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USL1 FC Tucson

Postseason Clinched with Wild Win

October 31, 2021 - United Soccer League One (USL1)
FC Tucson News Release


On the day before Halloween, it seemed almost fitting that FC Tucson exorcised some demons in its 4-2 win over the Richmond Kickers on Saturday night.

FC Tucson scored two goals in the second half and staved off a Richmond rally at Kino North Stadium to reach the playoffs for the first time in its USL League One history.

The victory came at the expense of a Richmond team that the club had never beaten before in six matches and against the man who guided Tucson in its first USL League One season (2019): Darren Sawatzky.

With the win, FC Tucson (11-10-7, 40 points) jumped from seventh to fourth and will host Richmond again on Saturday, November 6, in a first-round of the USL League One Playoffs, Presented by TwinSpires at Kino North Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.

The match didn't start brightly for FC Tucson after Jonathan Bolanos converted a tap-in to give Richmond a 1-0 lead in the 22nd minute.

But the club answered back quickly when a long shot by Maxi Schenfeld ripped along the grass and found the corner at the far post just two minutes later.

Deri Corfe's shot in the 42nd minute found about the same spot as Schenfeld's to give FC Tucson a 2-1 lead going into the break.

Richmond didn't let it last long when the teams came back out, scoring in the 49th minute when a defensive mistake resulted in a penalty kick, which Emiliano Terzaghi converted to tie the score again.

Two minutes later, Luca Mastrantonio gained some revenge when he rose high and headed in a Charlie Dennis corner to make it 3-2.

"Coming off the mistake, Joao Delgado told me 'you're scoring, you're scoring.' I was just happy to have been there," Mastrantonio said.

"We should have already been in the playoffs," he said. "But we came up when we had to come up. We wanted to win in front of our crowd."

Shak Adams added an insurance goal in the 58th on a sizzling shot from an acute angle.

"I thought I gotta take it on myself," Adams said. "I was just fortunate to be a part of FC Tucson history."

For FC Tucson coach Jon Pearlman, it was an amazing regular-season run after taking over the team earlier in the season.

"I believed this was a playoff-level team," Pearlman said. "I look forward to the opportunity next week. It's indescribable when I consider how far we have gone the the last few years."

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