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USL1 FC Tucson

Elivelton Goal Lifts FC Tucson over New England Revolution II

September 17, 2020 - United Soccer League One (USL1)
FC Tucson News Release


An early header by Elivelton and the ability of the FC Tucson defense to survive some nervy moments in the final minutes helped the Men In Black defeat New England Revolution II on Wednesday night at Kino North Stadium.

FC Tucson pushed forward from the start and, after a couple of crosses were smothered, they earned back-to-back corners. On the second attempt, Charlie Dennis' corner found the head of Elivelton, who nodded it down and into the back of the net in the eighth minute.

"It's been a tough first half of the season -- how we've played and not got the results," FC Tucson coach John Galas said. "And this was a little bit of the culmination of all the hard work.

"The commitment from these boys -- the locker room is very strong, the culture is good -- you could see it tonight."

Over the final 30 minutes of the first half, the teams traded punches like boxers. New England had three shots sail over the goal, another go wide and a third that bounced off the post after being pushed wide by goalkeeper Amal Knight. FC Tucson (3-5-1, 10 points) had two shots go over, three shots stopped by goalkeeper Joe Rice and a couple of breakaways where Rice reached the ball before a Man In Black could get a foot to it.

"This New England team is tough. We watched them and knew that you don't beat Greenville (Triumph SC) if you don't have something. They're disciplined, they're organized, they're well-coached.

"We were able to create a lot of chances, but still we're not clinical in front of goal. This could have been three, four, five, maybe (goals)."

In the second half, FC Tucson had some long spells of possession and watched a number of chances go begging. Five shots were saved, blocked or deflected for a corner and three shots went wide for the Men In Black in the final 45 minutes.

New England (1-6-2, 5 points) saved most of its second-half chances for the final 10 minutes of the match. The Revolution II had two corners, a shot stopped, another deflected, a third go wide and a fourth go over the bar. New England also had a free-kick just outside the box that couldn't be converted.

"We went a little more defensive," Galas said. "We were going to concede possession to a certain point. ... But I'm proud of them for defending with their hearts and they worked extremely hard to get a clean sheet."

FC Tucson will try to make it two wins on the trot when it travels to Arlington, Texas, to take on North Texas SC on Saturday, Sept. 19 at Globe Life Park. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m., Tucson time.

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