Game Recaps

Steinberger Strikes Sail Indy Eleven Past Armada

Butler University Product Scores Twice as Indy Captures Much-Needed Home Victory over Jacksonville

INDIANAPOLIS (Saturday, September 5, 2015) – Riding the strength of its offense, Indy Eleven secured a dominant 3-0 victory over Jacksonville Armada FC in front of 9,078 fans at Carroll Stadium on the IUPUI campus.  Eleven striker Zach Steinberger paced the home side with his first two goals of the year – both set up by midfielder Don Smart – while Marvin Ceballos came off the bench to punctuate an offensive outburst that overwhelmed the visiting Armada.

Steinberger punched home an early strike for Indy just nine minutes into the contest, marking his first goal in an Eleven uniform after joining on loan from MLS’ Houston Dynamo in late July and setting the tone for an impressive display of counter-attack soccer.  Racing through the middle of the field and getting behind the defense, Steinberger started the play in an offside position but was rescued by a hustling Smart, who himself was sprung by a long through ball from midfield by forward Dane Richards. Smart’s final ball put Steinberger past Armada goalkeeper David Sierra and allowed him to finish into an empty net.

Indy continued to create chances despite losing Richards and defender Kyle Hyland for precious minutes due to injuries, Richards absorbing heavy contact on a 50-50 challenge in midfield and Hyland catching an inadvertent elbow to the nose while tussling for a ball with Jacksonville’s Akeil Barrett. Both players returned to the match and would contribute to numerous Eleven attacks as the first half wound down.

Richards slipped past the Jacksonville back line to create two quality chances in stoppage time, but saw his first blast from the left side of the area blocked by an Armada FC defender, while his follow up attempt was stopped by Sierra.  Indy Eleven midfielder Victor Pineda continued the stoppage time barrage for the Eleven, sending a winding chip over the Armada goalkeeper but wide of the net.

Returning from the locker room still leading 1-0, Indy Eleven continued bypassing Jacksonville’s back line with ease and attempted to catch Sierra off his line multiple times.  Pacing the Eleven with five shots on goal during the game, Richards slashed past the Armada defense and deposited the ball in the back of the net during the 63rd minute of play, but was ruled offside.

The Eleven, however, would fill the scoresheet shortly after as Steinberger chipped his second goal of the game over Sierra and followed his shot into the net while a pair of Armada defenders crashed down on him. The brilliant set of touches gave Indy a 2-0 lead, and was also set up by a through pass by Smart, who registered his first two assists of the season on the Steinberger brace.

Capping off an explosive night for the Eleven offense was midfielder Marvin Ceballos, who opened his scoring account for Indy with an extra time rocket off his right foot that gave Sierra no chance as it caught the left upper 90 of goal.  The offensive outburst equaled Indy Eleven’s season-high in the scoring column and the team’s largest margin of victory, both set during a 3-0 win over FC Edmonton on June 13 at Carroll Stadium.

In net, starting goalkeeper Keith Cardona was stout, snuffing out all three Jacksonville shots on target to collect his first professional win and clean sheet in his fifth start for Indy – and second placement in the starting XI this week.  His best stop on the evening was a highlight reel save against Armada FC midfielder Marcos Flores in the 52nd minute, when he steered the Jacksonville captain’s shot destined for the left post around for a corner with a leaping save.

Following a road tilt against the San Antonio Scorpions in the Lone Star state next Saturday, September 12 (8:00 p.m. ET kickoff, live on ESPN3.com), the “Boys in Blue” return to Carroll Stadium on Saturday, September 19, for a 7:30 p.m. clash against FC Edmonton. First kick at “The Mike” for the team’s Oktoberfest celebration, presented by Murello’s Uptown Bail Bonds, is set for 7:30 p.m. The game can be seen live across Central Indiana on WISH-TV 8 (Countdown to Kickoff starts at 7:00 p.m.; Honda Post-game Show to follow) and heard via Spanish-language radio station Exitos Radio 1590 AM (online at www.Exitos1590.com).

Tickets for the match starting at just $10 are available at www.www.indyeleven.com, while all-inclusive Oktoberfest ticket packages are available for $30. Already have a ticket to the match? Separate Oktoberfest access passes, which include samplings from 20+ Indiana breweries and a commemorative Indy Eleven “mini-stein”, are available for $20 and can also be found at www.www.indyeleven.com.

 

NASL Fall Season
Indy Eleven  3 : 0  Jacksonville Armada FC
Saturday, September 5, 2015
Michael A. Carroll Stadium – Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 9,078

Indy Eleven: 
Fall Season: 3W-3D-6L (12 pts.)
Combined: 6W-7D-9L (25 pts.)

Jacksonville Armada FC: 
Fall Season: 3W-2D-6L (11 pts.)
Combined: 6W-5D-10L (23 pts.)

