PORTLAND, Ore. – T2 defeated Oklahoma City Energy FC 4-0 at Merlo Field on Saturday night, recording their fourth shutout of the 2016 season. Three different players scored in the win for T2, with midfielder Villyan Bijev recording a brace, midfielder Blake Bodily and forward Augustine Williams each tallying a goal apiece, and midfielder Andre Lewis recording two assists.
T2 (8-14-4, 28pts) took the lead late in the first half when Bijev scored his fourth goal of the season, calmly chipping his strike directly down the middle of the goal from the penalty spot in the 35th minute of play. T2 earned the penalty kick after defender Brent Richards floated the ball over Oklahoma City’s (10-5-11, 41pts) backline to Williams, who was clipped from behind while running onto the ball inside the 18-yard box.
One minute into the second half, T2 doubled their lead when Bijev scored his second goal of the game after finishing a well-placed through ball from Lewis. The goal occurred on a quick counter attack for T2, with Lewis and midfielder Victor Arboleda combining in the middle of the park before slipping Bijev in behind for the chance on goal. Continuing to press forward in the second half, T2 extended their lead to three goals when Bodily connected with Lewis’ pass out to the left wing, driving at Oklahoma City’s defense before burying a precise strike into the far corner in the 70th minute of play.
Three minutes later, T2 scored their fourth goal of the game after earning a second penalty kick in the 73rd minute of play when Bodily was brought down inside the box. After having his initial effort from the penalty spot saved by Oklahoma City goalkeeper Cody Laurendi, Williams reacted quickly to pounce on the rebound, heading the ball into the back of the net to notch his first goal of the season and extend T2’s advantage.
T2 created additional chances to score throughout the match, including Williams’ chance in the 50th minute that went just wide of the near post. Eight minutes later, Bijev weaved his way past two defenders inside the box before hitting a strong shot on target in the 58th minute.
Next up, T2 will travel to face Rio Grande Valley FC Toros at RGV FC Toros Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 10; kickoff is set for 5:30 p.m. (Pacific). The Sept. 10 match will also be available via a live, high-definition web stream at www.timbers2.com.
Postgame Quote Sheet
T2 head coach Andrew Gregor
On his overall thoughts on the match…
“I thought it was a good performance. I think we’ve been close in a lot of performances this year, where we haven’t been able to put it together. We’ve been good at times and then little things come back to cause us problems. I thought that today was one of the games when they finally put a lot of that together – the little things. Some of the discipline stuff, some of the small things that don’t get noticed, they did a good job of it tonight and I’m pleased that we were able to get the ball into the back of the net. But, we created a lot of chances and scored some goals, so it’s nice.”
On what created so much success for the team tonight…
“I’d say it’s the little things, which is communication, understanding, reading of the game. Whether to step, whether to drop, and having the desire to want to battle and win second balls. And when we did get the ball, we did a good job of taking care of it and we were dangerous and caused them problems on the counter. I thought the front four did a great job but I also thought the midfield support and the backline, at times, did a good job of joining them when we went. So, all around I thought it was a good job.”
On the team’s fight after the last three games…
“Yeah, it’s been tough for us in the last three games. We’ve played some good stuff. Even though we lost 4-0 to Sacramento, I thought the first half was probably the best first half we’ve had all year, minus maybe three minutes of it. So, we’ve been able to play well. At times, it’s just a matter of putting it all together and having the right luck, and I thought tonight that was the case. We put it together and were able to get a goal and start the second half very, very well and that’s always going to help.”
On the performances from the front four…
“Yeah, I think lately, especially Blake (Bodily) and (Villyan) Bijev, they’ve been in good form lately. So, early on, for Bijev he was a bit unlucky. He was doing a lot of things right, hitting the target but they’re just not going in, and they’re starting to go in for him, which is good. With Blake, he’s building in confidence. We’re seeing that development. It’s a good thing. Andre (Lewis), we know what Andre has. We know what Andre has in him. I thought this was his best performance tonight. He was disciplined in how he played. He took care of the ball, didn’t give it away and that created some opportunities to get involved. So, very pleased for him because I know it’s been a little bit difficult and he’s been grinding and he got rewarded for his performance tonight.”
T2 midfielder Villyan Bijev
Overall impressions of the match…
“I think the score finally showed who we are as a group. We’ve had a lot of unlucky results this season. I think we’ve played a lot of good games, just haven’t had the goals go in for us. So, I think the 4-0 result really showed who this group is.”
On what made the team so successful tonight…
“We moved the ball really well. We were able to finish our chances. We created a lot more opportunities than they did. I think if we go back and look at it, maybe we could’ve even scored one or two more goals. Other than their long throws and some set pieces, they didn’t have too many shots on goal. I think we were able to move the ball around them and keep it in their half also, and I think that helped us to get the result.”
T2 forward Augustine Williams
On scoring his first goal for T2…
“I feel really excited to score my first goal. It’s been five games now and I’ve finally broken the spell, so I’m happy about it. I’m really excited that I was able to score today and we got the win.”
On the team’s performance…
“Today, we showed what we’ve been working on in training. We were ready to go at those guys today, and we were ready to come out and just play hard and grind. We have about five games left so we have to keep going with that momentum and keep grinding.
T2 (8-14-4, 28pts)vs. Oklahoma City Energy FC (10-5-11, 41pts)
Sept. 4, 2016 – Merlo Field (Portland, Ore.)
Goals by Half 1 2 F
T2 1 3 4
OKC Energy FC 0 0 0
Scoring Summary
POR: Bijev (Penalty kick), 35
POR: Bijev (Lewis), 46
POR: Bodily (Lewis), 70
POR: Williams (Penalty kick), 73
Misconduct Summary
POR: Lewis (Caution), 28
Lineups & Stats
POR: GK McIntosh, D Richards, D Clarke ©, D Morley, D Thoma, M Lewis (Casiple 74), M Damraoui (Besler, 69), M Arboleda (Brett, 65), M Bijev, M Bodily (Polk, 79), F Williams
Substitutes Not Used: GK Luthy, D Gallagher, F Belmar
TOTAL SHOTS: 13; SHOTS ON GOAL: 8; CORNER KICKS: 3; SAVES: 3
OKC: GK Laurendi, D Vancompernolle, D Harris, D Ryden, D Hedrick, M Thomas, M Gonzalez, M Olsson, M Craven, F Byskov, F Konig
Substitutes Not Used: GK Cochran, D Hyland, D Dubose, M Cuevas, M Wojcik, F Martinez, F Rideout
TOTAL SHOTS: 10; SHOTS ON GOAL: 3; CORNER KICKS: 5; SAVES: 4
Referee: Baboucarr Jallow
Assistant Referees: John Krill, Andrew Deuker
4th Official: Katie Cummins
Attendance: 1,732
Weather: Clear, 58 degrees
