Irvine, CA – It was a tale of two halves in Southern California as Seattle Sounders FC 2 fell to the Orange Country Blues FC 5-2 at Anteater Stadium on Saturday night. Forward Andy Craven scored two goals in the affair, his first of the season, and midfielder Jordan Schweitzer saw red, reducing S2 to 10 men early in the second half.
After an uneventful first 45 minutes, the match exploded in the second half with seven goals. S2 were first out of the gate when Craven linked up with forward Victor Mansaray who played him into the box in the 48th minute. Craven calmly slotted his shot far post for the 1-0 lead.
It wasn’t long before he tallied his second from a penalty kick earned by Craven himself in the 55th minute. OC Blues then responded in the 60th minute when substitute forward Akwafei Ajeakwa got on the end of a brilliant long cross and finished with his head.
The crucial moment of the match occurred in the 62nd minute when Schweitzer came in hard on Ajeakwa with a sliding challenge. Referee Michael Zapata showed Schweitzer straight red and S2 went down to 10 with 30 minutes to play.
OC Blues then broke the match open less than two minutes later when midfielder Pavle Popara struck from distance to level the match at two goals apiece. The goals continued to pour in for the Blues, scoring in the 71st on a rebound from goalkeeper Charlie Lyon’s save, in the 86th on a penalty kick when defender Brandon John handled the ball in the box and in 94th when John went down leaving Lyon one on one with Joe Baccielo.
The result keeps S2 in the basement of the Western Conference with seven points. The team returns home to face Whitecaps FC 2 on June 9.
