City Stars Fall 4-1 To Montreal Impact
Published on July 22, 2009 under USL First Division (USL-1)
Cleveland City Stars News Release
Montreal, Canada - The Cleveland City Stars fell 4-1 to the Montreal Impact Wednesday night on the first game of a two game road trip. The City Stars (2-11-6) struggled to match up with the speed of the Impact. Montreal (6-8-3) scored four goals after failing to score in the previous five matches.
The City Stars had the first good look of the match in the 3rd minute off a set piece. Pato Aguilera sent a free kick into the box and Ibrahim Kante made a jumping kick at the 6-yard line but his shot fell right into the arms of Montreal keeper Srdjan Djekanovic.
Montreal created its first opportunity in the 9th minute and the Impact capitalized on the chance. Pierre-Rudolph Maynard made a run up the left sideline and turned the corner around Cleveland defender Stephen Cruickshank before sending a pass into the box from the goal line. Maynard's pass was deflected by Cleveland keeper Hunter Gilstrap and redirected into the path of Eduardo Sebrengo who knocked the lose ball into the back of the net for the 1-0 Montreal advantage.
Cleveland was quick to equalize in the 13th minute as Ryan Stewart found Pato Aguilera in stride with a great ball. Aguilera received the ball in space and dribbled into an open one-on-one with the keeper and rolled the shot past Djekanovic for the 1-1 score.
Montreal regained the advantage in the 25th minute when Leonardo Di Lorenzo threaded a perfect pass between multiple players and to the feet of Ciaran O'Brien who controlled inside the box and fired past Gilstrap for the 2-1 lead.
Cleveland had a good look in the 34th minute when Kante again pushed up from his center back position and this time drilled a shot from 25 yards out. The left footed laser flew through the hands of Djekanovic but the shot was too high and went over the net.
Montreal looked to add to its advantage in the 37th minute when Joey Gjertsen leaked behind the City Stars defense and tried to chip the ball over the head of Gilstrap but the Cleveland keeper was up to the challenge and snagged the ball out of the air to keep the score at 2-1 heading into the half.
The Impact took control of the match in the second half. In the 59th minute Stephen deRoux made a run up the left sideline and sent a cross that sailed across the box. Sebrengo drew the attention of the Cleveland defense as he made a charging attempt at a header but the ball missed Sebrengo's head and bounced towards Gjertsen who controlled with one touch of the body and struck a powerful shot that found the back of the net for the two goal advantage at 3-1.
Just four minutes later the Impact increased the lead in the 63rd minute as O'Brien flicked the ball over the defense and into the box to the awaiting Sebrengo who controlled and spun into a shot that snuck between Gilstrap and the near post for the final 4-1 lead.
The City Stars look to regroup Saturday at 7:35 p.m. against the Rochester Rhinos. The match can be viewed live at www.usllive.com. Cleveland returns home Saturday August 1st against the Vancouver Whitecaps.
USL First Division Stories from July 22, 2009
- Impact Snap Skid with 4-1 Win - Montreal Impact
- Minnesota Hosts Portland Timbers Friday - Minnesota Thunder
- City Stars Fall 4-1 To Montreal Impact - Cleveland City Stars
- Timbers Sign Forward Kevin Forrest - Portland Timbers
- Battery Squares Off With RailHawks - Charleston Battery
- Rhinos Ball, Menyongar Earn League Honors - Rochester Rhinos
- Rhinos US Open Cup run ends in DC - Rochester Rhinos
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