PEORIA, Ariz. – Behind midfielder Victor Arboleda’s finish in the first minute – the quickest goal in club history – T2 played Arizona United SC to a 1-1 draw at Peoria Sports Complex Saturday night, earning a road point in the final match of a three-game road trip.
Wrapping up their three-game road swing, T2 earned four points over their last two games away from home and, with two wins and a draw, have earned a result in three of their last four games while improving to 2-0-1 all-time against Arizona.
With Arboleda’s goal, five different players have scored for T2, with Nick Besler, Dylan Damraoui, Kharlton Belmar and Andre Lewis each recording goals through seven games.
T2 (2-4-1, 7pts) opened the scoring 41 seconds into the match when Arboleda raced past two Arizona defenders to finish calmly at the near post. Arboleda’s goal, his first with T2, stemmed from a looping service from Damraoui, who released Arboleda from the midfield line. Timing his run on the right side, Arboleda received the ball across his body and made a charging run towards goal before bending his shot into the back of the net.
Arizona United SC (2-3-1, 7pts) managed to level the score in the 80th minute after midfielder Miguel Timm sent a lofted ball into the box to second-half substitute Sam Garza, who placed his one-time strike across the mouth of goal and into the far side netting.
Outshooting Arizona 6-4 in the second half, T2 continued to threaten through forward Neco Brett when his low, driven strike inside the box was deflected away at the near post for a corner kick in the 48th minute. In the 86th minute, Ben Polk nearly scored the go-ahead goal for Portland. After dispossessing Arizona at top of the box, Lewis bent a dangerous ball over the United SC defense toward Polk, who redirected his header just wide of the far post.
Next up, T2 will return home to play their first match of the season at Providence Park, facing Real Monarchs SLC on Saturday, May 7; kickoff is set for 5 p.m. (Pacific) in a game originally slated to kick off at 2 p.m.
Saturday’s match will be available via a live, high-definition web stream at www.timbers2.com.
Postgame Quotes
T2 head coach Andrew Gregor
Overall thoughts on the match…
“Overall, it’s always good to get a point on the road. We’re disappointed that we didn’t win the game, but it’s a good learning experience for the team. Playing with the lead is something that we have to learn how to do. Still having the fight to try and get the three points was good as well.”
On Victor Arboleda’s quick finish…
“Obviously, it happened very fast. I thought Dylan [Damraoui] did well to play the ball into him. Victor [Arboleda] did a good job of getting the ball, taking his first touch and finishing it very nicely. It was a very nice goal.”
On threatening late in the second-half…
“There was a good belief in the team that we could get three points on the road. They showed great character late in the game. They didn’t just sit back and take the point – they were still fighting until the last minute. We were unlucky on a couple of occasions where we could have potentially won the game, but it shows the right mentality late in the game and I thought they did a great job of that.”
T2 (2-4-1, 7pts) vs. Arizona United SC (2-3-1, 7pts)
April 30, 2016 – Peoria Sports Complex (Peoria, Ariz.)
Goals by Half 1 2 F
T2 1 0 1
Arizona United SC 0 1 1
Scoring Summary:
POR: Arboleda (Damraoui), 1
AZ: Garza (Timm), 80
Misconduct Summary
POR: Gallagher (Caution), 62
AZ: Costa (Caution), 81
Lineups & Stats
POR: GK McIntosh, D Richards, D Peay ©, D Gallagher, D Farfan, M Besler, M Lewis, M Damraoui (Idowu, 74), M Arboleda (Polk, 12), F Belmar, F Brett
Substitutes Not Used: GK Luthy, M Morley, M Duarte, M Meva, F Bijev
TOTAL SHOTS: 9; SHOTS ON GOAL: 2; FOULS: 11; CORNER KICKS: 6; SAVES: 3
AZ: GK Woszczynski, D Granger (Garza, 46), D Antunez (Kelly, 70), D Ringhof, D Uzo, M Timm, M Gavin (Bardsley, 70), M Costa, M Rooney, M Cortez (Tan, 46), F Blackwood
Substitutes Not Used: GK Stagmiller, D Williams, M McCormick
TOTAL SHOTS: 16; SHOTS ON GOAL: 4; FOULS: 10; CORNER KICKS: 6; SAVES: 1
Referee: Michael Lavergne
Assistant Referees: Brandon Marshall, Matthew Sternheim
4th Official: Robi Hullner
Attendance: 3,374
Weather: Rainy, 68 degrees
