Ironmen Fight Off the Storm, 13-7
January 4, 2009 - Xtreme Soccer League (XSL)
New Jersey Ironmen News Release
Hoffman Estates, Ill. (Sunday, January 4, 2009) - The New Jersey Ironmen (1-2) got the better of the Chicago Storm (2-3) today by a count of 13-7 to pick up their first win of the young 2008-09 Xtreme Soccer League season. The victory snaps a 10-game road losing streak for the club as they head into the upcoming weekend with two home games at Prudential Center on tap.
The opening frame of this contest picked up right where the first match left off as neither team was able to find the back of the net. New Jersey netminder Brett Phillips did a nice job to protect the Ironmen goal, and the game headed into the second quarter knotted up with no score.
At 3:17 of the second period, Chicago caught a break and was given a shootout attempt. Storm forward Zlatko Zebic took the opportunity, but Phillips denied him on the one-on-one attempt. Still a man down, New Jersey defender Ryan Hall then drilled a short-handed goal at 4:32 to put his team on top, 2-0. Fabinho answered for Chicago in the following minute by hitting a long ball from well behind the three point arc, giving the Storm a 3-2 edge. Chicago then stretched the gap to 5-2 at 7:32 when Zebic set up a Branko Savic power play goal, but Frederico Moojen quickly repsonded at 8:10 for the Ironmen when the reigning Rookie of the Year netted his first tally of the season, bringing the deficit to 5-4. On an ensuing power play for New Jersey at 10:11, midfielder Chile Farias sent a pass on the left wing to forward Adauto Neto, who then struck the ball past Storm goalkeeper Jeff Richey. A Goran Vasic to Rey Martinez notch at 10:56 then made it three straight goals for the Ironmen, and the second-year club pulled took an 8-5 advantage. The final goal of the high-scoring second frame came by means of a right-footed rifle by Moojen at 14:12 that was assisted by defender Evan McNeley, and New Jersey took a five-point lead into intermission, 10-5.
After a relatively quiet start to the second half, Fabinho ended the Chicago drought by sending a hard strike past Phillips at 11:20 of the third quarter to bring the hosts within three points at 10-7. The score would stand as the final seconds ticked off the third stanza.
The lone goal of the final frame came at 13:40 when Brazilian midfielder Lucio Gonzaga hit a three-point open-net goal for the Ironmen after the Storm pulled Richey in favor of Lazo Alavanja as the sixth attacker, hanging the final count of 13-7 for the visiting club.
The Ironmen return to the friendly confines of Prudential Center this weekend for a pair of match-ups in Newark. The team will host the Storm on Friday, January 9th, at 7:30 p.m. before playing host to the Milwaukee Wave on Sunday at 4:00 p.m. Performing the role of honorary captain for New Jersey on Friday night will be former NASL and MISL standout goalkeeper Shep Messing.
Xtreme Soccer League Stories from January 4, 2009
- Ironmen Fight Off the Storm, 13-7 - New Jersey Ironmen
- Storm Drop 2nd Straight - Chicago Storm
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