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USL North Carolina FC

North Carolina FC Moves into Second Place in USL Championship Eastern Conference with 4-2 Win over Tampa Bay Rowdies

August 21, 2019 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
North Carolina FC News Release


CARY, N.C. - North Carolina FC found the back of the net four times against the league's toughest defense and won its third straight match to move up to second place in the USL Championship Eastern Conference with a 4-2 win over the Tampa Bay Rowdies Wednesday night at Sahlen's Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park.

With the result, NCFC (13W-5L-7D, 46 points) rose from fifth place to second-best in the East, trailing only New York Red Bulls II in the table.

NCFC midfielder Steven Miller, who captained the team for the 17th time this season, scored twice in the win, while midfielder and NCFC Youth Academy product Dre Fortune both scored and assisted in a second straight match.

"We've scored nine goals in the last two games, which is very encouraging," NCFC head coach Dave Sarachan said. "I think the combinations on the field, the movement, the belief and the willingness to get in the box and be dangerous has gotten through to this group."

It was a bright start on Wednesday, as Fortune, one of the stars in Saturday's win against Pittsburgh, picked up right where he left off and scored in the 19th minute in the middle of the area, putting away a pass from forward Justin Rennicks.

Tampa Bay managed to equalize via a 32nd-minute goal by its captain, Sebastian Guenzatti, and the two teams went into halftime all square.

But for the second straight game, Sarachan's group dominated during the second half. NCFC's surge began in the 50th minute thanks to a set piece. Having received a corner kick from Fortune, Miller calmly slotted his shot into the right side of the net, giving NCFC a lead it would never let up.

NCFC continued to wear down the Rowdies as the match progressed, and second-half substitute Manny Perez, a Garner native and N.C. State product, made a clear impact. Making a run on goal from the right flank, Perez cut inside and fired a shot that resulted in an own goal on Tampa Bay's Pape Diakité in the 76th minute.

Before it was all said and done, NCFC added a fourth in the 79th minute through Miller, the beneficiary of an excellent individual run into the 18-yard-box and pass by right back DJ Taylor, a Raleigh native.

The Rowdies received a consolation in the 90th minute, as Juan Tejada scored late in the match. From that point on, however, NCFC was able to see out its 13th win of the year.

Fact to Know

With the win, NCFC improved to 4W-1L-1D this season against New York Red Bulls II, Tampa Bay Rowdies, Nashville SC and Indy Eleven, the teams who held Nos. 1-4 in the Eastern Conference standings entering Wednesday.

Notes

- With the win, NCFC matched last season's win total (13).

- NCFC improved to 8W-1L-4D at home in league matches in 2019.

- NCFC swept the regular-season series against the Tampa Bay Rowdies, marking the first time since 2016 that its won multiple regular-season games against Tampa Bay in the same season.

- With his two goals on Wednesday, midfielder Steven Miller remains in the team lead with nine on the season.

- Midfielder Dre Fortune has scored in three of his last four games and has seven goals in 2019, tied for the second-most on NCFC.

- NCFC's youth-to-pro pipeline was on full display Wednesday as NCFC Academy products DJ Taylor and Dre Fortune were named in the starting lineup, as were former NCFC U23 standouts Nazmi Albadawi and Alex Comsia. Manny Perez, an Academy product, came off the bench, while Caleb Duvernay, who played for both the Academy and NCFC U23, was included in the 18-player squad.

- Forward Justin Rennicks, on loan from New England Revolution, recorded his first assist.

- Midfielders Manny Perez, Duval Wapiwo and Austin da Luz appeared as second-half substitutes.

- In its past two games, NCFC has a combined nine goals on 14 shots on target.

Looking Ahead

NCFC hits the road to take on Louisville City FC on Saturday, Aug. 24, at 3:00 p.m. ET. NCFC's next home match comes against Bethlehem Steel FC on Saturday, Sept. 7, at 7:00 p.m. ET. For tickets and information please visit NorthCarolinaFC.com or call the Coastal Credit Union Box Office at 919-459-8144.

Box Score:

NCFC (4-2-3-1): Alex Tambakis; Aaron Guillen, Sam Brotherton, Alex Comsia, DJ Taylor; Nazmi Albadawi (Duval Wapiwo, 80'), Graham Smith; Steven Miller ©, Dre Fortune (Austin da Luz, 87'), Donovan Ewolo; Justin Rennicks (Manny Perez, 71')

Subs: Darrin MacLeod, Caleb Duvernay, Colton Storm, Robert Kristo,

TBR (3-5-2): Macklin Robinson; Caleb Richards, Mohamed Kone, Pape Diakite; Leo Fernandes, Andrew Tinari (Lucky Mkosana, 66'), Juan Tejada, Dominic Oduro (Tarek Morad, 80'), Kwadwo Poku; Sebastian Guenzatti ©, Jaime Siaj (Malik Johnson, 61')

Subs not used: Chris Konopka, Ryan Felix, Jordan Doherty

Score:

NCFC: 4

TBR: 2

Goals:

NCFC: Dre Fortune (Justin Rennicks, 19'), Steven Miller (Dre Fortune, 50', DJ Taylor, 79'), OG (Pape Diakite, 76'),

TBR: Sebastian Guenzatti (Kwadwo Poku, 32'), Juan Tejada (Leo Fernandes, 90')

Cautions:

NCFC:

TBR: Pape Diakite 72'

Ejections:

NCFC:

TBR:

Attendance: 2,833

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