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Gameday Report: June 29, Week 14

By USLLeagueOne.com Staff, 06/29/19, 9:30PM EDT

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North Texas extends lead at top of the table with win over Lansing

North Texas sc (3) v lansing ignite fc (1)

North Texas SC defeated Lansing Ignite FC, 3-1, Saturday night at Toyota Stadium. 

Callum Montgomery opened the scoring in the 57th minute following an Arturo Rodriguez free kick. Ronaldo Damus got his head on Rodriguez’ service, nodding it on frame. The Ignite managed to scramble the initial shot off the line, but Montgomery was there to knock in the rebound for his first goal of the season. 

Rodriguez got himself on the scoresheet in the 71st minute, capping off an impressive sweeping move from the young North Texas side. Jonathan Gomez slipped a pass into the path of Rodriguez’s run and the midfielder smartly placed a one-time finish into the bottom corner of Stefan Cleveland’s goal to make it 2-0.  The goal was Rodriguez’s third of the season. 

Gomez played provider again two minutes later as he slipped League One leading goal-scorer Ronaldo Damus through with a clever pass. Damus made no mistake, bursting in on goal and finishing to Cleveland’s right to score his ninth goal of the season. 

Lansing pulled a goal back in the 83rd minute through Pato Botello Faz. Rhys Williams created the chance, driving at the North Texas defense before slipping Steeve Saint-Duc through. Saint-Duc dribbled to the endline and found Faz with his cutback, who finished from three yards out to score his first goal of the season. 

Takeaways: 

FRISKY IN FRISCO: North Texas SC are a different team at Toyota Stadium. Saturday’s win improves North Texas’ home record to 7-0-0 at the midway point of the inaugural season. Despite the fireworks in the attacking end, the most impressive statistic to take away from North Texas’ home form is the club’s five goals conceded in seven matches. The 3-1 result against Lansing improved North Texas’ goal differential to +11 at Toyota Stadium this season, while it’s an even zero on the road. Two home wins this week has put North Texas back on top of the League One standings with a four point lead on second place Tormenta FC.  

HIGH FLYING: It appears it doesn't matter who Head Coach Eric Quill decides to name in his starting XI, North Texas will find a way to score goals. Damus scored his league-leading ninth goal of the season against Lansing, making it six goals in the last four matches for the Haitain forward. Gomez earned his first attacking statistics of the season, notching two assists against the Ignite in his fourth appearance, while Montgomery became the tenth different North Texas player to find the back of the net this season. Damus is carrying a large part of the scoring load, but a total-team effort has helped North Texas score a league-leading 27 goals in 13 games. 

STEFAN SHELLED: Coming into tonight’s match, Lansing had conceded just four goals in its previous six matches and looked to have fixed its defensive woes that plagued the club at the beginning of the season. The Ignite regressed back to a previous version of itself Saturday night, conceding three goals on 18 shots, 12 of which came from inside the 18-yard box. Goalkeeper Stefan Cleveland was forced to make three saves on the night to give Lansing a fighting chance at a comeback following Faz’s goal in the 83rd minute. The Ignite have given up 18 or more shots on three separate occasions this season, conceding eight goals and earning zero points in those three matches. Lansing will look to get back on track defensively next Saturday in a showdown with the streaking Chattanooga Red Wolves. 

chattanooga red woles sc (1) v richmond kickers (0)

Chattanooga Red Wolves SC defeated the Richmond Kickers, 1-0, Saturday night at David Stanton Field. 

Steven Beattie scored the game’s only goal in the eighth minute, beating his defender to Sito Seoane’s low cross at the near post. The goal was Beattie’s seventh of the season.  

Takeaways: 

RED HOT RED WOLVES: It appears that Chattanooga has put the pieces together as the win over Richmond extends the club’s unbeaten run to five matches. The Red Wolves have collected 13 of a possible 15 points during the unbeaten stretch that began on May 25th. Saturday’s win also adds to the Red Wolves’ undefeated start at home this season, improving the club’s record at David Stanton Field to 5-0-3. Chattanooga is one of four League One clubs that has not lost on home turf at the midway point of the inaugural season. The three points earned against the Kickers momentarily move the Red Wolves into third place in the standings ahead of Lansing Ignite FC. The Ignite take on North Texas SC later Saturday night. 

LEADING FROM THE FRONT: One of the keys to Chattanooga’s recent run of form has been the play of Beattie and Seoane, who connected to score a goal for the second time in three games Saturday night. Head Coach Tim Hankinson has elected to use Seoane as the center forward in a 4-5-1, dropping veteran Eamon Zayed to the bench during the five-game unbeaten run. With Seoane up front, the Red Wolves attack has looked more dynamic and opened up space for Beattie on the right flank. Beattie’s goal Saturday night brings his season total to seven, one off the league lead. He’s scored five of those seven during Chattanooga’s surge up the table over the course of the last month. 

IMPOTENT ATTACK: The exact opposite of what’s happening in Chattanooga is happening for the Kickers. Richmond failed to put a shot on target of the second consecutive match, as the club’s attack looks more and more disconnected by the day. The Kickers finished the month of June with just ten shots on target in five matches. In its previous two matches, Richmond has only created nine chances and served in seven crosses. It appears that there is either a lack of attacking talent or a lack of urgency to get into the final third and create. Whatever the issue, Head Coach David Bulow needs to find the remedy, and fast. Following Saturday’s result, Richmond has lost four of the last five matches and find themselves in ninth place in the League One standings. The Kickers will have next weekend off to regroup before returning home to host the league leaders, North Texas SC on July 13. 


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