Orange County SC came into the match this weekend with a new lease on life, hoping to get their second win. However, despite looking better than they have all season, Phoenix Rising stopped the possible win streak in its tracks with a late goal.
FIRST HALF
The boys in Orange seemed like a new team with new energy as soon as the first whistle blew. In the first minute, Marc "Sparky" McNulty received a quick pass from Milan Iloski at the top of the box and fired a shot toward the far post that Rocco Rios Novo stopped with a diving save. Sparky was clearly eager for his first goal of the season; only minutes later, he took a second strike toward the goal that went too high.
Milan almost got a perfect opportunity on net after Sparky controlled the ball in Phoenix's final third and made a pass back to Milan, who started the run to challenge Novo. However, the defense could only stop him with a foul at the top of the box. Unfortunately, Milan missed the follow-up free kick, but Orange County made a statement early on in the match that this squad is still ready to fight.
Sadly, the first half continued with no goals from OCSC, but this match was the first time the team looked like an entirely cohesive and strong unit all season. Markus Nakkim held down the defense and got the ball to the back wings, Owen Lambe and Ryan Doghman, who trusted the midfield to create enough space to push possession of this game on the Phoenix half as much as possible. There was a level of confidence and trust among the team in this match that had been missing from the earlier season performances.
There was an extremely controversial moment in the 20th minute in both commentators of the match, and fans all disagreed with a lack of penalty called after a bad bounce in the box led to a handball from the Phoenix Rising defense. However, the referee did not make the call keeping a huge chance away from Orange County to take the lead.
The Rising offense did have one instance of worry in the first half requiring Colin Shutler to prove again why he has taken over as the starting goalkeeper. Eddie Munjoma could cut in toward the box and beat Lambe on the action giving a great lane to shoot on net. Shutler made a tremendous diving save to keep the score even at 0-0 by the half-time whistle.
SECOND HALF
The second half started with some subs made by Orange County, seeing Brian Iloski and Brent Richards come on the pitch to replace Sparky and Lambe, both of whom have been crucial in the raised performance of the team. As much as fans would love to see both of them clock in an entire 90 minutes during a match, the fact they are both coming off injuries, itβs understandable that Morten Karlsen doesnβt want to push their return too hard too soon.
A sequence of fouls against Phoenix Rising led Doghman to earn a yellow card in the 51st minute after a tackle from behind. Yet, there was a bit of luck for Orange County that the referee didnβt book two players at the exact moment. Only seconds before Doghman's foul, Daniel Pedersen made a high tackle that could have easily been considered yellow card worthy.
Phoenix came onto the pitch during the second half with a strong attacking focus pushing through the OCSC midfield and constantly challenging the strong back line. All of this led to a heartbreaking moment where a long pass soared over the head of Nakkim and was controlled in the box by striker Manuel Arteaga. His shot across the box opened the scoreline with a 1-0 lead from Phoenix Rising.
Sixteen-year-old, Benjamin Norris, came on as a sub to replace Kyle Scott in the 74th minute. One of the fantastic elements of this season for Orange County has been their willingness to give playtime to the youth players in the club, and Norris proved precisely why in this match. He brought a ton of energy and aggression to the attacking force, which may have earned a questionable yellow card, but he also showed so much promise for the potential of young players like him.
Even after chasing Phoenix in the last twenty minutes, Orange County never lost their fighting desire. They kept the pressure on Phoenix's defense and should have had a few goals throughout the game. Still, the one element missing from the evolution of this team's performance over the past few games has been their ability to finish critically and get the goals needed to start winning games consistently.
Unfortunately, they could not find the needed sequence to get an equalizer, and OCSC ended the two-game week with a loss against visitors Phoenix Rising.
OVERVIEW
Regardless of the result, there was much to be happy about in watching Orange County's clear improvements over the past few matches. So much of their chemistry as a squad is coming together, especially when looking at the defense and midfield's progression. That is also considering the number of players still out on injury, now including Ashish Chattha, who was sorely missed this weekend after he hurt his foot in the game Wednesday.
Once the offense can find the right rhythm in their shots on goal, this team will become a force to be reckoned with. Let's hope that it isnβt too late in the season.
Putting aside the unfortunate match result, the club hosted its yearly Community Night this weekend and raised $4,900 for local Orange County charities.
Next week, OCSC takes to the road on Saturday, May 27th, to face off against an eastern conference team, Miami FC, for a chance to pick up their first away game win of the season.