City: Baltimore, MD

Category: Spectator Sports

Telephone: (410) 732-5278

Address: 201 West Baltimore St.

Description: The Baltimore Blast may be a top-scoring soccer team but Baltimoreans often don’t seem to notice. Usually disappointed by the Baltimore Orioles or engrossed by the Baltimore Ravens, city residents don’t seem to notice that right there in the Baltimore Arena, the local franchise of the National Professional Soccer League is winning games—and they’re making it look like a lot of fun. This is a championship franchise that topped the rest in 1984, 2003, 2004, and 2006. Baltimore has had a professional indoor soccer team since 1980. Indoor soccer is played November through March on a modified hockey rink covered with artificial turf. The team features mostly American players, often drafting players from college. While the team is international, a couple of local boys are on the roster. One of the top scorers on the team, Giuliano Celenza (#4), holds the University of Maryland Baltimore County’s record as the number two scorer in school history. A graduate of UMBC and Archbishop Curley High School, he lives with his family in Perry Hall. Billy Nelson (#2) hails from Bel Air, a northern suburb, and played for UMBC before joining the Blast in 2003. He even coaches for Boys Latin, taking the team there to the local championship in 2006. And Mike Lookingland (#24) is from Fallston, Maryland, and played for Loyola High School, winning the team’s MVP award his junior and senior years. The Baltimore Blast fans can rock the Baltimore Arena, which has room for 11,400 fans. Unfortunately, average game attendance fills about half the seats. So there’s usually space available for those who want to join in the fun at the last minute. Home games start at 7:35 p.m. Tickets are available at the arena box office, (410) 732-5278, or through Ticketmaster at (410) 547-SEAT. They are available online at www.ticketmaster.com. Tickets are $20 for prime seats, $17 for upper levels, and $14 behind the goal line. Games are broadcast on WCBM (680AM) radio.