The headlines and attention at the opening of the USL’s top flight centered around one name: Romario. The 1994 Brazilian World Cup MVP signed on for the season with USL First Division expansion side Miami FC in April.

Sneaking into a share of that spotlight early on was Vancouver striker Joey Gjertsen, who got off to a hot start. Then Seattle rookie Cam Weaver also jumped into the mix. Weaver and Romario battled throughout the season for the league lead in scoring, eventually finishing tied in points (39) and goals (18) to share the season scoring honors.

Gjertsen’s all-around performance that saw him finish third in points (31), fourth in goals (12) and second in assists (7) garnered the Most Valuable Player honor. He went on to lead his Whitecaps to the USL First Division title, 3-0 against Rochester, as the fourth-seeded side in the playoffs. It was the first time a visiting club had won a championship in a single-game USL-1 final.

Vancouver opened by downing Miami 6-1 in a cross-continental opening round series before getting past the regular season champion Montreal Impact with a two-goal series overtime session away from home for a 2-0 aggregate victory over a club that dominated the league defensively for a fourth straight season.

Despite losing Greg Sutton, who went on to win a fourth straight Goalkeeper of the Year honor, for half the season due to injury, the Impact continued its defensive form in the league, allowing a league-low 15 goals in 28 games for a third straight campaign. Gabriel Gervais earned his third Defender of the Year honor in four years while leading the defensive unit that helped back-up Andrew Weber tally a goals against average just .07 behind Sutton’s 0.50 as the pair finished the season with nearly identical numbers.

Rochester finished runners-up on the regular season for the second straight year, but avoided the playoff upset they suffered in the semifinals the year before to sixth-seeded Richmond by knocking off Charleston 1-0 on aggregate in the final four. After winning three previous finals in their previous home, the debut of championship in PAETEC Park, however, would be spoiled by the loss to Vancouver in the title game.