Miami FC Falls to Charleston and Loses Playoff Berth
Published on September 11, 2009 under USL First Division (USL-1)
Fort Lauderdale Strikers News Release
MIAMI September 11, 2009 - Miami traveled to Blackbaud Stadium Friday night to keep its playoff hopes alive but came away empty-handed after giving up a last minute goal against the fourth place Charleston Battery, losing 1-2. With this loss, Miami is officially eliminated from playoff contention. Miami will now travel to Rochester to play the Rhinos on Sunday afternoon at 3 p.m. The Blues will then return home to play their season finale on Saturday, September 19th at Lockhart Stadium against their Caribbean rivals, the Puerto Rico Islanders. Kick-off is set for 8 p.m.
"It's always tough to suffer a loss that puts us out of the playoffs, but we have to stay professional," said head coach Zinho. "We still have two more games left and I guarantee that my players will play as if they were in the playoffs."
Charleston got the first shot on goal when Randi Patterson broke through the Blues' defense and tried to get a shot on Kenny Schoeni's goal. Cristiano Dias made a timely intervention to diffuse the Battery's first real chance.
Soon after, Walter Ramirez created Miami's first real chance at goal. He found space on the left flank and crossed a beautiful ball to Alen Marcina, whose attempt at a shot sailed wide right.
In the 30th minute, Patterson found space and launched a low-grazing cross towards the middle of the penalty area. Daren Spicer headed the ball, barely beating Schoeni, giving the Battery a 1-0 lead.
The second half featured a more aggressive Miami team, controlling the ball more and pushing its lines up.
Eight minutes into the second half, Brian Shriver tried to cross a high-arching ball into the heart of the Battery penalty area. Leo Inacio tried to connect with a header but came up short.
In the 72nd minute, Jack Traynor crossed a ball on the ground to Shriver, who cleverly laid the ball off to Aaron King. The striker buried the ball in the back of the net, scoring his third goal in three starts with the Blues.
Miami kept attacking with the hopes of winning and continuing its quest to make the playoffs.
Moments later, King forced Keith Wiggans to clear a ball from his own area before he was ready. The deflection bounced off King and seemed destined to be the go-ahead goal, but the ball bounced to a Battery defender.
In the closing moments of the match, Charleston buried the Blues' chances at the playoffs, when Scott Beute tried to cross a ball in the heart of the Blues' penalty area. The ball took an awkward bounce and trickled past the Miami central defender and the Blues' goalkeeper, making the score 2-1.
This loss eliminates Miami from the playoff hunt. Miami will now travel to Rochester on Sunday, September 13th, to battle the Rochester Rhinos. Kick-off is set for 3 p.m. You can watch this and every game live on www.usllive.com.
USL First Division Stories from September 11, 2009
- Miami FC Falls to Charleston and Loses Playoff Berth - Fort Lauderdale Strikers
- Impact Plays Against The Minnesota Thunder Sunday At Home - Montreal Impact
- Timbers In Position To Win Commissioner's Cup - Portland Timbers
- 2010 Season Tickets on Sale Now - North Carolina FC
- Whitecaps Prepare To Host Austin Again - Vancouver Whitecaps
- RailHawks host Puerto Rico in 2nd place Showdown this Saturday - North Carolina FC
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
