Defender Connor Presley and Academy forward Michael Tsicoulias each tally first goals in loss
June 12, 2021 - United Soccer League One (USL1)
New England Revolution II News Release
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - New England Revolution II (2-4-1, 7 pts.) fell to first-place Union Omaha (5-1-2, 17 pts.) on Saturday night, 4-2, at Werner Park in Papillion, Neb. New England defender Connor Presley scored his first goal for the club while Academy forward Michael Tsicoulias (2002 - Newton, Mass.) added his first professional goal. Omaha's Greg Hurst scored a hat trick and Devin Boyce added a goal and an assist.
Union Omaha opened the scoring as Greg Hurst tallied the first of his two first-half goals in the 21st minute to put the hosts ahead. Two minutes later, New England equalized as Connor Presley scored a volley for his first goal with the club - the third straight game Revolution II has scored off a set piece. Hurst would add another just moments before halftime, pouncing on a deflected shot inside the six-yard box.
The second half saw Hurst complete his hat trick less than two minutes after kickoff. Academy forward Michael Tsicoulias scored his first professional goal to pull Revolution II back within a goal, but Devin Boyce finished off the match with his first of the season in the 77th minute.
Tsicoulias made his fifth appearance of the season, playing 34 minutes and netting his first career goal. Fellow Academy midfielder Noel Buck (2005 - Arlington, Mass.) also saw 34 minutes of action while midfielder Hikaru Fujiwara (2003 - Lexington, Mass.) saw four minutes as a late substitute.
Homegrown Players Justin Rennicks and Damian Rivera each saw action for the seventh consecutive game to begin the 2021 season, both earning selections in the starting lineup. Rennicks recorded his first assist of the season to set up Tsicoulias' goal while Rivera had a team-high five shots, two on target.
New England will close its three-match road swing next Saturday night, June 19, with its first-ever visit to Breese Stevens Field to face Forward Madison FC. Kickoff is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. ET on ESPN+.
New England Revolution II 2, Richmond Kickers 4
June 12, 2021 - Werner Park (Papillion, Neb.)
New England Revolution II lost, 4-2, to Union Omaha on Saturday night, falling to 2-4-1 on the 2021 season. New England's all-time record against Union Omaha shifts to 1-2-1, and 1-1-0 at Werner Park.
Defender Connor Presley scored his first goal for the club, a volley off a corner kick, and finished the night with two shots on target and six duels won. Presley missed last week's match due to injury, marking the first time he has not appeared in a match for Revolution II since the club began play in 2020.
Academy forward Michael Tsicoulias (2002 - Newton, Mass.) tallied his first professional goal in the 63rd minute with an assist from Justin Rennicks. Tsicoulias, who subbed into the match in the 56th minute, also added three recoveries.
Revolution II Head Coach Clint Peay made four changes to the Starting XI from last Friday's victory, with Connor Presley, François Dulysse, Justin Rennicks and Ryan Sierakowski all starting in place of Colby Quiñones, Noel Buck, Christian Mafla, and Edward Kizza.
Homegrown Player and forward Justin Rennicks recorded his first assist of the season and second of his career, creating a pair of chances on the night to go along with a shot on target.
Fellow Homegrown Player Damian Rivera added to his team-leading 15 shots with five on the night, including two on target.
Goalkeeper Brad Knighton made his second straight start in net for Revolution II, making seven saves.
Defender Pierre Cayet led the Revolution II back line with seven clearances while adding six recoveries, three interceptions, and an 87.2 percent pass completion rate.
Defender Ryan Spaulding posted team highs in recoveries (9) and interceptions (4), also winning six duels.
Midfielder Jake Rozhansky completed 55 of his 58 passes on the night, including one key pass. The captain also won four of his five duels and added eight possessions gained.
Defender Sean O'Hearn had a team-high eight duels won and added four clearances, three recoveries, two blocked shots, and two interceptions.
GAME CAPSULE
Referee: Velimir Stefanovic;
Assistant Referees: Jack Ryan-Feldman (AR1); Ryan Cook (AR2);
Fourth Official: Esad Omanovic;
Weather: 86 degrees and clear.
