Orlando City Soccer Secures Play Off Berth With 4-1 Win Over Charlotte Eagles
Orlando City SC (15-1-4, 49 points) clinched a playoff berth for the fourth consecutive year on Saturday evening as they defeated the Charlotte Eagles (7-12-3, 24 points) 4-1 at ESPN Wide World of Sports. The win extended City’s home unbeaten streak in USL Pro play to 16 while maintaining OCSC’s lead at four points in league standings.
“We expected to make the playoffs, but it’s still nice to do it,” said Orlando City Head Coach Adrian Heath after the 4-1 win. “I thought the performance tonight was a lot better than it has been in the past. We have to continue to play at our maximum because we can’t afford to play 75-80 percent and expect to win.”
At the end of a dire first half that saw both teams making far too many mistakes and giving away possession cheaply, Oviedo native Dennis Chin (pictured above) gave the game a spark right on the stroke of half time as he netted to give Orlando a 1-0 half time lead. It was Chin’s sixth goal of the 2014 campaign and stemmed from some good build-up play by City’s front three, consisting of Mbengue, Chin and Molino. Chin drifted inside and found Molino, who released Mbengue in the box for a shot on goal. Charlotte Goalkeeper Alec Kahn’s made a decent save from the Senegalese midfielder’s strike but fortune wasn’t on his side as the rebound landed in Chin’s path, who made no mistake from 12 yards.
The second half began with a bang as Tyler Turner (pictured above) scored his first ever professional goal as he headed home in the 48th minute from a Ceren free kick.
“I’ve been aching to score a goal,” said Turner. “It’s always been my dream to score at the professional level and everything is finally starting to fall in place. It’s been an unreal experience.”
Molino (pictured above) added a third from the penalty spot just two minutes later after Brian Span was hacked down in the penalty box. Juan Guzman was correctly shown the red card for stopping a goal scoring opportunity in the incident.
Molino then added a second goal of the game as he found himself clear and found the net with a neat chip over the advancing Alec Kahn in the Eagle’s goal.
Charlotte managed to pull one back with arguably the best goal of the game in the 75th minute when striker Wells Thompson scored with a stunning effort off the crossbar.
Orlando City now has eight games remaining in the season in their quest to capture a third Regular Season Championship. City’s next fixture will take place on Saturday, August 9 against the Harrisburg City Islanders at Skyline Sports Complex. Kick-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. EST.
Lineups/Substitutions:
Orlando City SC- GK Miguel Gallardo, D Tyler Turner (Bitielo Jean-Jacques 81’), Tommy Redding, Luke Boden, Rob Valentino (Brad Rusin 73’), M Ian Christianson (Harrison Heath 73’), Adama Mbengue (Austin da Luz 65’), Darwin Ceren, Kevin Molino, Brian Span, F Dennis Chin (Giuseppe Gentile 65’)
Charlotte Eagles- GK Alec Kahn, D JJ Greer, Bilal Duckett, Jonny Leathers, Ben Newnam, M Fred Sekyere (Darren Toby 9’), Drew Yates (Matt Gold 60’), Juan Guzman, F David Estrada, Jorge Herrera, Wells Thompson (Zak Boggs 76’)
More photos at www.FloridaLeisurePhotography.com
