NASL North Carolina FC

Match Preview: RailHawks at Ottawa Fury

April 25, 2014 - North American Soccer League (NASL)
North Carolina FC News Release


CARY, NC (April 25, 2014) - The Carolina RailHawks (1W-1T-0L, 4pts) make their first trip to Canada in 2014 to face the expansion Ottawa Fury (0W-0T-2L, 0pts) on Saturday, April 26th at 3:00pm ET. The afternoon game will be available on NASLlive.com.

The first-ever matchup between the RailHawks and Ottawa will pit two clubs both looking for important wins. Coming off a 4-1 home victory, the RailHawks will look to continue an undefeated 2014 and claim an important road victory. Ottawa will look to claim their first points in the NASL in front of a home crowd at Carleton University.

"We expect another tough week in the NASL. This will be our first ever trip to Ottawa and we will look to get a good result. There last match was played in front of a sold out crowd. I'm sure their fans will make it difficult for us, but I think we will have a great match on Saturday afternoon."

With a 4-1 victory over the Fort Lauderdale Strikers in their home opener, the RailHawks sit in 3rd place in the NASL standings. Zack Schilawski and Enzo Martinez each scored two goals to lead the RailHawks and extend their home unbeaten streak to 17 matches. Martinez opened the scoring in the 27th minute before Schilawski added another in the 40th minute to give the RailHawks a 2-0 halftime lead. When former RailHawks midfielder Chris Nurse pulled one back for Fort Lauderdale, Martinez and Schilawski struck again in the 72nd and 76th minute, respectively.

In Week 2 of NASL action, Ottawa took NASL front runner, Minnesota United, to the final minutes before Minnesota scored in the 97th minute for a 2-1 victory. Ottawa responded with a 0-0 tie against FC Edmonton in the first leg of the Amway Canadian Championship.

After their trip to Ottawa, the RailHawks will return to WakeMed Soccer Park on Saturday, May 3rd when they host the New York Cosmos. Tickets for the May 3rd match are available through CarolinaRailHawks.com or by calling the RailHawks Box Office at (919) 459-8144.

Former Duke Standpoint Grella Signs With RailHawks

Mike Grella returns to the Triangle after signing with the Carolina RailHawks. Grella, a four-year starter for Duke University Men's soccer team and former RailHawks U-23's member, returns to the United States after a five-year career in Europe. After his senior season at Duke, the forward opted to sign with historic English club Leeds United. Most recently, Grella played in Denmark with Viborg FF of the Danish Superliga. A New York-native, Grella becomes the 10th current RailHawks player to have played youth or college soccer in North Carolina and the 8th to play for the RailHawks U-23's.

Schilawski Named NASL Player of the Week Cary-native Zack Schilawski was named NASL Player of the Week for his 2 goal and 1 assist performance on Saturday. Schilawski scored in the 40th and 76th minutes and assisted on Enzo Martinez goal in the 72nd minute of play. With his two goals, Schilawski jumped to the top of the NASL scoring chart with 3 goals in 2014 play. It was the second consecutive week the Wake Forest alum and former RailHawks U-23 forward scored after gabbing the equalizer in a 1-1 draw versus Indy Eleven.

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North American Soccer League Stories from April 25, 2014


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