Scoring Summary: 
IND – Zach Steinberger (Don Smart) 9’
IND – Zach Steinberger (Don Smart) 73’
IND – Marvin Ceballos (unassisted) 90+’

Discipline Summary:
JAX – Jemal Johnson (ejection) 9’
IND – Daniel Keller (caution) 38’
JAX – Akeil Barrett (caution) 81’
IND – Marvin Ceballos (caution) 90+’
JAX – Lucas Rodriguez (caution) 90+’

Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2):  Keith Cardona; Kyle Hyland, Erick Norales (capt), Cory Miller, Marco Franco; Victor Pineda (Dragan Stojkov 74’), Brad Ring, Daniel Keller (Dylan Mares 88’), Don Smart; Zach Steinberger, Dane Richards (Marvin Ceballos 78’)

Indy Bench: Brian Brown, Greg Janicki, Kristian Nicht, Wojciech Wojcik

Jacksonville Armada FC (4-3-3): David Sierra; Matt Bahner (Lucas Rodriguez 79’), Fabricio Ortiz, Nicolas Perea, Joseph Toby; Jaime Castrillon, Marcos Flores (capt), Lucas Scaglia; Tommy Krizanovic, (Derek Gebhard 60’), Akeil Barrett, Tyler Williams (Bochy Hoyos 70’)

Jacksonville Bench: Miguel Gallard, Nurdin Hrustic, Ramak Safi, Ethan Sonis 

Steinberger Strikes Sail Indy Eleven Past Armada

Butler University Product Scores Twice as Indy Captures Much-Needed Home Victory over Jacksonville

INDIANAPOLIS (Saturday, September 5, 2015) – Riding the strength of its offense, Indy Eleven secured a dominant 3-0 victory over Jacksonville Armada FC in front of 9,078 fans at Carroll Stadium on the IUPUI campus.  Eleven striker Zach Steinberger paced the home side with his first two goals of the year – both set up by midfielder Don Smart – while Marvin Ceballos came off the bench to punctuate an offensive outburst that overwhelmed the visiting Armada.

Steinberger punched home an early strike for Indy just nine minutes into the contest, marking his first goal in an Eleven uniform after joining on loan from MLS’ Houston Dynamo in late July and setting the tone for an impressive display of counter-attack soccer.  Racing through the middle of the field and getting behind the defense, Steinberger started the play in an offside position but was rescued by a hustling Smart, who himself was sprung by a long through ball from midfield by forward Dane Richards. Smart’s final ball put Steinberger past Armada goalkeeper David Sierra and allowed him to finish into an empty net.

Indy continued to create chances despite losing Richards and defender Kyle Hyland for precious minutes due to injuries, Richards absorbing heavy contact on a 50-50 challenge in midfield and Hyland catching an inadvertent elbow to the nose while tussling for a ball with Jacksonville’s Akeil Barrett. Both players returned to the match and would contribute to numerous Eleven attacks as the first half wound down.

Richards slipped past the Jacksonville back line to create two quality chances in stoppage time, but saw his first blast from the left side of the area blocked by an Armada FC defender, while his follow up attempt was stopped by Sierra.  Indy Eleven midfielder Victor Pineda continued the stoppage time barrage for the Eleven, sending a winding chip over the Armada goalkeeper but wide of the net.

Returning from the locker room still leading 1-0, Indy Eleven continued bypassing Jacksonville’s back line with ease and attempted to catch Sierra off his line multiple times.  Pacing the Eleven with five shots on goal during the game, Richards slashed past the Armada defense and deposited the ball in the back of the net during the 63rd minute of play, but was ruled offside.

The Eleven, however, would fill the scoresheet shortly after as Steinberger chipped his second goal of the game over Sierra and followed his shot into the net while a pair of Armada defenders crashed down on him. The brilliant set of touches gave Indy a 2-0 lead, and was also set up by a through pass by Smart, who registered his first two assists of the season on the Steinberger brace.

Capping off an explosive night for the Eleven offense was midfielder Marvin Ceballos, who opened his scoring account for Indy with an extra time rocket off his right foot that gave Sierra no chance as it caught the left upper 90 of goal.  The offensive outburst equaled Indy Eleven’s season-high in the scoring column and the team’s largest margin of victory, both set during a 3-0 win over FC Edmonton on June 13 at Carroll Stadium.

In net, starting goalkeeper Keith Cardona was stout, snuffing out all three Jacksonville shots on target to collect his first professional win and clean sheet in his fifth start for Indy – and second placement in the starting XI this week.  His best stop on the evening was a highlight reel save against Armada FC midfielder Marcos Flores in the 52nd minute, when he steered the Jacksonville captain’s shot destined for the left post around for a corner with a leaping save.

Following a road tilt against the San Antonio Scorpions in the Lone Star state next Saturday, September 12 (8:00 p.m. ET kickoff, live on ESPN3.com), the “Boys in Blue” return to Carroll Stadium on Saturday, September 19, for a 7:30 p.m. clash against FC Edmonton. First kick at “The Mike” for the team’s Oktoberfest celebration, presented by Murello’s Uptown Bail Bonds, is set for 7:30 p.m. The game can be seen live across Central Indiana on WISH-TV 8 (Countdown to Kickoff starts at 7:00 p.m.; Honda Post-game Show to follow) and heard via Spanish-language radio station Exitos Radio 1590 AM (online at www.Exitos1590.com).

