Despite leading for 90+ minutes, North Texas SC conceded a late goal to Whitecaps FC 2, in which the home team came away with the shootout victory at Swangard Stadium on Wednesday night.
Lineups and Tactics
North Texas SC held a 4-4-2 formation, with Eryk Dymora getting his 10th start in goal. The starting lineup consisted of two changes from their previous game. Daniel Baran replaced Diego Garcia at LM and earned his first start of the season.
Ian Charles slid to CB, which allowed Timmy Ospina (CM) to replace Álvaro Augusto in the starting XI, and earn his 11th start of the season. Caleb Swann was paired with Ospina at CM, with Swann playing more as an 8, and Ospina as a 6.
Up top, Natty James and Edu Nys started as dual strikers, with Baran out wide at LM and Ricky Louis at RM. Most notably absent from the starting lineup was Enzo Newman, who had started 9 games prior to this game.
The Whitecaps, on the other hand, opted for a 4-2-3-1 formation. In goal, Samuel Rogers earned his 7th start of the season. Defender Immanuel Mathe made his 6th start of the season at RB, paired with Micaah Garnette, who started at LB for the 15th straight time this year.
In the midfield, Carson Rassak started at the 10, with Kevin Podgorni (LW) and Daniel Ittycheria (RW) out wide on the wings. Most notably absent from the starting lineup was Liam MacKenzie, who led the team in goals, with 5 so far this season.
The Game
A very close first half resulted in 10 total shots between the two teams, with the Whitecaps landing 3 of those on target and forcing Dymora to make some crucial saves. Despite being outshot, North Texas retained 54% of possession and accumulated 7 touches in the opposition’s box.
That pressure from North Texas eventually paid off, though, as they would strike first in this game.
In the 48th minute, Umberto Pela dispossessed Manav Badwal in the midfield with a slide tackle. Baran picked up the ball and made a run towards the other end, before playing a through ball to Jaidyn Contreras. Contreras took a touch, set his feet, and slid the ball between Rogers’ legs to make it 1-0, NTSC.
“I saw a big gap in between the center back and the left back, and I was hoping for Daniel Baran to find me,” Contreras said. “Thankfully, he did, and I was fortunate enough to get the finish to put us up.”
However, that wouldn’t be the final goal in this game as Vancouver found their equalizer in the 92nd minute. After Vancouver played a cross off a set piece, Cristiano Bruletti’s pass pinballed around the box until Connor Munn managed to volley it into the back of the net to send the game to PK’s, all tied up at 1-1.
“Our players need to be able to be resilient at the end of the game to dig deep,” head coach John Gall said. “I didn’t feel that Vancouver was going to cause us any issues other than getting something from a set piece, and unfortunately we fell asleep at the back post, and they capitalized.”
After 90+ minutes of soccer, the game headed to a shootout. In which Samuel Rogers was able to come up with two saves and help the Whitecaps 2 secure two points from Los Toritos.
Penalty Kick Results:
NTX – 🟢🟢🟢🔴🔴
VAN – 🟢🟢🟢🔴🟢
“We’re a young team, we’re still dealing with some inconsistencies, and that’s something that we will continue to work on,” coach Gall said. “We have nine home games in the second half of the season, and we’re moving to Mansfield. We’re determined to make Mansfield a fortress. We’re determined to show the club we deserve to be down there.”
All in all, it wasn’t the best performance for North Texas SC. Despite this, Caleb Swann managed to play well enough to be deemed our Man of the Match. Swann completed 83% of his passes, had 55 touches, accrued 3 interceptions and 9 recoveries on the defensive half of the field. He did just about everything he could to will this team across the finish line.
Up next, North Texas SC welcomes St. Louis City 2 to Texas Health Mansfield Stadium for their inaugural game at the new stadium, on Saturday, July 4th at 7:45 pm CT. St. Louis are currently 7-2-5 on the season, with 3 shoot-out wins.