Strong Defensive Showing from Richmond Stifles Armada FC, 3-0
May 27, 2015 - North American Soccer League (NASL)
Jacksonville Armada FC News Release
RICHMOND, Va. (May 27, 2015) - Despite facing opportune moments to take control of their match on Wednesday night, the Jacksonville Armada FC had a tough time overcoming the stingy defense of the Richmond Kickers and fell 3-0 in the third round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup at Richmond City Stadium.
In its inaugural U.S. Open Cup competition, Jacksonville seemingly got off to a strong start as it held the possession advantage early. But the Armada FC soon ran into what could be described as a brick wall for the Kickers, holding Jacksonville to zero shots on goal in the first half. Richmond converted its strong defensive showing into offensive output and benefitted from three key mistakes by the Armada FC.
After a tussle with Armada FC defender Shawn Nicklaw deep in Jacksonville's corner, Richmond's Owusu Sekyere earned a corner kick and launched it to Brian Ownby, who smashed it home in the 20th minute.
In the 38th minute, Kickers forward Jason Yeisley lifted a pass at midfield and created a three-on-one breakaway. Instead of passing it off, he fired it past Gallardo from the right side 14 yards out in the 38th minute.
Shortly after the start of the second half, Richmond's George Davis IV was awarded a penalty kick after being tripped up in the box in the 49th minute. He took full advantage of the opportunity and slid the attempt by a diving Gallardo to give the Kickers a 3-0 lead.
The Armada FC's best scoring chance came in the 84th minute when forward Akeil Barrett and midfielder Jaime Castrillon fired two consecutive shots off the post deep in the box. Richmond goalkeeper Ryan Taylor finally pounced on the ball to stifle the attack.
Barrett led the Armada FC with three shots, while Gallardo faced 11 shots from the Kickers and recorded four saves.
Richmond will now move on to the fourth round of the U.S. Open Cup, hosting Major League Soccer side Columbus Crew SC on June 17.
Jacksonville will return to North American Soccer League action at 7:30 p.m. this Saturday when it hosts the Carolina RailHawks at Community First Park at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville. Match tickets, starting at $10, and parking, starting at $5, can be purchased by calling 1.844.2.Armada or visiting http://armadafc.com/tickets armadafc.com .
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