Charlotte Tops Harrisburg 2-1 for First Victory of 2016
April 2, 2016 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Charlotte Independence News Release
Charlotte Independence vs. the Harrisburg City Islanders
(Charlotte Independence, Credit: William Brown/Brown Photography)
CHARLOTTE, NC - Goals from Caleb Calvert and David Estrada lifted the Charlotte Independence to a 2-1 victory over the Harrisburg City Islanders at Ramblewood Stadium on Saturday night.
Harrisburg's Craig Foster gave the visitors an early lead with a right-footed strike in the third minute. The forward did well to win the ball off his defender in a dangerous position and found space inside the box to give the City Islanders the lead shortly after kickoff. Independence forward Brian Brown and midfielder Jorge Herrera both had chances to level the match, but Brown was prevented by a timely challenge, while Herrera had his curling effort saved.
Holding the run of play, Charlotte continued to press the City Islanders back into their half with Yann Ekra fizzling a shot wide of the post in the 15th minute. Herrera forced Harrisburg goalkeeper Nick Noble into a point-blank save four minutes later, as the hosts searched for an immediate response. Calvert was able to head one home in the 22nd minute to level the match.
"As a team, we've always had fight so going down one goal never mattered to us," said Calvert. "We were always in the game and we pulled it together and grabbed a couple of great goals." The equalizer came when Calvert rose above the defense and headed in a perfectly placed ball from Bilal Duckett's cross.
"We were a little bit shell-shocked by the early goal (from Harrisburg), but it was a good wake up and we said, 'We're way better than this,'" said Independence Head Coach Mike Jeffries. "I give guys credit for battling straight through to the end because it's nice to get some momentum into the season and get a win."
Moments after Aaron Wheeler missed an opportunity to restore the City Islanders lead, Estrada powered a shot into the bottom left corner giving Charlotte a 2-1 advantage 10 minutes from the break. Goalkeeper Cody Mizell then ensured the Independence maintained that gap when he pushed aside a Harrisburg header on the stroke of halftime.
Mizell again prevented Harrisburg from leveling the match, making the Wells Fargo Save of the Game near the hour mark. Wheeler ran in one-on-one, but Mizell kept the ball out with his feet. Foster nearly added to his opening half tally, but his 64th minute header drifted wide of the goal.
This marks Charlotte's first win over the City Islanders after a draw and loss last season, and the Independence's first win in 2016 following a 1-0 opening day defeat to Louisville.
"This win showed the character of the team," said Estrada. "Going down early we just tried to be positive and thankfully that resulted in us getting two goals back."
The Independence (1-1-0) travel to Cincinnati next Saturday for their first road game of the season. The match will be played at Nippert Stadium with kickoff set for 7:00pm. FC Cincinnati (0-1-0) faces fellow expansion club Bethlehem Steel on Sunday afternoon. The Independence will return home to Ramblewood Stadium on April 16 to face the Charleston Battery.
Images from this story
 Charlotte Independence vs. the Harrisburg City Islanders (William Brown/Brown Photography) |
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