TACOMA, WASH.
- Sounders FC 2 (1-2-0, 3 points) lost a heartbreaker inside the friendly confines of Cheney Stadium on Wednesday night, as visiting Fresno FC (1-1-1, 4 points) stole a late strike courtesy of midfielder Jemal Johnson in the 82
nd
minute of play. Throughout the night, it was S2 that bossed much of the contest, earning 61.9 percent of the match's overall possession and registering seven shots on-goal to Fresno's two attempts. Nevertheless, it was the visitors that grabbed all three points, moving S2's record in its new home to 1-1-0 since completing the club's recent move to Tacoma.
The hosts carved out a number of quality chances in the opening 45 minutes, but were unable to find the back of the net. Fresno nearly opened the scoring in the 13th minute, only to be denied on a one-on-one opportunity with Bryan Meredith by a perfectly-timed sliding challenge from Francisco Narbon inside the area. Striker Felix Chenkam nearly handed S2 a lead when he found himself alone with Fresno goalkeeper Kyle Reynish on a counterattack, but the Cameroonian pulled his shot wide of the near post.
There was more action after the break, with both sides exchanging shots on goal. After dribbling past the left-back, S2 midfielder Nick Hinds slipped a pass into the feet of David Olsen, but the midfielder was denied from point-blank range by Reynish. The visitors eventually broke the deadlock late in the second half, with Johnson heading home Zachary Ellis-Hayden's cross from the right flank in the 82
nd
minute.
S2 pushed numbers forward throughout the final ten minutes in search of an equalizer. The best chances fell to Shandon Hopeau, as the Sounders Academy alum nearly pulled the hosts level with a long-range shot that crashed back off the crossbar, in addition to a close-range header that was saved by the goalkeeper.
The club returns to USL play on Saturday, April 7 at Sacramento Republic FC (7:30 p.m. PT / USLsoccer.com). The Rave Green come home to Tacoma on Wednesday, April 11 for a showdown with Real Monarchs SLC. Kickoff for that contest slated for 7:00 p.m. PT (USLsoccer.com). Tickets for the match are available via
WeRTacoma.com
.
MATCH SUMMARY
Sounders FC 2 I 0-1 I Fresno FC
Wednesday, March 28, 2018
Venue:
Cheney Stadium I Tacoma, Washington
Referee:
Daniel Radford
Assistants:
Cephas Quartson, Cameron Siler
Fourth Official:
Mike Hohnholz
Weather:
51 degrees and cloudy
Attendance:
2,150
SCORING SUMMARY
FRS -
Jamel Johnson (Zachary Ellis-Hayden) 82'
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
SEA -
Ray Saari (caution) 30'
FRS -
Zachary Ellis-Hayden (caution) 85'
SEA -
Denso Ulysse (caution) 91'
LINEUPS & STATS
S2 -
Bryan Meredith; Denso Ulysse, Rodrigue Ele, Francisco Narbon, Ibrahim Usman; Dylan Teves, Ray Saari - captain, Shandon Hopeau, David Olsen, Nick Hinds (RJ Stretch 72'); Felix Chenkam (David Estrada 65')
Substitutes not used:
Sam Fowler, Cameron Martin, Gabe Threadgold
Total shots:
13
Shots on goal:
7
Fouls:
14
Offside:
4
Corner-kicks:
5
Saves:
1
FRS -
Kyle Reynish; Alex Cooper, Ramón Del Campo, Mickey Daly, Zachary Ellis-Hayden; Jemal Johnson, Pedro Ribiero (Alberto Navarro 86'), Noah Verhoeven (Rony Argueta 62'), Danny Barrera; Christian Chaney (Renato Bustamente 57'), Juan Pablo Caffa
Substitutes not used:
Sean Melvin, Bradley Kamden Fewo, Terran Campbell, AgustÃn Cazarez
Total shots:
16
Shots on goal:
2
Fouls:
12
Offside:
4
Corner-kicks:
7
Saves:
7