Tickets for the match starting at just $10 are available at www.www.indyeleven.com, while all-inclusive Oktoberfest ticket packages are available for $30. Already have a ticket to the match? Separate Oktoberfest access passes, which include samplings from 20+ Indiana breweries and a commemorative Indy Eleven “mini-stein”, are available for $20 and can also be found at www.www.indyeleven.com.

 

NASL Fall Season
Indy Eleven  3 : 0  Jacksonville Armada FC
Saturday, September 5, 2015
Michael A. Carroll Stadium – Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 9,078

Indy Eleven: 
Fall Season: 3W-3D-6L (12 pts.)
Combined: 6W-7D-9L (25 pts.)

Jacksonville Armada FC: 
Fall Season: 3W-2D-6L (11 pts.)
Combined: 6W-5D-10L (23 pts.)

Scoring Summary: 
IND – Zach Steinberger (Don Smart) 9’
IND – Zach Steinberger (Don Smart) 73’
IND – Marvin Ceballos (unassisted) 90+’

Discipline Summary:
JAX – Jemal Johnson (ejection) 9’
IND – Daniel Keller (caution) 38’
JAX – Akeil Barrett (caution) 81’
IND – Marvin Ceballos (caution) 90+’
JAX – Lucas Rodriguez (caution) 90+’

Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2):  Keith Cardona; Kyle Hyland, Erick Norales (capt), Cory Miller, Marco Franco; Victor Pineda (Dragan Stojkov 74’), Brad Ring, Daniel Keller (Dylan Mares 88’), Don Smart; Zach Steinberger, Dane Richards (Marvin Ceballos 78’)

Indy Bench: Brian Brown, Greg Janicki, Kristian Nicht, Wojciech Wojcik

Jacksonville Armada FC (4-3-3): David Sierra; Matt Bahner (Lucas Rodriguez 79’), Fabricio Ortiz, Nicolas Perea, Joseph Toby; Jaime Castrillon, Marcos Flores (capt), Lucas Scaglia; Tommy Krizanovic, (Derek Gebhard 60’), Akeil Barrett, Tyler Williams (Bochy Hoyos 70’)

Jacksonville Bench: Miguel Gallard, Nurdin Hrustic, Ramak Safi, Ethan Sonis 

Late Strike Downs Indy Eleven at Minnesota United FC

77th Minute Volley by United FC’s Justin Davis Marks All the Scoring in 1-0 Road Defeat for Indy

BLAINE, MINN. (Wednesday, September 2, 2015) – Indy Eleven put itself in position to steal a point – or three – from the finale of its three-game road swing tonight at the National Sports Center Stadium, but Minnesota United FC defender Justin Davis had other plans, as he capitalized on a chance in the 77th minute to push the home side to a 1-0 win.

Coming off the worst defeat in club history and in the middle of a three-game, eight-day stretch, Indy Eleven interim head coach Tim Regan injected some fresh faces into his starting XI, switching out six players from the group that started Saturday in Fort Lauderdale.  That new crop included goalkeeper Keith Cardona, who came up big in the early going with some active forays off his line and a big stop on Christian Ramirez in the 13th minute, tipping the red-hot United FC striker’s header from deep inside the penalty area over the crossbar.

Indy Eleven failed to create many dangerous chances in the first half, but it did come close to hitting paydirt through Wojciech Wojcik in the 37th minute, when the striker’s low shot from outside the area forced Minnesota ‘keeper Sammy Ndjock to steer the chance around his left post for a corner.  The woodwork would save Indy four minutes later, when Yago Silva flashed across the six to poke on a cross, only to see the chance glance off the left post and be cleared from the six-yard box to keep things scoreless heading into the halftime break.

Minnesota would come out the aggressors again in the opening of the second half, but it was Indy Eleven’s Dane Richards who had the best chances to move the scoreboard around the hour mark, first seeing Ndjock go low in the 59th minute to thwart a 1-v-1 chance before having the Cameroonian ‘keeper stop a counter-attack opportunity five minutes later.

Davis would be a menace in the left side of the area with increasing frequency as the second half wore on, and Indy’s inability to keep track of him finally bit the visitors in the 77th minute.  Kevin Venegas was able to get off a cross to the far side of the penalty area just as the ball neared the endline, and Davis took his chance calmly, slotting a perfectly-placed, left-footed volley across the face of goal and inside the far right post to put Minnesota up. 

Indy Eleven defender Cory Miller had a chance to equalize deep into stoppage time on a volley of his own as a desperate ball up-field found the center back alone at the right post, but he couldn’t catch it cleanly to challenge Ndjock, marking the last shot of the night for the Eleven.

