Scorpions Lose to Carolina 5-2

Published on May 11, 2013 under North American Soccer League (NASL)
San Antonio Scorpions News Release


The Scorpions are still searching for their first win of the season after losing to the Carolina Railhawks 5-2 in a high-scoring affair. The Railhawks put pressure on the Scorpions' defense all night, creating many opportunities against the porous Scorpions back line.

The Railhawks came out as the more aggressive side from the very beginning and never looked back. They used their aggression to create five goals, the most the Scorpions have allowed all season.

Carolina's first goal came in the 13th minute when midfielder Floyd Franks rocketed a shot from about 26 yards out past Scorpion's goalie Pat Hannigan.

The Scorpions looked like they had regained some momentum after a questionable foul was called in the penalty box against the Railhawks, resulting in a penalty kick. Scorpions' forward Hans Denissen buried the ensuing penalty to tie the game 1-1.

But the Scorpions' momentum was short lived when a crucial miscommunication occurred between Hannigan and the Scorpions' defense. Hannigan, after receiving the ball, passed it directly to Schilawski who took full advantage of the opportunity by scoring on an open net, putting the Railhawks back in the lead, 2-1.

It was all down hill for the Scorpions after that miscommunication, as they allowed two back-to-back goals very early in the second half, all but ending their come-back hopes.

The Railhawks scored the first of these back-to-back goals in the 48th minute, when forward Brian Shriver scored off a perfect cross from midfielder Austin Da Luz. Just two minutes later, Da Luz created another scoring opportunity, this time sending the ball to Railhawks' forward Zack Schilawski for the header to increase their lead to 4-1. Both Shriver and Schilawski scored twice for the Railhawks.

The Scorpions did show signs of life when forward Esteban Bayona was put in the game in the 54th minute to replace Denissen. Just 11 minutes after his entrance into the game, Scorpions' forward Nikola Vasilic scored off a corner kick from Ramiez with a plethora of Railhawks' defenders in the box.

The Railhawks once again quickly put a stop to any sort of momentum the Scorpions had gained by continuing to dominate the time of possession battle.

The Railhawks put the game away for good in the 85th minute when forward Brian Ackley scored off a cross from Shriver.

"There were a lot of good goals and a lot of great passing and there's a lot to be happy about," RailHawks coach Colin Clarke said. "It's a great result and any time you score five goals you've got to be pleased, but I don't like the number two that's also up on the scoreboard. We've got a good squad of players and we'll continue to look to improve."

Whereas the Railhawks were obviously happy with the result, Coach Tim Hankinson and the Scorpions were extremely frustrated by the lack of scoring opportunities created by the offense.

"We have to challenge our strikers," Hankinson said. "You travel 2,000 miles to come and play football in the United States and you'd better start producing."

The Scorpions offense, which is filled with foreign players as referenced by Coach Hankinson above, have not been able to find any kind of rhythm thus far. If they do not produce offensively very soon, any hope they might have had for winning the first half of the NASL season may vanish.

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North American Soccer League Stories from May 11, 2013


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