Around The Northwest - USL League Two Week Ten


AROUND THE NORTHWEST

Welcome to Around The Northwest, a weekly breakdown of the Northwest Division. Game recaps and team information on the Highlanders and their division rivals leading into the next week of the USL League Two campaign.

USL League Two Northwest Division Week 10 Matchups

Vancouver TSS FC Rovers (2-7-2) at Victoria Highlanders FC (6-3-1) – Friday, July 5th 

The match started out in favour of the home team as the Highlanders were awarded a penalty in the 6th minute. Shun Takano converted from the spot to give Victoria a 1-0 lead. The lead was short-lived though as Riley Pang headed it home off a fantastic free kick from Jordan Haynes in the 10th minute. The Highlanders came close to scoring the go-ahead goal in the middle stages of the half as Daniel Davidson and recently signed Caleb Clarke had dangerous opportunities in the offensive third.

It would be the Rovers to score the go-ahead goal as Rahid Rahiem scored off a perfectly placed curling shot that found the top right corner to give Vancouver a 2-1 lead in the 44th minute. The road team added to the lead just a minute later when the Rovers were awarded a penalty. Matteo Polisi converted on the chance and gave the Rovers a 3-1 lead after 45 minutes of play.

Davidson came close to pulling Victoria within one, but his header sailed just over the crossbar. Guurman Jhaj looked destined to put the Rovers up by three, but his shot rang off the post before Shojaei cleared it from danger. Davidson took advantage of his next opportunity as he was able to poke the ball past Trasolini in a scramble in the box in the 60th minute to cut Vancouver’s lead to 3-2.

Jhaj had another prime scoring opportunity as he found himself with possession behind Schneider, but Banton blocked the shot before making the clear. Takano cut across the top of the box before he fired a tough angle shot that was corralled by Trasolini in the 73rd minute. Jake Ruby had a great opportunity in the latter stages of the match, but his aerial shot was turned aside by Trasolini. The Highlanders pushed for the tying goal, but the Rovers were able to hang on for the 3-2 win and captured the 2019 Juan De Fuca Plate.

Calgary Foothills FC (5-3-2) at Lane United FC (5-2-4) – Friday, July 5th

Foothills FC traveled to Eugene, Oregon to take on Lane United FC in a battle of the top two teams of the Northwest Division. Calgary youngster, Aribim Pepple opened the scoring in the 13th minute, converting on his rebound chance for his first goal of the season to put the road team up 1-0. Lane United didn’t let the goal get to them as they pushed right back looking for the equalizer. After a dangerous offensive chance, Lane United was given a penalty. Adan Garcia stepped up to the spot and made no mistake as he fired it past Ben Jackson to tie the game at one. The scored remained 1-1 after 45 minutes of play.

The opening stages of the second half saw both teams play a bit more cautious as they looked for an opportunity to strike. Cory Bent fired one home off a free kick in the 77th minute to put the road team back on top. Calgary would add the insurance goal in the 86th minute when Willy Akio added to his team leading goal total and gave the Foothills a 3-1 lead. Lane tried to mount a late offensive push, but the deficit was too much to overcome and Calgary walked away with a 3-1 win and three points in the playoff race.

Calgary Foothills FC (6-3-2) at Lane United FC (5-3-4) – Sunday, July 7th

Calgary and Lane United squared off in the finale of their two-game weekend series at Marist High School. The first half was a defensive battle between the teams as possession in midfield was hard to come by. Lane United led in time of possession in the opening half but were unable to take advantage of the possession. The game remained scoreless as both teams headed to the locker rooms at halftime.

The game opened up a bit in the second half, but not by much. Both teams did a great job of limiting the offensive chances and closing the passing lanes. It wouldn’t be until the 87th minute that the lone goal of the game would be scored. Aribim Pepple slipped past his defender before slotting it home, his second goal of the weekend, to give Calgary a 1-0 lead late in the game. That was all the Foothills needed as they picked up the 1-0 win and swept the weekend series with Ben Jackson picking up the clean sheet.

Vancouver TSS FC Rovers (3-7-2) at Portland Timbers U23 (2-7-2) – Sunday July 7th 

TSS FC Rovers traveled to Salem, Oregon to take on Portland Timbers U23 for a Sunday matinee matchup. Portland, who has played much better at home than on the road, put on a fantastic offensive showing in the opening 45 minutes. Christo Michaelson started off the scoring with a goal in the 16th minute to give the home team a 1-0 lead. Timur Zhividze added to that lead in the 23rd minute to push the lead to two goals for the home team. That was followed by a Bertrand Fourrier goal just seven minutes later to make it a 3-0 game in the 30th minute. Vancouver didn’t have any answer for the Portland attack as Zhividze recorded his brace in the 39th minute to give the Timbers a 4-0 lead after 45 minutes.