With its longest road trip of the season now in the books, Indy Eleven will look to gain ground in the NASL’s Combined Season standings this Saturday, Sept. 5, when it welcomes expansion side Jacksonville Armada FC to IUPUI’s Carroll Stadium for the first time.  Kickoff on Hispanic Heritage Night at “The Mike” is set for 7:30 p.m. for a match that can be seen live across Central Indiana on WISH-TV 8 (Countdown to Kickoff starts at 7:00 p.m.; Honda Post-game Show to follow) and heard via Spanish-language radio station Exitos Radio 1590 AM (online at www.Exitos1590.com).

Tickets for the match starting at just $10 are available at www.www.indyeleven.com, as are special $25 Hispanic Heritage Night pre-game tailgate & ticket combos and a $20 Pizza “Pitch-nic” ticket and meal package.

NASL Fall Season
Minnesota United FC  1 : 0  Indy Eleven
Wednesday, September 2, 2015
National Sports Center Stadium – Blaine, MN
Attendance: 7,137

Indy Eleven: 
Fall Season: 2W-3D-6L (9 pts.)
Combined: 5W-7D-9L (22 pts.)

Minnesota United FC: 
Fall Season: 5W-3D-2L (18 pts.)
Combined: 8W-8D-4L (32 pts.)

Scoring Summary: 
MNU – Justin Davis (Kevin Venegas) 77’

Discipline Summary:
IND – Dane Richards (caution) 17’
MNU – Geison Moura (caution) 24’
MNU – Aaron Pitchkolan (caution) 68’

Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2):  Keith Cardona; Dragan Stojkov (Greg Janicki 89’), Erick Norales (capt), Cory Miller, Jaime Frias; Don Smart (Duke Lacroix 66’), Daniel Keller (Marvin Ceballos 85’), Brad Ring, Victor Pineda; Dane Richards, Wojciech Wojcik

Indy Bench: Kristian Nicht, Kyle Hyland, Zach Steinberger, Charlie Rugg

Minnesota United FC (4-2-3-1): Sammy Ndjock; Kevin Vengas, Tiago Calvano, Aaron Pitchkolan (capt), Justin Davis; Ibson, Greg Jordan, Kalif Alhassan (Pablo Campos 69’), Moura Geison (Andrei Gotsmanov 69’), Yago Silva (Daniel Mendes 78’), Christian Ramirez

Minnesota Bench: Mitch Hildebrandt, Brian Kallman, J.C. Banks, Cristiano Dias

Late Strike Downs Indy Eleven at Minnesota United FC

77th Minute Volley by United FC’s Justin Davis Marks All the Scoring in 1-0 Road Defeat for Indy

BLAINE, MINN. (Wednesday, September 2, 2015) – Indy Eleven put itself in position to steal a point – or three – from the finale of its three-game road swing tonight at the National Sports Center Stadium, but Minnesota United FC defender Justin Davis had other plans, as he capitalized on a chance in the 77th minute to push the home side to a 1-0 win.

Coming off the worst defeat in club history and in the middle of a three-game, eight-day stretch, Indy Eleven interim head coach Tim Regan injected some fresh faces into his starting XI, switching out six players from the group that started Saturday in Fort Lauderdale.  That new crop included goalkeeper Keith Cardona, who came up big in the early going with some active forays off his line and a big stop on Christian Ramirez in the 13th minute, tipping the red-hot United FC striker’s header from deep inside the penalty area over the crossbar.

Indy Eleven failed to create many dangerous chances in the first half, but it did come close to hitting paydirt through Wojciech Wojcik in the 37th minute, when the striker’s low shot from outside the area forced Minnesota ‘keeper Sammy Ndjock to steer the chance around his left post for a corner.  The woodwork would save Indy four minutes later, when Yago Silva flashed across the six to poke on a cross, only to see the chance glance off the left post and be cleared from the six-yard box to keep things scoreless heading into the halftime break.

Minnesota would come out the aggressors again in the opening of the second half, but it was Indy Eleven’s Dane Richards who had the best chances to move the scoreboard around the hour mark, first seeing Ndjock go low in the 59th minute to thwart a 1-v-1 chance before having the Cameroonian ‘keeper stop a counter-attack opportunity five minutes later.

Davis would be a menace in the left side of the area with increasing frequency as the second half wore on, and Indy’s inability to keep track of him finally bit the visitors in the 77th minute.  Kevin Venegas was able to get off a cross to the far side of the penalty area just as the ball neared the endline, and Davis took his chance calmly, slotting a perfectly-placed, left-footed volley across the face of goal and inside the far right post to put Minnesota up. 

Indy Eleven defender Cory Miller had a chance to equalize deep into stoppage time on a volley of his own as a desperate ball up-field found the center back alone at the right post, but he couldn’t catch it cleanly to challenge Ndjock, marking the last shot of the night for the Eleven.

With its longest road trip of the season now in the books, Indy Eleven will look to gain ground in the NASL’s Combined Season standings this Saturday, Sept. 5, when it welcomes expansion side Jacksonville Armada FC to IUPUI’s Carroll Stadium for the first time.  Kickoff on Hispanic Heritage Night at “The Mike” is set for 7:30 p.m. for a match that can be seen live across Central Indiana on WISH-TV 8 (Countdown to Kickoff starts at 7:00 p.m.; Honda Post-game Show to follow) and heard via Spanish-language radio station Exitos Radio 1590 AM (online at www.Exitos1590.com).

