USL Atlanta United 2

ATL UTD 2 Wins 1-0 at Memphis 901 FC

Published on April 10, 2019 under United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Atlanta United 2 News Release


MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Atlanta United 2 won 1-0 against Memphis 901 FC Wednesday night at AutoZone Park. Kevin Barajas' first professional goal handed the team its first road win of the season in a match that saw ATL UTD 2 present a starting lineup with an average age of 20.8 years old, which tied the youngest lineup in team history. Atlanta United Academy midfielder Will Vint made his first professional start while defender Wesly Decas made his first start for the team.

"I think the resilience of seeing a game out is something that is going to be really important for these young professionals," ATL UTD 2 head coach Stephen Glass said. "I'm delighted that they managed to get the reward that they deserved."

ATL UTD 2 withstood a wave of pressure in the opening 15 minutes which saw Memphis take four shots and put three on target. From then, Atlanta settled into the match, controlling possession and out-shooting 901 FC in the final 30 minutes of the first half.

Atlanta broke the deadlock moments before halftime through Barajas. Jose Hernandez started the play with a cross from the left side that was headed out of the box to the other side of the field. Jack Metcalf corralled the loose ball and dumped it back into the center of the 18 where Jackson Conway attempted a header, but the ball fell in between a pair of Memphis defenders. Laurent Kissiedou made a challenge to keep the play alive, which allowed the ball to skip free in the middle of the box for Barajas, who hammered a low shot near the penalty spot. Memphis goalkeeper Jeff Caldwell got a hand to it, but couldn't keep the ball out of the net as it bounced across the line.

Memphis came out of the break searching for an equalizer and took 11 of its 18 total shots in the second half. One of Memphis' best chances to tie the match came in the 67th minute. From a corner, Jacob Hauser-Ramsey headed the ball on frame, but a quick reaction save from Dylan Castanheira parried the ball to his right and out for another corner which ultimately resulted in another save. Castanheira finished the night with an ATL UTD 2 single-match record eight saves while recording his first professional clean sheet.

Barajas, Hernandez, Alessandro Castro and Laurent Kissiedou all made their first appearances this season.

ATL UTD 2 (2-2-1, 7 points) returns to action Saturday, April 13 against North Carolina FC at 7:30 p.m. EST at Fifth Third Bank Stadium. The match will be streamed live on ESPN+.

LINE SCORE

Atlanta 1, Memphis 0

AutoZone Park

Memphis, Tennessee

STATS

Shots: 18-11 Memphis

Shots on Target: 9-3 Memphis

Corner kicks: 12-4 Memphis

Fouls committed: 12-8 Atlanta

Saves: 8-1 Atlanta

Offside: 1-1

Possession: 53-47 Memphis

Passing Accuracy: 74-71 Memphis

SCORING SUMMARY

ATL - Kevin Barajas 45'

DISCIPLINARY SUMMARY

MEM - Morgan Hackworth (yellow) 44'

ATL - Will Vint (yellow) 64'

ATL - Guillermo Benitez (yellow) 66'

MEM - Jeff Caldwell (yellow) 70'

ATL - Dylan Castanheira (yellow) 71'

ATLANTA UNITED 2 STARTING LINEUP

Dylan Castanheira; Jack Metcalf ©, Wesly Decas, Laurence Wyke, Jose Hernandez; Luis Fernando, Kevin Barajas (Lagos Kunga - 78'), Will Vint, Laurent Kissiedou (Guillermo Benitez - 62'); Alessandro Castro (Yosef Samuel - 82'), Jackson Conway.

Substitutes not used: Paul Christensen, George Campbell.

MEMPHIS 901 FC STARTING LINEUP

Jeff Caldwell; Marc Burch ©, Jacob Hauser-Ramsey, Wesley Charpie, Tristan Hodge; Morgan Hackworth (Luca Uccello - 56'), Ewan Grandison; Duane Muckette (Oliver White - 65'), Elliot Collier, Adam Najem; Rashawn Dally.

Substitutes not used: Joshua Morton, Abdi Mohamed, Todd Pratzner, Louis Bennett, Scott Levene.

ATTENDANCE

7,041

OFFICIALS

Alan Kelly (referee), Ryan Starr (assistant), Benjamin Meyer (assistant), Mario Martinez Cabrera (fourth).

TEAM NOTES

Kevin Barajas scored his first professional goal

Dylan Castanheira made a single-game record eight saves and recorded his first professional clean sheet

ATL UTD 2's starting lineup had an average age of 20.8, tying the youngest starting XI in team history (20.8 at Charlotte 3/31/18)

Atlanta United Academy midfielder Will Vint made his first professional start

Wesly Decas made his first start for ATL UTD 2

Laurent Kissiedou, Alessandro Castro, Jose Hernandez and Kevin Barajas all made their first appearances of 2019

Check out the Atlanta United 2 Statistics

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United Soccer League Championship Stories from April 10, 2019


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