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Rhinos Edge Out City Islanders

By NICHOLAS MURRAY - nicholas.murray@uslsoccer.com, 08/08/17, 9:01PM EDT

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Lynd’s five-save shutout leads Rochester to road victory


Photo courtesy Harrisburg City Islanders

HARRISBURG, Pa. – The Rochester Rhinos took a 1-0 victory against the Harrisburg City Islanders at FNB Field on Tuesday night to earn the first edition of the Capelli Sport Hero Cup, and solidify its position in the Eastern Conference standings. Neither side created much before the Rhinos (9-4-8, 35pts) took the lead in the 25th minute when Darius Madison headed home an angled free kick from Wal Fall on the left side. The City Islanders (6-11-6, 24pts) went close to an equalizer three minutes later as Paul Wilson’s shot from 20 yards was tipped over by Rochester goalkeeper Dan Lynd. Ropapa Mensah also went close for Harrisburg, only for his open chance to be redirected wide by Lynd seven minutes before halftime. The teams exchanged chances early in the second half, but Wilson went close again for the City Islanders with a curling effort that was turned away by Lynd in the 65th minute. The Rhinos shut up shop defensively in the final 20 minutes, not allowing a shot on goal as they walked away with all three points.

Scoring:
25’ – ROC – Darius Marison (Wal Fall)

Three Things That Matter:

  • 1. Returning home after a winless road trip, the City Islanders showed a surprising lack of urgency early on Tuesday night. Harrisburg didn’t create a scoring chance in the opening 25 minutes, and it seemed to take Darius Madison’s goal for the Rhinos to spark the hosts into life. The City Islanders responded well, and created two good scoring chances for both Paul Wilson and Ropapa Mensah in the 15 minutes following the opening goal, but that type of creativity and energy would have been much more welcome from the opening whistle.

  • 2. The City Islanders finished scoreless for a fourth consecutive outing, although over the final 65 minutes it wasn’t for a lack of chances. Harrisburg was held off the scoreboard again, however, thanks to an excellent display by Rochester goalkeeper Dan Lynd, who made three excellent saves to record his second shutout of the season, including two from City Islanders playmaker Paul Wilson. Now in his second season with the Rhinos, Lynd was making only his fourth start of the season as he has served as a backup to Tomas Gomez. It hasn’t always been smooth sailing, Lynd was on the wrong end of the Charleston Battery’s 5-0 victory against the Rhinos earlier this season, but on Tuesday night the former PDL player showed a high level of quality.

  • 3. Rhinos Head Coach Bob Lilley had elected to give Tomas Gomez got the night off in net, but the side was able to also overcome the suspensions of Kenardo Forbes and Joe Farrell to take a road victory that wasn’t particularly pretty, but did solidify the Rhinos in fifth place in the Eastern Conference. Darius Madison took his first-half chance well as he found space to nod home Wal Fall’s free kick, and despite being outshot 5-2 in shots on goal for the game and completing only 65 percent of their passes, the Rhinos claimed victory, and the Capelli Sport Hero Cup contested by the clubs.

USLSoccer.com Man of the Match

Dan Lynd, Rochester Rhinos – Lynd’s five-save shutout allowed the Rhinos’ first-half goal to stand up as the winner in an impressive display by Rochester’s backup goalkeeper.

Upcoming Games:
Harrisburg City Islanders
vs. Pittsburgh Riverhounds – August 12, 7 p.m. ET, FNB Field
Rochester Rhinos vs. Charleston Battery – August 19, 6:05 p.m. ET, Capelli Sport Stadium

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