Tickets for the match starting at just $10 are available at www.www.indyeleven.com, as are special $25 Hispanic Heritage Night pre-game tailgate & ticket combos and a $20 Pizza “Pitch-nic” ticket and meal package.

NASL Fall Season
Minnesota United FC  1 : 0  Indy Eleven
Wednesday, September 2, 2015
National Sports Center Stadium – Blaine, MN
Attendance: 7,137

Indy Eleven: 
Fall Season: 2W-3D-6L (9 pts.)
Combined: 5W-7D-9L (22 pts.)

Minnesota United FC: 
Fall Season: 5W-3D-2L (18 pts.)
Combined: 8W-8D-4L (32 pts.)

Scoring Summary: 
MNU – Justin Davis (Kevin Venegas) 77’

Discipline Summary:
IND – Dane Richards (caution) 17’
MNU – Geison Moura (caution) 24’
MNU – Aaron Pitchkolan (caution) 68’

Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2):  Keith Cardona; Dragan Stojkov (Greg Janicki 89’), Erick Norales (capt), Cory Miller, Jaime Frias; Don Smart (Duke Lacroix 66’), Daniel Keller (Marvin Ceballos 85’), Brad Ring, Victor Pineda; Dane Richards, Wojciech Wojcik

Indy Bench: Kristian Nicht, Kyle Hyland, Zach Steinberger, Charlie Rugg

Minnesota United FC (4-2-3-1): Sammy Ndjock; Kevin Vengas, Tiago Calvano, Aaron Pitchkolan (capt), Justin Davis; Ibson, Greg Jordan, Kalif Alhassan (Pablo Campos 69’), Moura Geison (Andrei Gotsmanov 69’), Yago Silva (Daniel Mendes 78’), Christian Ramirez

Minnesota Bench: Mitch Hildebrandt, Brian Kallman, J.C. Banks, Cristiano Dias

Indy Eleven Struck Down by Strikers in South Florida

Dane Richards Scores in Third Straight, but Not Nearly Enough in 7-1 Loss at Fort Lauderdale

FORT LAUDERDALE (Saturday, August 29, 2015) – While Indy Eleven forward Dane Richards scored in his third straight contest, that was the lone bright spot for Indy Eleven, which couldn’t recover from a slow start and failed to slow down the Fort Lauderdale Strikers in a 7-1 loss at Lockhart Stadium. 

The goals came early and often for the Strikers, starting just 68 seconds in when reigning NASL Player of the Week Stefano Pinho kicked off his hat trick in spectacular fashion, rebounding Marlon Freitas’ shot from distance with an acrobatic, scissor-kick finish past Indy netminder Kristian Nicht.

It only took five more minutes for the Strikers’ second goal as PC converted a penalty kick that he earned after he was spun around in the box by Indy captain Brad Ring, who was making his return to the line-up after missing the previous four games due to a right heel injury.

Indy Eleven looked as if it might be able to right the ship after the shell-shocked start and pulled one back in the 16th minute thanks to the in-form Richards, who picked off a pass near the top of the Fort Lauderdale penalty area and fired past onrushing Strikers’ goalkeeper Josh Ford to bring things to 2-1.

But that was as close as Indy would come to mounting a comeback, as its momentum was quelled four minutes later when Freitas collected his first goal on the night by dribbling into a middle open area before finishing with a hard shot to the far post that froze Nicht.

Down 3-1 at the break, things got worse for Indy Eleven when defender Marco Franco was ejected for a lunging challenge against PC, marking the second straight match in which an Indy player was shown his marching orders in the 50th minute.

The Strikers did not let up as Freitas picked up his second of the night in the 67th minute, again with a shot from distance after receiving a spot-on pass from Hendry Thomas.

Stefano put his name on the scoring sheet again with his second tally in the 77th minute, drilling a left-footed shot to the far post that gave Nicht no chance.

Just four minutes later, Stefano notched his hat trick with his league-leading 12th goal of the season, taking a pass from Freitas and finishing into an empty net after the pair got in alone on a stranded Nicht.

PC capped the scoring with a header in the 85th minute on a cross from Stefano, dooming Indy Eleven to the 7-1 loss and largest margin of defeat in the team’s short history.

Indy Eleven will look to rebound quickly this Wednesday, Sept. 2, when it closes out a season-long three-game road trip at Minnesota United FC. Kickoff from the National Sports Center Stadium in Blaine, Minn., on Wednesday is set for 8:00 p.m. ET for a game that can be viewed live via ESPN3.com and heard locally and online via Spanish-language radio station La Pura Mega 88.1 FM / www.LaPuraMega.com.   Fans will also be able to take in the game at any of eight Official Watch Party locations across Indiana, a listing of which can be found at www.www.indyeleven.com.

