USL1 Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC

Hailstorm Ties Tormenta with Late Stunner

June 11, 2022 - United Soccer League One (USL1)
Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC News Release


Greeley, Colo. - In a match Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC dominated but could never quite put away, a late stoppage time equalizer from midfielder Nortei Nortey saw the hosts share the spoils with visitors South Georgia Tormenta FC on a balmy Saturday night in Greeley, Colo.

"I saw the ball coming in, and Irvin went for the spectacular and it hit off Rob and I was hoping for it to fall to me and it did," said Nortey. "I was relieved. We dominated the first half and didn't get anything for it. We worked hard, so it was a relief to see it go into the back of the net."

With temperatures in the mid-90s at kickoff, the hosts had the run of play early on, and almost took the lead in the ninth minute when Ethan Vanacore-Decker collected a diagonal ball and beat a Tormenta defender before sliding a through-ball to Trevor Amann in the penalty area. Amann squared up to shoot, but his attempt was smothered at contact by South Georgia goalkeeper Pablo Jara.

Northern Colorado's best chance came in the 36th minute when Arthur Rogers was brought down in the penalty area, and the referee awarded a penalty to the Hailstorm. Irvin Parra, whose stunner of a goal last time out made SportsCenter's Top 10, stepped up to take the PK, but his low driven shot was punched wide by Jara's outstretched hand, keeping the teams level.

"I didn't want to shank it over," said Parra. "I noticed the grass was pretty high up, so that was unfortunate. I got a good hit out of it, but it was too close to his hand's and he made a good save."

Tormenta finally took the lead in the 56th minute when Kingsford Adjei dribbled the ball into the Hailstorm penalty area and stepped past a diving Johan Peñaranda before slotting home into an empty net.

"That was similar to the North Carolina game," said head coach Éamon Zayed, of Hailstorm's Wednesday home opener that they also drew 1-1. "That first half was our best half of football - keeping the ball and moving the ball - that we've played all year. When you're on top of teams like that, they looked like they struggled to adapt to the weather and the altitude and the way we were playing. We have to take advantage and we had opportunities to get one up and change the dynamic of the game. When we're dominating possession like that and getting balls into the final third we have to take advantage."

Following Adjei's goal it looked like it could be a frustrating night for the home side, as attempt after attempt was stifled by a Tormenta defense that refused to wilt in the heat.

Until, that is, the final kick of the match.

In what was the 11th minute of the seven minutes of stoppage time, Danny Robles sent a corner into the South Georgia penalty area. The ball pinballed around for a while, until Nortey thrust out his foot and poked it into the bottom corner of the net, sending the team - and the raucous crowd - into pandemonium.

"We threw Johan up; it was the last roll of the dice," said Zayed. "I don't know how many minutes the ref played, but it worked to our advantage. Nort's been telling me he wants to get in the box more and get on the end of things, and he showed me tonight, so fair play to him."

The South Georgia sideline erupted following the final whistle, and both manager Ian Cameron and defender Joshua Phelps received red cards.

With the two-game road trip wrapped up, Northern Colorado will return to the road for its next match, traveling to Virginia to face Richmond Kickers on June 18.

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United Soccer League One Stories from June 11, 2022


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