Ottawa, Minnesota Notch Emphatic Road Wins to Headline Week 13 Results

Published on September 26, 2015 under North American Soccer League (NASL) News Release


NEW YORK (September 26, 2015) -- Ottawa Fury FC won its third road game in eight days, defeating the Carolina RailHawks, 3-1, at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, N.C. to maintain its five-point lead in the North American Soccer League (NASL) Fall Season Standings and overtake the New York Cosmos for the top spot in the Combined Standings.

The win by Fury FC came after Tuesday night's 4-1 dismantling of the Cosmos and last weekend's 2-0 win over the Fort Lauderdale Strikers. New York plays at FC Edmonton on Sunday afternoon.

Ottawa's victory eliminated four teams -- Jacksonville Armada FC, Indy Eleven, San Antonio Scorpions and Carolina RailHawks -- from contention in the Fall Season. All of the league's 11 teams, however, remain in contention for a top-four finish in the Combined Standings and still have much to play for during the final stretch of the Fall Season.

The numbers just keep piling up for head coach Marc Dos Santos's' impressive side: Fury FC has not lost in 19 matches, dating back to the Spring Season; goalkeeper Romuald Peiser was denied his seventh shutout of the season when Nacho Novo converted a second-half penalty kick; Ottawa has allowed only four goals in seven road games (6-1-0); the club's nine-game unbeaten streak away from TD Place adds to its NASL record; and the win tied the league record for consecutive victories on the road.

Minnesota United FC, powered by two goals from Ibson and a goal by Christian Ramirez, sent the Strikers to their second straight loss to keep pace with Ottawa in the Fall Season Standings. The win allowed the Loons to pull even with the Cosmos on points in the Combined Standings. The loss could be costly to the Strikers as they pursue the No. 4 seed in The Championship, the league's four-team postseason tournament.

Perhaps it was the throwback jerseys, replicas of the ones worn by the Jacksonville Tea Men back in the 1980s, that woke Jacksonville Armada FC players from their slumber. Whatever it was, they will take it as Pascal Millien scored one goal and assisted on another as the Armada FC ended a 533-minute streak without a goal in their 2-0 win over intrastate rival Tampa Bay in a Coastal Cup match.

In San Antonio, the Scorpions came from two goals down twice to tie the Atlanta Silverbacks, 3-3. Marvin Chávez and César Elizondo each scored a goal in the final 10 minutes of the game to secure the point for San Antonio.

Ottawa Fury FC 3, Carolina RailHawks 1

Ottawa Fury FC (10-4-1, 34 Fall, 12-9-4, 45 Combined) was rewarded for its dominating play during the game's first 20 minutes when Tom Heinemann muscled his way past two Carolina defenders to score the opening goal in the 19th minute at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, N.C. It was his sixth goal of the year.

Heinemann doubled Ottawa's lead when he picked up a deflected pass and sent a shot past Carolina (3-3-9, 12 Fall; 6-8-11, 26 Combined) goalkeeper Akira Fitzgerald in the 32nd minute. Fury FC added to the RailHawks' misery when Paulo Jr. scored a lovely goal on a shot inside the far post. Nacho Novo pulled one back for the RailHawks, who have one win in their last 12 games, when he converted a penalty kick in the 51st minute. Ottawa finished its perfect road trip with 9 points, outscoring the opposition by 9-2, and returns home to host FC Edmonton on Oct. 4.

Jacksonville Armada FC 2, Tampa Bay Rowdies 0

Perhaps it was the scarlet and gold throwback replica jerseys worn more than 30 years ago by the Jacksonville Tea Men. Whatever it was, after 533 minutes without having scored a goal, Jacksonville (4-2-8, 14 Fall; 7-5-12, 26 Combined) finally broke through when Lucas Scaglia took a pass from the Haitian international Pascal Millien and scored from 25 yards out in the 34th minute before 7,163 at Community First Park.

Millien added an insurance goal in the 74th minute for the expansion team that has lost only once at home this year, but has failed to win a single game on the road. Tampa Bay (4-2-8, 14 Fall; 9-6-9, 33 Combined), despite a lackluster Fall Season, remains very much in the race for the No. 4 seed in The Championship.

Minnesota United FC 5, Fort Lauderdale Strikers 2

Jose Angulo, making only his second start of the Fall Season for Fort Lauderdale (5-5-4, 20 Fall; 8-7-9, 31 Combined), gave the Strikers a 1-0 lead in the seventh minute. Angulo tapped in a crossing ball from Gabriel from an initial setup by Walter Ramírez. Minnesota (8-5-2, 28 Fall; 11-10-4, 43 Combined) answered quickly five minutes later. Greg Jordan's deflected shot fell to Daniel Mendes about 10 yards out. He tapped it to Christian Ramirez who scored from six yards out to notch his 10th goal of the year.

The Loons grabbed the lead in the 27th minute when Kalif Alhassan calmly measured his shot from the top of the area to the left of Josh Ford in goal, and curled a strike into the far upper 90 of the goal. Minnesota added a goal two minutes before the interval when Ibson's perfectly weighted lead pass found Mendes alone in the area for a shot that Ford had no chance of stopping. Minnesota scored again in the 61st minute when Ramirez broke in alone on Ford and unselfishly passed to an open Ibson for the goal. Ibson scored his second of the match when he chipped the ball over Ford from close range. Angulo then notched his second of the game on a sweet, curling left-footed shot from the top of the area.

San Antonio Scorpions 3, Atlanta Silverbacks 3

Atlanta (6-4-5, 22 Fall; 7-9-9, 30 Combined) took the lead only eight minutes into the match when Kyle Porter fed Jamie Chávez, who beat San Antonio (3-5-6, 14 Fall; 6-8-10, 26 Combined) goalkeeper Daniel Fernandes before 7,759 at Toyota Field. Rauwshan McKenzie doubled the lead when Junior Burgos found him with a pass for the score in the 23rd minute. The Scorpions cut the deficit in half just before halftime when Nana Attakora powered a shot through a tangle of players for his first goal for the club.

The Silverbacks restored a two-goal lead in the 54th minute when a pass split two defenders and found Chávez for a right-footed shot with his instep that eluded Fernandes. San Antonio again drew within a goal when Marvin Chávez, the Honduran international, powered a left-footed shot over the outstretched arms of goalkeeper Steward Ceus. San Antonio tied the match with time running out off a wild sequence that began with Eric Hasili's cross from the left. Omar Cummings rose to hit a header that caromed off the far post, traveled across the goalmouth and hit the other post without going in. As Ceus swatted at the ball, César Elizondo dove to head the ball across the line.



North American Soccer League Stories from September 26, 2015


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