 

 

NASL Fall Season
Fort Lauderdale Strikers  7 : 1  Indy Eleven
Saturday, August 29, 2015
Lockhart Stadium – Fort Lauderdale, FL
Attendance: 3,819

Indy Eleven: 
Fall Season: 2W-3D-5L (9 pts.)
Combined: 5W-7D-8L (22 pts.)

Fort Lauderdale Strikers:
Fall Season: 4W-4D-2L (16 pts.)
Combined: 7W-6D-7L (27 pts.)

Scoring Summary: 
FTL – Stefano Pinho (unassisted) 2’
FTL – PC (penalty kick) 7’
IND – Dane Richards (unassisted) 16’
FTL – Marlon Freitas (unassisted) 20’
FTL – Marlon Freitas (Hendry Thomas) 67’
FTL – Stefano Pinho (Shawn Chin) 77’
FTL – Stefano Pinho (Marlon Freitas) 81’
FTL – PC (Stefano Pinho) 85’

Discipline Summary:
FTL – Hendry Thomas (caution) 10’
IND – Victor Pineda (caution) 16’
IND – Marco Franco (ejection) 50’

Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2):  Kristian Nicht; Marco Franco (red card 50’), Cory Miller, Greg Janicki, Kyle Hyland; Dragan Stojkov (Duke Lacroix 58’), Zach Steinberger, Brad Ring (capt), Victor Pineda (Charlie Rugg 65’); Dane Richards (Brian Brown 72’), Marvin Ceballos

Indy Bench: Keith Cardona, Jaime Frias, Daniel Keller, Don Smart

Fort Lauderdale Strikers (4-2-3-1): Josh Ford; Jonathan Borrajo, Jordan Graye, Frankie Sanfilippo, Ivan Guerrero (capt) (Walter Ramirez 65’); Hendry Thomas (Manny Gonzalez 71’), James Marcelin; Gabriel (Shawn Chin 76’), Marlon Frietas, PC; Stefano Pinho

Fort Lauderdale Bench: Lionel Brown, Karsten Smith, Dani Sanchez, Jose Angulo

Indy Eleven Struck Down by Strikers in South Florida

Dane Richards Scores in Third Straight, but Not Nearly Enough in 7-1 Loss at Fort Lauderdale

FORT LAUDERDALE (Saturday, August 29, 2015) – While Indy Eleven forward Dane Richards scored in his third straight contest, that was the lone bright spot for Indy Eleven, which couldn’t recover from a slow start and failed to slow down the Fort Lauderdale Strikers in a 7-1 loss at Lockhart Stadium. 

The goals came early and often for the Strikers, starting just 68 seconds in when reigning NASL Player of the Week Stefano Pinho kicked off his hat trick in spectacular fashion, rebounding Marlon Freitas’ shot from distance with an acrobatic, scissor-kick finish past Indy netminder Kristian Nicht.

It only took five more minutes for the Strikers’ second goal as PC converted a penalty kick that he earned after he was spun around in the box by Indy captain Brad Ring, who was making his return to the line-up after missing the previous four games due to a right heel injury.

Indy Eleven looked as if it might be able to right the ship after the shell-shocked start and pulled one back in the 16th minute thanks to the in-form Richards, who picked off a pass near the top of the Fort Lauderdale penalty area and fired past onrushing Strikers’ goalkeeper Josh Ford to bring things to 2-1.

But that was as close as Indy would come to mounting a comeback, as its momentum was quelled four minutes later when Freitas collected his first goal on the night by dribbling into a middle open area before finishing with a hard shot to the far post that froze Nicht.

Down 3-1 at the break, things got worse for Indy Eleven when defender Marco Franco was ejected for a lunging challenge against PC, marking the second straight match in which an Indy player was shown his marching orders in the 50th minute.

The Strikers did not let up as Freitas picked up his second of the night in the 67th minute, again with a shot from distance after receiving a spot-on pass from Hendry Thomas.

Stefano put his name on the scoring sheet again with his second tally in the 77th minute, drilling a left-footed shot to the far post that gave Nicht no chance.

Just four minutes later, Stefano notched his hat trick with his league-leading 12th goal of the season, taking a pass from Freitas and finishing into an empty net after the pair got in alone on a stranded Nicht.

PC capped the scoring with a header in the 85th minute on a cross from Stefano, dooming Indy Eleven to the 7-1 loss and largest margin of defeat in the team’s short history.

Indy Eleven will look to rebound quickly this Wednesday, Sept. 2, when it closes out a season-long three-game road trip at Minnesota United FC. Kickoff from the National Sports Center Stadium in Blaine, Minn., on Wednesday is set for 8:00 p.m. ET for a game that can be viewed live via ESPN3.com and heard locally and online via Spanish-language radio station La Pura Mega 88.1 FM / www.LaPuraMega.com.   Fans will also be able to take in the game at any of eight Official Watch Party locations across Indiana, a listing of which can be found at www.www.indyeleven.com.

