Scorpions Get First Home Victory of the Season, Beat Railhawks 3-0

 

It is amazing what one victory can do for a team. While three points might not be valuable in some leagues in the world, if you are playing in a single table system like the NASL it is everything. Get a victory and move up the table. Lose a match late and you’re buried at the bottom. The amount of weight that one match has on the whole order of a league is both impressive and terrifying. The San Antonio Scorpions benefited from this volatility on Saturday night as the club moved up to third place in the NASL standings by defeating the Carolina Railhawks by a score of 3-0.

At the start of the match both clubs played a very conservative style of football. With only a point separating Carolina and San Antonio in the standings and only four matches remaining in the spring season much was at stake in this match. The teams have combined only to score nine goals so they were more likely to build from the defense and be picky about their shot selection.

So in the battle for possession, the Scorpions took the advantage in the match. The Railhawks played a very compact style often ceding large swaths of the outside of the pitch to San Antonio. Scorpions midfielder Freddy Braun opened up the field, often looking for defender Stephen De Roux on the outside. The club’s best opportunity came off of a Daniel Scott free kick in the twenty-eighth minute which found forward Eric Hassli. Hassli had a chance to pull the shoot off. However, Railhawks midfielder Ty Shipalane and forward Zack Shiawski zeroed in on Hassli and forced him to the outside.

The Railhawks did not have as many goal-scoring opportunities as the Scorpions did in the first half, but they did show some life late in the first half. In the forty-fourth minute, Railhawks midfielder Richard Menjiavar was able to push the ball down the left side of the pitch and deliver an excellent pass into the box. The pass almost made it Schilawski on the near post but Scott cleared the ball out.

The Scorpions would have another opportunity in the forty-fifth minute when Hassli hammered his shot towards goal. However, his effort was blocked by the Railhawks defense.

The second half seemed to have a different tone to it for the Scorpions and that is largely due in part to the substitution of Billy Forbes into the lineup. The Turks and Caicos international, who was signed by the team just two days ago from the Southern West Virginia King’a Warriors of the USL PDL, came into the match and brought pace and speed to the Scorpions attack.

In the fifty-third minute the Scorpions took the lead when Forbes’ pass from the outside found Hassli at the top of the box. Hassli wisely sat back while the Railhawks defenders crashed the box. When the ball landed at his feet he took the shot off of one touched and put it past Railhawks goalkeeper Akira Fitzgerald. It was Hassli’s third goal of the season.

The Scorpions would continue to put pressure on the Railhawks defense all throughout the second half. Although adding Forbes helped, midfielder Walter Restrepo also played a significant role making several dangerous runs into the box and drawing defenders attention. The two would combine their efforts in the fifty-eighth minute when their passing led to forward Danny Barrera having a clear shot on target. Barrera would make the most of his opportunity and give the Scorpions the 2-0 advantage. It was Barrera’s first goal of the season.

The Railhawks would have some opportunities to cut the lead in half. In the seventy-first minute, Railhawks midfielder Daniel Jackson took a shot that was on target and looked to be heading for goal. However, Scorpions defender Greg Janicki was able to clear it out before it did any damage. Railhawks midfielder Nick Millington had an opportunity in the seventy-fourth minute when he caught a cross from Jackson and had only the goalkeeper to beat. But Scorpions defender Julius James was able to catch up to him and get him out of the box. The Scorpions defense made things very easy goalkeeper David Bingham tonight by the Railhawks attack off-balance and giving him tons of space to make the occasional save.

San Antonio would add another goal in the seventy-seventh minute when forward Tomasz Zahorski converted on a penalty kick after Railhawks defender Jordan Burt was called for a handball in the box. Zahorski’s shot, a low ball into the left corner, was just out of the reach of Fitzgerald. For Zahorski, who has thirteen appearances for Poland, it was his first goal of the season.

The Scorpions will look to continue their winning ways and edge closer to the top spot in the NASL standings when they face F.C. Edmonton next Saturday at home. The club currently stands in third place, just three points behind the Ft. Lauderdale Strikers and Minnesota United F.C. The Railhawks, who now find themselves in fourth place, will also be at home next week when they host the Atlanta Silverbacks.

 

MATCH SUMMARY (Wins-Draws-Losses)

San Antonio Scorpions (3-0-2, 9 points:) David Bingham, Julius James, Adrian Cann, Greg Janicki, Stephen DeRoux, Walter Restrepo (Jonathan Borrajo 73’,) Freddie Braun (Billy Forbes 46’,) Richard Menjivar, Eric Hassli (Sainey Touray 69’,) Danny Barrera, and Tomasz Zahorski.

Goals: Hassli (53’,) Barrera (58’,) and Zahorski (77’)

Yellow Cards: DeRoux (19,’) Janicki (33’,) Zahorski (77’,) Barrera (86’)

Carolina Railhawks (2-1-2, 7 points:) Akira Fitzgerald, Jordan Burt, Dennis Scott, Toni Stahl, Austen King, Ty Shipalane, (Daniel Jackson 62’,)   Jun Marques Davidson, Nick Millington, Cesar Elizondom, Mike Grella (Aaron King 62’,) and Zack Schilawski.

Yellow Cards: Scott (40’)

ATTENDANCE: 5,834