The D3 Pro League season contained one of USL’s most exciting championship games with the Western Mass Pioneers defeating the South Jersey Barons, 2-1, in front of a capacity home crowd.

Playing in front of a club and league final record crowd of 5,233 at Lusitano Stadium in Ludlow, the Pioneers scored two second half goals and held off South Jersey to claim the championship.

Paul Wright’s equalizer and Rob Jachym’s game-winner for the Pioneers came 13 minutes apart early in the second half to catapult Western Mass o the championship in just their second season in the league. Goalkeeper John Voight, who was named the game’s Most Valuable Player, held off a late Barons rally to secure the victory.

For second-year Western Mass, the championship game was the first victory in five meetings against their Northern Conference rival, who handed the Pioneers half of their four losses on the season.

The season sweep of Western Mass helped South Jersey win the regular season championship with a 16-2 record and 72 points, just one point ahead of the 15-3 Chico Rooks, in their third season.

The Carolina Dynamo returned to USL in 1999, compiling a 12-6 record over the regular season and earning a playoff berth. The Dynamo took 1998 off after reaching the A-League Championship Game in 1997 as they worked on efforts for a stadium.

Chico forward Luis Orellana was named the D3 Pro League’s Most Valuable Player for the second consecutive season. Orellana helped Chico win the Western Conference by leading the league in scoring with 56 points on 24 goals, also a league high, and eight assists. He also led his team to the final four of the playoffs, where the Rooks were downed 4-1 by the Pioneers.

Fellow Rook Brandon Hearron was named the D3 Pro League Rookie of the Year. Hearron finished second in the league with a 1.06 goals against average, allowing just 12 goals in 11 games.

The league’s Goalkeeper of the Year award went to Wilmington’s Christopher Lewis, who led the league with a 0.94 goals against average while appearing in each of the Hammerheads’ 18 games. Wilmington led the league with only 17 goals allowed en route to a 14-4 record and a second-place finish behind the 14-4 Charlotte Eagles in the Atlantic.