IRVINE, Calif. – Behind late second-half goals from Roy Miller and Brayan Hurtado, T2 earned a 2-0 road win against Orange County SC at Championship Soccer Stadium in front of 3,172 fans Saturday evening. Miller scored his first goal of the campaign, while Hurtado netted his third goal of the season as T2 extended their unbeaten run to six matches, a new club record.
Unbeaten run
With the victory, T2 extended their unbeaten streak to six matches (3-0-3), a new team record. Starting with a 4-1 road win against Tacoma Defiance on May 12, Portland has won three matches and drawn three more since then, outscoring its opponents 13-7 during that stretch. Portland is 1-0-2 at home, while going 2-0-1 on the road during the six-match unbeaten run.
Road form
In eight away matches to begin the 2019 season, T2 has only lost once, posting a 4-1-3 record. Additionally, T2 is one of six teams league-wide with at least four away wins this season, outscoring their opponents 20-13 in road matches. Portland currently ranks first in away goals scored this season (20).
Key plays
Portland came close to opening the scoring in the 17th minute on a counter-attack, after Carlos Anguiano served a long ball to Ryan Sierakowski, who worked his way down the right side of the field before making a cross to the six-yard box. Orange County SC defender Leonardo intercepted the cross, kicking the ball towards his own goal and forcing goalkeeper Patrick McLain to react quickly to avoid an own goal.
Orange County came close to breaking the deadlock approaching halftime, but back-to-back saves from Aljaz Ivacic prevented T2 from going down before the break. First, Ivacic parried away a right-footed shot from Vinicius in the 44th minute. On the ensuing corner kick, Ivacic dove to the bottom left corner of the goal in the 45th minute to stop a powerful left-footed shot from Owusu-Ansah Kontor from the left side of the box.
T2 created a strong chance in the 55th minute, after Foster Langsdorf made a deep run down the left side of the field to lay a back pass to the center of the box. Cristian Ojeda picked up the loose ball and fired a left-footed shot to the middle of the goal, but McLain made the save.
Seven minutes later, Todd Wharton picked up a cross from the right side of the field in the 62nd minute, before controlling the ball with his right knee and firing a left-footed shot that bounced off the right side of the post.
Continuing on the attack, T2 scored their first goal of the match in the 87th minute, after Miller flicked a header off a corner kick from Ojeda inside the box from a difficult angle to the bottom left corner of the goal. Moments later, T2 double their lead after Anguiano played a through ball to Hurtado, who controlled the pass with his head and made a quick run to calmly finish with a left-footed shot over McLain from the top of the box.
Next game
Next up, T2 will play host to Reno 1868 FC at Providence Park on Wednesday, June 26. Beginning at 7 p.m. (Pacific). Tickets, starting at $10, are available online or at the Providence Park box office.
Postgame Quote Sheet
T2 head coach Cameron Knowles
On his thoughts on the win…
“I thought it was outstanding. We came in with a clear game plan and we executed it to a tee. The players that started the game and those that came into the game gave everything they had and it was an overall outstanding team performance.”
On scoring two late goals…
“I think we thought a lot about the defending side of it and at halftime we wanted to come in with that clean sheet and put ourselves in a position to win the game and knew there would be only a few moments, one pass or a little bit more away from creating that opportunity that would win us the game. I think the guys did a very good job at executing when those chances presented themselves, one on a set piece with a good service, and a good run and then a well-executed play to finish off.”
On defending from Orange County SC’s continuous attacks…
“Our defense was outstanding. We knew we needed to make it difficult for the opposition. We defended deep and everyone was committed. We wanted to have numbers behind the ball and have players execute their role. We made saves and had our guys stepping into the match.”
T2 (7-2-6, 27pts) vs. Orange County SC (4-5-7, 19pts)
June 22, 2019 – Championship Soccer Stadium (Irvine, Calif.)
Goals by Half 1 2 F
T2 0 2 2
Orange County SC 0 0 0
Scoring Summary:
POR: Miller (Ojeda), 87
POR: Hurtado (Anguiano), 90+1
Misconduct Summary
POR: Ojeda (caution), 46
OC: Vinicius (caution), 57
Lineups:
POR: GK Ivacic, D Ornstil, D Diz Pe, D Miller, D Smith, M Anguiano, M Wharton ©, M Sierakowski, M Ojeda, M Kobayashi (Hurtado, 65), F Langsdorf (Calixtro, 71)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Lyon, D Rapaport, M Scardina
TOTAL SHOTS: 9 (Hurtado, 2); SHOTS ON GOAL: 4 (Hurtado, 2); FOULS: 5 (Sierakowski, 2); OFFSIDES: 5; CORNER KICKS: 5; SAVES: 4
OC: GK McLain, D Amico (Coleman, 79), D Leonardo, D Hume, D Kontor, M Forrester, M Hashimoto (Jones, 57), M Quinn ©, M Vinicius (van Ewijk, 69), F Seaton
Substitutes Not Used: GK Cervantes, D Arellano, M Crisostomo, M Des Pres
TOTAL SHOTS: 17 (Quinn, Seaton, 2); SHOTS ON GOAL: 4 (Four players tied, 1); FOULS:11 (Amico, 4); OFFSIDES: 4; CORNER KICKS: 6; SAVES: 3
Referee: Alejandro Mariscal
Assistant Referees: Kevin Lock, Bhavik Dutt
4th Official: Jorge Partida
Attendance: 3,172
Weather: Clear, 72 degrees
All statistics contained in this box score are unofficial
