credits Aristodemo with doing some of the “dirty work” that doesn?t always show up in the score sheet. Despite being an excellent distributor on offense, Aristodemo takes pride in his defense ? evident in his 14 blocks, which ranks fifth on the team.
“The guys in the locker room know what kind of job he does,” Kelly said. “And you don?t win ballgames without guys doing that.”
Aristodemo, like a number of talented players in the Major Indoor Soccer League, also plays outdoor soccer in the summer. His team is the Toronto Lynx of the United Soccer League. Torontois where Aristodemo gained experience and sharp vision for reading the opposing defense.
“A lot of times, it?s just playing the percentages,” Aristodemo said of creating opportunities for teammates on set plays. “Use the five seconds, see what the defense is giving you and go from there.”
THE ARISTODEMO FILE
» Age: 29
» Position: Midfield
» Number: 20
» Hometown: Etobicoke, Canada
» Did you know? Aristodemo and his wife, Carrie, have a 1-year-old daughter named Zallie ? Aristodemo was chosen with the eighth overall pick in the 2005 dispersal draft, when the Blast plucked him from Cleveland ? Aristodemo has 57 career assists in 139 games with San Diego, Cleveland and Baltimore.
