skip navigation

Phoenix Beats Portland but Settles for Fifth

By CHRIS HOCKMAN - chris.hockman@uslsoccer.com, 10/15/17, 12:30AM EDT

Share

Rising FC falls short of nine-goal target in 4-1 win in front of 6,711


Photo courtesy Michael Rincon/Phoenix Rising FC

PHOENIX – Needing a nine-goal margin of victory to earn a home game in the Western Conference Quarterfinals of the 2017 USL Cup Playoffs, Phoenix Rising FC came up short as it settled for a 4-1 win against the Portland Timbers 2 at the Phoenix Rising Soccer Complex on Saturday night in front of 6,711 fans in its regular-season home finale. Phoenix made it clear it was going to do everything it could to make a run at the big margin of victory it needed and opened the scoring just four minutes into the match with Kevon Lambert hitting a powerful strike from long range that bounced in front of the goalkeeper and into the back of the net. Phoenix doubled its lead in the 13th minute as Didier Drogba crossed from the right to the far post for Chris Cortez to volley perfectly into the top-left corner of the net with his left foot, bouncing it in off the crossbar. After that frantic start, things slowed down with Phoenix going into the break only 2-0 up. Drogba added a third on his own in the 56th minute as he gathered a ball from Cortez and beat three defenders before shooting across the face and into the back of the net. Portland killed the clean sheet as Harold Hanson made a strong run and beat three defenders before squaring for Augustine Williams who was left with a simple tap into pull Portland back into the match. Phoenix restored its three-goal lead with 15 minutes to go when Matt Watson received the ball after Portland couldn’t control it and shot through traffic, beating the goalkeeper with a well placed shot. While Phoenix impressed, the hosts were unable to add to their lead, setting up a trip to face the Swope Park Rangers next Saturday night.

Scoring:
4’ – PHX – Kevon Lambert (Alessandro Riggi)
13’ – PHX – Chris Cortez (Didier Drogba)
56’ – PHX – Didier Drogba (Chris Cortez)
60’ – POR – Augustine William (Harold Hanson)
75’ – PHX – Matt Watson

Three Things That Matter:

  • 1. Kevon Lambert’s opening goal was his first for the club, coming in his ninth match since arriving at Rising FC. The Jamaian midfielder has not had many chances on goal, with the goal coming on just his sixth shot this season, giving him a 17 percent conversion rate. By getting a new scorer in the match, Phoenix has found another player to spread the ball to for goals, with Lambert the 16th goal scorer for Phoenix this season.

  • 2. With an impressive assist on the Portland Timbers 2 goal, Harold Hanson moved into a tie for the team assist lead, with the assists spread fairly evenly throughout the T2 team. The assist was Hanson’s second of the season, drawing him level with Marco Farfan, Tomas Granitto, and Omar Mohamed.

  • 3. For the first time in club history, Rising FC scored more than 50 goals in the USL regular season, capping the best season in club history. The opening goal from Lambert pushed Phoenix past the half-century mark, with Phoenix setting a new single-season club record of 53 goals.

USLSoccer.com Man of the Match:

Didier Drogba, Phoenix Rising FC – Again leading from the front, Drogba scored a goal and provided an assist on the second goal of the night, playing the full 90 as Phoenix heads to the USL Cup Playoffs in form with three straight wins.

Upcoming Games:
Western Conference Quarterfinals: Phoenix Rising FC at Swope Park Rangers – October 21st, 8:30p.m. ET, Children’s Mercy Victory Field
Portland Timbers 2 – End of season

Follow the USL Championship

Most Recent News

Most Read News

Latest Videos