CHARLOTTE
DRAWS WITH LONG ISLAND 0-0
PLAYOFFS AHEAD
FOR CHARLOTTE
(Charlotte, NC) - The Charlotte Eagles played their last
regular season home game tonight hosting the Long Island
Rough Riders. Although the Eagles dominated play on
the field, they were unable to finish. The game ended
in a 0-0 tie.
The
Charlotte Eagles got the first quality scoring chance of the
match, just two minutes in. Charlotte pushed the ball
into the Long Island penalty box. Charlotte was
awarded an indirect kick when Long Island goalkeeper Rob
Fucci picked up a pass back from his defender. Gregg
Schroedder took the kick and passed it to Dustin Swinehart,
who blasted the shot up over the crossbar.
Dustin
Swinehart set up the Eagles next chance in the 19th minute,
with a cross in from the right side. Taurai Daka
redirected the shot toward goal. Fucci bobbled it but
came up with the save at the goal line.
Gregg
Schroeder, Joseph Kabwe and Jacob Coggins all had close
chances in the first half, but Charlotte wasn't able to find
the back of the net. The first half ended in a 0-0
tie. Charlotte out-shot Long Island 8-2 in the half.
The
second half was much of the same as the first.
Charlotte continued to pressure in hopes of getting one on
the scoreboard, but just couldn't find the back of the net.
Long Island was down a man for much of the half after
Bradley was sent off with a red card in the 55th minute.
Despite the man advantage Charlotte couldn't capitalize and
looked better in the first half when both sides were at even
strength. The Eagles out-shot Long Island 10-2 in the
second half and the game ended in a 0-0 tie. Charlotte
finishes the regular season at 8-4-8 for 32 pts.
|
Eagles head coach
Mark Steffens commented on the match:
"Same dog that has bitten us all year long.
We create tons of opportunities and don't put
away the ones we need to put away. We
should have walked out of there 2-0. If we
don't change our finishing, we're not going
anywhere in the playoffs." |
The Charlotte Eagles have clinched a spot in the 2006 USL-2
Playoffs and begin the quest to defend their title in the
playoffs next week. Charlotte will have at least one home playoff match
with the opponent to be determined. The home match will be played either Thursday,
August 17th or Saturday, August 19th at Waddell Stadium
depending on the final playoff seedings. The playoff
schedule will be posted on the Eagles website by Monday morning. Fans
interested in purchasing Charlotte Eagles playoff tickets can buy them online
once the schedule is set at www.CharlotteEagles.com.
Charlotte Eagles Player Stats
USL-2 League Standings
