Richmond Kickers 1, Greenville Triumph 2
| RICHMOND KICKERS | 1 | 45 + 3′ Sierakowski (Hornsby) |
| GREENVILLE TRIUMPH | 2 | 45′ Coutinho, 56′ Castro |
RICHMOND, Va. — The Richmond Kickers (6-13-10, 28 pts) fell at home 2-1, Sunday evening, to Greenville Triumph SC (12-9-7, 43 pts). The season series between the regional rivals ended knotted up 1-1-1.
Once the rain stopped on the East Coast on Sunday, the Kickers and the Triumph got off to a back-and-forth start. A defensive header in the box from centerback Nathan Aune sent the Triumph away early in the game and the front line headed by forward Kharlton Belmar and attacking midfielder Nil Vinyals pushed the matter as well with Ryan Sierakowski and Michael Hornsby charging on the wings.
On the first set piece of the night, the Kickers sent a ball into the box that the Triumph gained possession of before getting a shot off in transition that Richmond keeper Will Palmquist was ultimately able to control.
Vinyals snuck a beautiful ball into the box for midfielder Justin Sukow but Greenville cleared it for a corner. Hornsby then looked back post for Belmar but the two couldn’t quite connect.
Evan Lee took a free kick from about midfield for the Triumph to find forward Lucas Coutinho on the run but with Aune and defender Simon Fitch in protection, Palmquist made the save.
The Kickers kept knocking on the door through the 25th minute as defender Beckett Howell moved up the sideline behind defenders to receive a pass from Vinyals but his cross into the box was scooped up by Greenville keeper Jared Mazzola.
The Triumph’s Coutinho got another opportunity in transition but Palmquist dove left to make the save in the 29th minute. In the 31st, Vinyals attempted a shot off the outside of his right boot that slid just wide of the far post.
Chandler O’Dwyer would also make an attempt to get the scoring started in the 43rd minute but his header off a throw-in from Sierakowski went over the crossbar.
In the 45th minute, the Triumph found the first of the evening. A cross in from Leo Castro found the feet of midfielder Allen Gavilanes who sent it just under the crossbar.
Hornsby and Sierakowski wouldn’t let that be the only goal of the half though. In the third and final minute of first-half stoppage, Hornsby took off across the field to find Sierakowski in the box. Sierakowski dribbled around leftback Tyler Polak and sent the ball into the top left corner of the net with the last kick of the half.
In the 50th minute, a Triumph corner turned into a breakaway for the Kickers behind a nutmeg from Vinyals who then found Sukow in the box. The midfielder had the ball at a tight angle as he tried to dribble around Mazzola, but the keeper would gain possession.
Greenville found the final goal of the night in the 54th minute. Castro found himself one-on-one with Palmquist and placed a last-second shot on target as the keeper charged off his line to shut down the danger.
The second half saw quite a bit of back and forth after as both teams saw opportunities off of corners and free kicks but cleared them just as well. Another strike from Hornsby slid just wide left on the ground in the 81st minute and then off another run from Hornsby, Gabe Cox took his own strike but Mazzola reacted quickly and made the save.
The Kickers stayed aggressive as the visitors tried to pack up shop. Richmond was unfortunate not to find a second equalizer as they outshot Greenville with seven of their eight second-half shots taken inside Greenville’s box.
The Kickers return home for their next match on Saturday, Sept. 30th to host South Georgia Tormenta FC during RVA Craft Beer Night presented by the Bon Secours. The doors at City Stadium are set to open at 4:45 p.m. ahead of the 6 p.m. kickoff. Tickets are available at richmondkickers.com/tickets.
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