 

 

NASL Fall Season
Fort Lauderdale Strikers  7 : 1  Indy Eleven
Saturday, August 29, 2015
Lockhart Stadium – Fort Lauderdale, FL
Attendance: 3,819

Indy Eleven: 
Fall Season: 2W-3D-5L (9 pts.)
Combined: 5W-7D-8L (22 pts.)

Fort Lauderdale Strikers:
Fall Season: 4W-4D-2L (16 pts.)
Combined: 7W-6D-7L (27 pts.)

Scoring Summary: 
FTL – Stefano Pinho (unassisted) 2’
FTL – PC (penalty kick) 7’
IND – Dane Richards (unassisted) 16’
FTL – Marlon Freitas (unassisted) 20’
FTL – Marlon Freitas (Hendry Thomas) 67’
FTL – Stefano Pinho (Shawn Chin) 77’
FTL – Stefano Pinho (Marlon Freitas) 81’
FTL – PC (Stefano Pinho) 85’

Discipline Summary:
FTL – Hendry Thomas (caution) 10’
IND – Victor Pineda (caution) 16’
IND – Marco Franco (ejection) 50’

Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2):  Kristian Nicht; Marco Franco (red card 50’), Cory Miller, Greg Janicki, Kyle Hyland; Dragan Stojkov (Duke Lacroix 58’), Zach Steinberger, Brad Ring (capt), Victor Pineda (Charlie Rugg 65’); Dane Richards (Brian Brown 72’), Marvin Ceballos

Indy Bench: Keith Cardona, Jaime Frias, Daniel Keller, Don Smart

Fort Lauderdale Strikers (4-2-3-1): Josh Ford; Jonathan Borrajo, Jordan Graye, Frankie Sanfilippo, Ivan Guerrero (capt) (Walter Ramirez 65’); Hendry Thomas (Manny Gonzalez 71’), James Marcelin; Gabriel (Shawn Chin 76’), Marlon Frietas, PC; Stefano Pinho

Fort Lauderdale Bench: Lionel Brown, Karsten Smith, Dani Sanchez, Jose Angulo

Indy Eleven Holds on for 1-1 Draw at Atlanta

Dane Richards’ Second Goal in as Many Matches Countered by Own Goal in Second Half

ATLANTA (Saturday, August 22, 2015) – An early goal by Indy Eleven forward Dane Richards stood tall for more than an hour against the Atlanta Silverbacks, but an own goal in the 76thminute when “Indiana’s Team” was down a man evened the proceedings in an eventual 1-1 draw at Silverbacks Park.

Indy Eleven reversed its troubling trend of going down a goal on Wednesday night against Tampa Bay, but had to wait almost an hour to do so – but that wasn’t the case tonight, as a Silverbacks handball inside the area in the fifth minute resulted in an early opportunity for the visitors.  It was Richards stepping up to take the penalty kick a minute later, and the Jamaican would see his shot go off both hands of diving Atlanta ‘keeper Steward Ceus but still hit the back of the net to give Indy a 1-0 advantage.

Atlanta would test Indy Eleven goalkeeper Kristian Nicht several times in the first half, but the German netminder would answer every time. Nicht’s best stops came via a kick save of former teammate Pedro Mendes’ close-range effort in the  21st minute and his diving effort to tip Junior Burgos’ long-range blast around his right post in the 25th minute. Atlanta’s best chance of the half was one Nicht couldn’t get to in stoppage time, but Jaime Chavez’s free header from 12 yards out bounced wide left, allowing Indy to enter the halftime break with a one-goal advantage.

The second half storyline would be written in a hurry, as Indy Eleven defender Erick Norales saw a straight red card in the 50th minute for pulling down Chavez as he tried to reach a through ball just outside the Eleven penalty area, putting the Eleven down to ten.  Five minutes later it appeared the home side had evened up through Chavez, but his header was nullified after the linesman’s flag was raised after Kosuke Kimura couldn’t keep the ball from going over the endline just before he delivered his cross deep into the area.

Indy Eleven managed to keep Atlanta’s attack to mostly long-range efforts until the 76th minute, when it was again Chavez creating havoc with a difficult flick attempt inside the six with Nicht off his line.  Indy defenders Marco Franco and Greg Janicki both converged on the loose ball on the goalline, but Franco’s clearance attempt would deflect back off of Janicki and into goal to even things at 1-1.

The teams would be evened up as well one minute after the equalizer, as Atlanta saw its own center back and captain, Simon Mensing, pick up his second yellow card within seven minutes, bringing both teams to 10 men down the stretch.  The squads would trade half chances for the duration and settle for their second 1-1 draw at Silverbacks Park this year, following up on their 2015 season opening contest back on April 4.

Indy Eleven will have a week to rest before taking on the middle game of its three-game road trip, next traveling to South Florida to take on the Fort Lauderdale Strikers on Saturday, August 29.  Kickoff next weekend from Lockhart Stadium is set for 7:30 p.m. ET, and the contest can be viewed via streaming online video on ESPN3.com.  Fans can also listen to the action locally and online via Spanish-language radio station La Pura Mega 88.1 FM / www.LaPuraMega.com.