The Rovers looked to get on the board in the early minutes of the second half but were unable to solve the Timbers backline or Mario Sequeira. A substitution in the 72nd minute brought on Allando Brown for Portland and the move payed off shortly thereafter. Brown took a pass from Caleb Kiner before he found the back of the net for a 5-0 lead. Zhividze completed his hat trick in the 83rd minute and Portland walked away with the 6-0 home win.

Victoria Highlanders FC (6-4-1) at Seattle Sounders U23 (5-3-3) – Sunday, July 7th  

The Highlanders were coming off a 3-2 loss to Vancouver TSS FC Rovers on Friday, July 5th while Seattle was coming off a 3-1 win against the Rovers. Both teams were looking to move up the Northwest Division table with a win.

Seattle opened the scoring in the 4th minute when Miles Robinson made a cutback pass to Noe Meza who finished it off for the early 1-0 lead. The Sounders came close to adding to their lead in the 9th minute but Jake Ruby came up with a well-timed block to turn away the scoring opportunity. The early stages of the half saw the Sounders close the Highlanders passing lanes and clog up the midfield.

Victoria fought for the tying goal and were eventually rewarded in the 24th minute. After a great ball by Daniel Davidson, the newly added Caleb Clarke lobbed the ball over Sounders’ goalkeeper Marvin Kasim and into the back of the net to tie the game at one. Clarke came within inches of scoring his second goal of the game in the 36th minute, but Kasim came up with a big point blank save to keep the game tied.  With the half almost over, the Sounders were given a free kick in a prime position, but Meza’s shot rang off the crossbar before Simon Norgrove covered the rebound. The game remained tied at one after 45 minutes of play.

The Sounders started the second half just as they started the first, with a goal in the early minutes. Emmanuel Kouma played a through ball between the Highlanders’ defenders that found Pablo De Castro who made no mistake and fired it past Norgrove for the 2-1 lead in the 51st minute. Goteh Ntignee created a pair of promising rushes in the attacking third, but both shots sailed just wide of the goal.

Norgrove came up with a huge stop in the 76th minute when he turned aside a point-blank shot of his own to keep the Highlanders within a goal. Victoria maintained possession in the midfield in the later stages of the second half, but the Seattle backline did a good job of turning away any dangerous chances. The Highlanders pushed up the field for the tying goal in the dying moments, continuously sending numbers into the attacking third, but Kasim and the Sounders were able to hang on and take the 2-1 win.

USL League Two Week Ten Team of the Week

Week 10 Power Rankings

USL League Two Week 10 Power Rankings

Heading Into Week 11

 

Calgary Foothills FC

Record: 7-3-2 (23 Points)
Division Rank: 1st 
Leading Goal Scorer: Willy Akio (7)
Assist Leader: Cory Bent (2), Tofa Fakunle (2), Marcus Campanile (2)
Shot Leader: Oluwatofarati Fakunle (21)
Weekend Schedule:  vs Victoria Highlanders FC, July 12th; vs Victoria Highlanders FC, July 14th  


Lane United FC

Record: 5-4-4 (19 Points)
Division Rank: 3rd 
Leading Goal Scorer: Alejandro Segovia (7)
Assist Leader: Adan Garcia (2)
Shot Leader: Alejandro Segovia (20)
Weekend Schedule: vs Portland Timbers U23, July 12th

 

Portland Timbers U23

Record: 3-7-2 (11 Points)
Division Rank: 6th
Leading Goal Scorer: Timur Zhividze (6)
Assist Leader: Terrell Lowe (1), Jonathan Jimenez (1), Timur Zhividze (1), Caleb Kiner (1)
Shot Leader: Timur Zhividze (24)
Weekend Schedule: @ Lane United FC, July 12th; @ Seattle Sounders U23, July 14th



Seattle Sounders FC U23

Record: 7-3-3 (24 Points)
Division Rank: 2nd
Leading Goal Scorer: Pablo de Castro (6)
Assist Leader: Miles Robinson (3)
Shot Leader: Pablo de Castro (20)
Weekend Schedule: @ Vancouver TSS FC Rovers, 1-0 WIN; vs Portland Timbers U23, July 14th


Vancouver TSS Rovers FC

Record: 3-9-2 (11 Points)
Division Rank: 5th
Leading Goal Scorer: Matteo Polisi (6)
Assist Leader: David Malamura (4)
Shot Leader: Matteo Polisi (14)
Weekend Schedule: vs Seattle Sounders U23, 1-0 Loss


Victoria Highlanders FC

Record: 6-5-1 (19 Points)
Division Rank: 4th 
Leading Goal Scorer: Goteh Ntignee (4), Victory Shumbusho (4)
Leader: Victory Shumbusho (4)
Shot Leader: Shumbusho (20)
Weekend Schedule: @ Calgary Foothills FC, July 12th; @ Calgary Foothills FC, July 14th