Their second loss of the season to the Aztex, a 1–3 decision in which head coach Israel Collazo was sent off after the final whistle, seemed to light a fire under the Heat, who rallied to finish the regular season with three straight wins. They annihilated Houston Leones 7–0, and beat the New Orleans Shell Shockers 4–0 on the final day with a hat trick from Felix Garcia to secure second place in the division by one point from El Paso, squeaking into the playoffs by the narrowest of margins. Laredo traveled to Florida for the Southern conference tournament; they beat Central Florida Kraze 2–1 in the semifinal, and exacted sweet revenge over Austin Aztex U23 by beating them 3–1 in the conference championship game, thereby securing their third straight title, and their third consecutive trip to the national final four. Their opponents in the semifinal were the surprise Eastern champs, Reading Rage, who they beat 2–0 to advance to their third straight PDL Championship Game, and in doing so became the first team in PDL history to achieve such a feat. In the final they faced Central Conference champions Thunder Bay Chill, and despite taking the lead, and despite Thunder Bay having a man sent off, had to settle for a 1–1 tie after extra time. Laredo were forced to endure a penalty shootout for the second year in a row; however, unfortunately for their 3,451 fans, Thunder Bay triumphed in the shootout to take the title. Young sensation Felix Garcia was Laredo's top scorer, with 11 goals (and was also named PDL U19 Player of the Year), while Juan Ibarra contributed 8 assists. 2009 In the Mid South Division 2009 Season the Laredo Heat finished on top of the table with 7 wins, 1 loss and 8 ties. The Heat managed to score 29 goals and received 18 during the season. At the Division finals the Heat beat the West Texas United Sockers 1:0. At the Conference Finals Laredo lost against the Cary Clarets 1:3 and were eliminated. The Laredo Heat did not participate in the 2009 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. 2010 In the Mid South Division 2010 Season the Laredo Heat finished on top of the table with 9 wins, 5 losses and 2 ties. The Heat managed to score 36 goals and received 19 during the season. At the Division finals the Heat tied to