SD Fútbol Weekly – Wave draws, Loyal loses, Albion and ADG win

San Diego Wave FC was three minutes from a dramatic win over the Portland Thorns on Saturday night at Snapdragon Stadium after midfielder Sofia Jakobsson scored in the 86th minute from a beautiful pass from teammate Jaedyn Shaw. Jakobsson was able to get behind the Portland defense and beat goalkeeper Bella Bixby after the two teams played each other eventually throughout the match.

The Thorns then created one last scoring opportunity in the 90th minute when midfielder Sam Coffey found defender Reyna Reyes who then headed the ball in the back of the net despite the best efforts of goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan and forward Alex Morgan.

The three minutes of added time did not see either side create another scoring opportunity as both had to settle for the 1-1 draw.

“Obviously, conceding so late on is disappointing. But at the same time, I thought Kailen Sheridan had to be outstanding tonight,” said head coach Casey Stoney. “But again, we create chances. They create chances. We have moments in the game.”

The tie sees both teams now in a four-way tie in points with 16 trailing league-leader NY/NJ Gotham FC with 17. San Diego now gets ready for its second NSWL Challenge Cup match on Wednesday at Snapdragon Stadium against OL Reign before traveling to Red Bull Arena to take on Gotham FC, and then playing Racing Louisville on June 9 at Lynn Family Stadium.

Albión San Diego came out with a convincing 4-1 road victory over the Savannah Clovers on Saturday moving the team, led by head coach Diego Gomez, to up the fifth seed in the NISA standings. Albion took a 3-1 lead into halftime thanks to goals by Corey Lundeen in the 8th minute, Misael Mendoza in the 25th, and Andrew Kleszewski in the 43rd minute with Savannah scoring its only goal courtesy of forward Zack Hargreaves in the 31st minute after forward Shinya Kadono was called for a handball in the box moments earlier.

Albion San Diego got an insurance goal in the 65th minute from striker Lennyn Carreon to put the game out of reach. Albion San Diego goalkeeper Ben Roach had another outstanding performance keeping the Savannah Clovers at bay with several timely interventions particularly towards the end of the first half when the Clovers regained the momentum after the penalty kick conversion.

Albion will finish its four-game road trip with back-to-back games on May 30 and June 2 against Club de Lyon at Daytona Stadium in Orlando before returning home to face the Maryland Bobcats on June 15.

leal de san diego fell to the Oakland Roots, 2-0, at Pioneer Stadium on Saturday dropping the team, led by head coach Nate Miller, to fourth place in the USL Championship western conference standings. Oakland got an early lead when forward Johnny Rodriguez scored in the 7th minute after getting through the defensive line and shooting from six yards out and beating the outstretched arm of goalkeeper Duran Ferree. The 16-year-old Ferree got the start in place of Koke Vegas who suffered an injury during the 3-2 victory over Miami FC on May 20.

The Loyal created several scoring chances throughout the match including a 57th-minute point-blank shot by forward Evan Conway and a 72nd right-footed strike from midfielder Alejandro Guido that goalkeeper Paul Blanchette was able to block out of danger. San Diego Loyal also did not get the courtesy of a clear handball by Oakland late in the game that would have awarded the team a chance to tie on a penalty kick. Loyal had one final chance in the 91st minute but forward Ronaldo Damus, who came in as a substitute, missed the shot inside the box after pressure from Blanchette.

The Roots ended up putting the game out of reach in the 95th minute when midfielder Anuar Pelaez scored on an odd-man rush that he placed in the bottom left corner. San Diego Loyal now travels to take on defending champion San Antonio FC at Toyota Field on June 3 before returning home to face western conference leader Sacramento Republic on June 9 at Torero Stadium.

Arenal de Gomez FC came back to win 2-1 in a nail-biter versus Rebels SC at Mount Miguel High School on Saturday night giving the team led by Chebo Martinez the third seed in the UPSL Southern California South Premier standings. ADG FC fell behind in the first half when midfielder Lucas De La Hoz gave Rebels SC a score on a beautiful shot after beating the defensive coverage. ADG FC bounced back in the second half thanks to two goals by forward Cesar Romero as the ADG defense kept the home team from capitalizing on any scoring chances in the final 45 minutes. Arenal de Gomez finished the regular season with a 7-1-2 record and on a three-game winning streak outscoring its opponents 14-3 during that stretch. ADG FC will now look to defend its So Cal South Premier crown starting with the first round of the playoffs versus the winner of the Nomads SC and City SC Temecula.