Greenville, SC – It was a frustrating return home for the Triumph, as the squad fell to North Texas SC 1-0 to begin a stretch of 3 matches in 8 days. North Texas came in having played the fewest matches of any League One team but looked in-sync early and held on to defeat the Triumph at Legacy Early College. Heavy afternoon rains gave way to clear skies just before the 7:00p kickoff, and the two teams battled on a humid night in West Greenville that saw the Triumph create less shots than their opponent for the first time this season.
North Texas entered Saturday undefeated but without the services of leading scorer Ricardo Pepi, who was called up to the US U17 National Team for the CONCACAF Championships. Despite his absence, North Texas was able to draw first blood, scoring in the 17th minute on a Thomas Roberts lob tipped in off the fingers of a leaping Dallas Jaye.
The Triumph, who came in leading the league in shots, struggled to create chances in the first half but battled back with multiple shots and 2 corners in the second half. Despite those chances however, the Triumph were held scoreless for their third straight match.
“It’s really important that we start to respond and learn from the situations that are happening on the field,” said head coach John Harkes. “There are early opportunities that we don’t take advantage of. Each game we are creating the chances and we aren’t finishing teams off.”
The Triumph (2-3-1) will look to return to the scoring column with a quick turnaround to Wednesday’s Open Cup first round match against Tormenta FC at Legacy Early College. The pregame fan fest will begin at 5:00pm, with the match beginning at 7:00pm. Tickets can be purchased by clicking here.
STATS
Shots:
Greenville – 5, North Texas – 8
Possession:
Greenville: 49.9%
North Texas: 50.1%
Corners:
Greenville – 2, North Texas – 7
Scoring Summary:
North Texas: Roberts – 17′
Misconduct Summary:
NTSC: Avilez (caution) – 64’, Jatta (caution) – 83’
GVL: Mohamed (caution) – 67’
Ejection Summary: N/A