Scoring Summary:
OMA - Greg Hurst (Unassisted) 21'
NE - Connor Presley (Unassisted) 23'
OMA - Greg Hurst (Unassisted) 45'+1
OMA - Greg Hurst (Devin Boyce) 47'
NE - Michael Tsicoulias (Justin Rennicks) 63'
OMA - Devin Boyce (Emir Alihodzic) 77'
Misconduct Summary:
OMA - Ferrety Sousa (Yellow Card - Bad Foul) 5'
NE - Brad Knighton (Yellow Card - Bad Foul) 10'
OMA - Austin Panchot (Yellow Card - Bad Foul) 85'
New England Revolution II: Brad Knighton; Connor Presley, Sean O'Hearn, Pierre Cayet, François Dulysse (Noel Buck 56'), Ryan Spaulding; Jake Rozhansky ©, Michel, Damian Rivera; Ryan Sierakowski (Michael Tsicoulias 56'), Justin Rennicks (Hikaru Fujiwara 86').
Substitutes Not Used: Joe Rice, Colby Quiñones, Tyler Freitas, Joe Buck.
Union Omaha: Rashid Nuhu; Ferrety Sousa ©, Daltyn Knutson, Jake Crull, Damia Viader (Blake Malone 90'); Devin Boyce, Tobias Otieno (Emir Alihodzic 63'), John Scearce, Conor Doyle (Austin Panchot 78'); Greg Hurst (Elma N'For 90'), Ethan Vanacore-Decker (Nicolas Firmino 78').
Substitutes Not Used: Kevin Piedrahita, Christian Molina.
Union Omaha Team Statistics New England Revolution II
20 (11) Shots (on Target) 13 (6)
4 Blocked Shots 5
7 Saves 4
8 Corner Kicks 7
0 Offsides 2
13 Fouls 8
374 (76.2%) Passes Attempted (% Completed) 396 (78.3%)
48.6% Possession 51.4%
POSTGAME QUOTES:
New England Revolution II 2 at Union Omaha 4
New England Revolution II Head Coach Clint Peay
On defending an early attacking burst from Union Omaha:
Peay: "I thought they weathered it okay. I didn't think we were super sharp with the ball, but they came and put a lot of pressure on us, they put a lot of balls in behind us, so they brought a lot of pressure which we had to deal with and I thought, early on, we were able to cope with it. They had a few corners, and we were able to deal with it so I was pleased with that. Unfortunately, again, we give away a bad ball that leads to a goal and we go down 1-0. And anytime you do that, you're always, always going to be in a difficult situation by gifting goals away. I think tonight we gave four easy chances away. And there could have been more based on the performance of our guys."
On the shorter field dimensions making defending more difficult:
Peay: "You don't have as much time and space, but it was not a surprise to us. We knew what we were getting into and we were well aware of that. I think at 1-1, we're in the game. We had a few chances early where we didn't score. And then we just have another, another really bad play right at the end of half that gets us at 2-1 down."
On the team's recent set-piece success:
Peay: "I just think the guys have put in some decent work in those scenarios. We emphasize it. The delivery has been better so that's been good. It was kind of a loose ball they cleared it and Connor [Presley] had a terrific strike so it wasn't directly from set piece."
On Michael Tsicoulias and Noel Buck entering the match:
Peay: "Well, we just thought we had to change your shape a little bit and we thought that we needed some energy up top so. Mike [Tsicoulias] was the obvious choice for that and we thought Noel [Buck] could provide some quality and the ability to strike the ball from distance if given the opportunity in the attack. And so, we ended up switching to a back four and we changed some things up a little bit."
New England Revolution II Defender Connor Presley
On scoring his first goal for the club:
Presley: "Yeah, that was my kind of set spot in the play, we had said during the week anything that popped out there be ready for anything to pop out and have a shot, and the ball just set up perfectly. I just put my foot through it and it went in and so it was good and I'm happy to score my first goal for sure."
On his evolving role going from forward to wing back:
Presley: "I'm just always, now that it's the same thing with the position change, I'll be ready to be there and either having a shot and scoring like tonight or being ready to cut out the counter attack and just doing my doing my role."
On what made it difficult defending against Omaha's attack:
Presley: "I think the goals came from just mistakes. We've got to work to cut those out. But we always knew against [Union Omaha], it's going to be at their place and they're going to come after us and you know that's how the game was going to be."
On how the team can limit mistakes at the back:
Presley: "I think it's just working. We just got to get out on the training field and work hard. I think it comes down to focus and just being really locked in at every moment. We're working to learn from the mistakes and move forward."
United Soccer League One Stories from June 12, 2021
- Kickers Earn a Clean Sheet on the Road in Madison - Richmond Kickers
- Defender Connor Presley and Academy forward Michael Tsicoulias each tally first goals in loss - New England Revolution II
- Forward Madison Held to Scoreless Draw against Richmond Kickers - Forward Madison FC
- Match Preview: Greenville Triumph at North Texas SC - Greenville Triumph SC
- Tormenta FC Strengthens Attack with Forward Kristo Strickler - South Georgia Tormenta FC
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