Reading Rage News Release - www.bsarage.com
Friday, July 17, 2009
READING, PA -- Jimmy Taranto powered his way through the Legacy’s stymied defense, trying to find an opening. A hole finally opened, and he sprinted toward the goal, gathered a miss off the post in the 47th minute and deposited his first goal of the night into the back of the net for his first of four and the first of many goals for the Rage Friday night as they over powered the Virginia Legacy 8-0.
Reading’s win made a statement that they are the class of the PDL Mid Atlantic Division. The team moved closer to locking up the number one overall PDL playoff seed against an overmatched Virginia team. The Rage capitalized on poor defense and a complete team effort.
Taranto’s first goal was all the Rage would need this night, but he did not stop there, scoring again in the 25th (assist Jon Ports), 42nd (unassisted), and 84th (assist Dawyne Rick Smith) minutes, registering his best game of the season thus far.
The first half was the killer for Virginia in which they only managed one shot versus 12 for the Rage. Reading’s defenders showed their recovery ability as the Legacy forwards pressed them for the first 20 minutes, keeping continuous pressure on the defense.
The tide turned though in the 21st minute as Aarron Wheeler on the receiving end of a give and go pass, fired a shot home making the score 2-0, and in essence dooming the Legacy.
The Rage would go on to score three more times in the next four minutes as Taranto put home his second goal in the 25th minute; Evans Frimpong stole a pass from a Legacy defender and scored a nifty goal in the 26th minute; and finally Adam Gazda (assist Ports) pushed in another goal in the 29th minute, giving the Rage an insurmountable 5-0 lead.
Yet another highlight for the Rage came in the 42nd minute as Jimmy Taranto dribbled up the middle of the pitch, finding space and eventually stuffing home his third goal of the night, earning himself a hat trick in the 42nd minute.
After the half, Reading slowed down the pace, allowing everyone a chance to catch their collective breaths. The defense never quit though, not allowing a good scoring opportunity all night.
Luke Mulholland entered the scoring party in the 47th minute (assist Adam Gazda), shooting down all hopes of a comeback effort in the final 45 minutes. The 7-0 scoreline proved to not be enough though, as Jimmy Taranto plugged away and found himself scoring for a fourth time on the night.
John Ports and Aarron Wheeler continued their collective climbs to the top of the charts as well, as Wheeler took over the lead in goals scored for the PDL. With his three assists tonight, Ports edged his way toward the league lead in assists. They both have one more game to solidify themselves at the top of these categories.
Reading will finish the regular season Sunday night at 7pm against the Fredericksburg Gunners at Don Thomas Stadium. The team will then host a first round playoff game next Friday or Saturday night, times and opponent to be announced later.
