Greenville still looking for playoff-clinching points with three matches to play
Greenville, SC (September 29, 2023)- Greenville’s playoff progress was halted by Northern Colorado FC on Saturday night in a 2-0 home loss, as the Triumph failed to capitalize on chances despite a strong effort against the league’s third-ranked club. Greenville maintained its fifth seed ahead of this weekend’s other league matches with a 12-10-7 record.
Both teams displayed quick, aggressive play during the initial 20 minutes, with Greenville controlling possession but struggling to find the finishing touch. The turning point of the game came in the 26th minute when the Golden Boot leader, Trevor Amann, showcased his skills with a breakaway in the midfield. Mazzola managed to get a paw on the ball, but the sheer force of Amann’s shot proved too much to handle as it found the back of the net, opening the scoring for Hailstorm. In the 30th minute, they extended their lead to 2-0 with a well-executed header off a corner kick from Amann.
The intensity of the match reached a boiling point in the second half when Hailstorm’s Mark Hernández received a second yellow card, resulting in his expulsion from the game. Despite being down by two goals, Greenville didn’t give up. In the 85th minute, one of their best chances materialized when Allen Gavilanes attempted to curl the ball into the net following a rebound. However, the shot sailed wide. As Greenville attempted to regain control and mount a comeback, their efforts were repeatedly stifled by a series of fouls. The match became a tumultuous affair, with a total of 22 fouls, five yellow cards, and one red card dished out. With nearly 10 minutes of extra time, Greenville pushed relentlessly to cut the deficit. Despite their efforts, that elusive goal remained just out of reach and the match concluded with Hailstorm emerging as the victors, winning 2-0 against Greenville.
“It’s a playoff game on Wednesday and it’s a playoff game on Saturday”, stated Head Coach John Harkes. “That’s the way we approach it and we tried to approach it like that tonight, but just got caught a little bit so it’s a disappointing one. We’ve got to keep pushing forward and I think we have the mentality to do it, so we’re ready to go.”
Triumph SC maintained its spot in the table above the playoff cutline with a crucial two-match road trip coming up next week. The club travels to Fresno to face Fuego FC on Wednesday before continuing to Chattanooga for a Saturday match. The team will return home for the regular season finale on Saturday, October 14th, against Lexington SC at 7:00 PM.