 

NASL Fall Season
Atlanta Silverbacks  1 : 1  Indy Eleven
Saturday, August 22, 2015
Atlanta Silverbacks Park – Atlanta, GA
Attendance: 4,021

Indy Eleven: 
Fall Season: 2W-3D-4L (9 pts.), 8th place
Combined: 5W-7D-7L (22 pts.), 8th place

Atlanta Silverbacks: 
Fall Season: 4W-3D-3L (15 pts.), 5th place
Combined: 5W-8D-7L (23 pts.), 6th place

Scoring Summary: 
IND – Dane Richards (penalty kick) 6’
ATL – own goal (Greg Janicki) 76’

Discipline Summary:
IND –Dragan Stojkov (caution) 45+
IND – Erick Norales (ejection) 50’
ATL – Simon Mensing (caution) 70’
ATL – Simon Mensing (caution) 77’
ATL – Simon Mensing (ejection, second caution) 70’
ATL – Junior Burgos (caution) 82’
IND – Don Smart (caution) 90+’

Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2):  Kristian Nicht; Marco Franco, Cory Miller, Erick Norales (capt), Kyle Hyland; Dragan Stojkov (Don Smart 85’), Zach Steinberger, Daniel Keller, Duke Lacroix; Dane Richards (Charlie Rugg 68’), Wojciech Wojcik (Greg Janicki 55’)

Indy Bench: Keith Cardona, Jaime Frias, Marvin Ceballos, Victor Pineda

Atlanta Silverbacks (3-5-2): Stewart Ceus (GK); Rauwshan McKenzie, Simon Mensing (C), Paul Black (Shaka Bangura 73’); Kosuke Kimura, Michael Reed (Hans Denisson 70’), Junior Burgos, Paulo Mendes, Kyle Porter; Jaime Chavez, Pedro Mendes (Abdul Bangura 83’)

Tampa Bay Bench: C.J. Cochran, Josh Hughes, Matt Horth, Michal Mravec

Indy Eleven Holds on for 1-1 Draw at Atlanta

Dane Richards’ Second Goal in as Many Matches Countered by Own Goal in Second Half

ATLANTA (Saturday, August 22, 2015) – An early goal by Indy Eleven forward Dane Richards stood tall for more than an hour against the Atlanta Silverbacks, but an own goal in the 76thminute when “Indiana’s Team” was down a man evened the proceedings in an eventual 1-1 draw at Silverbacks Park.

Indy Eleven reversed its troubling trend of going down a goal on Wednesday night against Tampa Bay, but had to wait almost an hour to do so – but that wasn’t the case tonight, as a Silverbacks handball inside the area in the fifth minute resulted in an early opportunity for the visitors.  It was Richards stepping up to take the penalty kick a minute later, and the Jamaican would see his shot go off both hands of diving Atlanta ‘keeper Steward Ceus but still hit the back of the net to give Indy a 1-0 advantage.

Atlanta would test Indy Eleven goalkeeper Kristian Nicht several times in the first half, but the German netminder would answer every time. Nicht’s best stops came via a kick save of former teammate Pedro Mendes’ close-range effort in the  21st minute and his diving effort to tip Junior Burgos’ long-range blast around his right post in the 25th minute. Atlanta’s best chance of the half was one Nicht couldn’t get to in stoppage time, but Jaime Chavez’s free header from 12 yards out bounced wide left, allowing Indy to enter the halftime break with a one-goal advantage.

The second half storyline would be written in a hurry, as Indy Eleven defender Erick Norales saw a straight red card in the 50th minute for pulling down Chavez as he tried to reach a through ball just outside the Eleven penalty area, putting the Eleven down to ten.  Five minutes later it appeared the home side had evened up through Chavez, but his header was nullified after the linesman’s flag was raised after Kosuke Kimura couldn’t keep the ball from going over the endline just before he delivered his cross deep into the area.

Indy Eleven managed to keep Atlanta’s attack to mostly long-range efforts until the 76th minute, when it was again Chavez creating havoc with a difficult flick attempt inside the six with Nicht off his line.  Indy defenders Marco Franco and Greg Janicki both converged on the loose ball on the goalline, but Franco’s clearance attempt would deflect back off of Janicki and into goal to even things at 1-1.

The teams would be evened up as well one minute after the equalizer, as Atlanta saw its own center back and captain, Simon Mensing, pick up his second yellow card within seven minutes, bringing both teams to 10 men down the stretch.  The squads would trade half chances for the duration and settle for their second 1-1 draw at Silverbacks Park this year, following up on their 2015 season opening contest back on April 4.

Indy Eleven will have a week to rest before taking on the middle game of its three-game road trip, next traveling to South Florida to take on the Fort Lauderdale Strikers on Saturday, August 29.  Kickoff next weekend from Lockhart Stadium is set for 7:30 p.m. ET, and the contest can be viewed via streaming online video on ESPN3.com.  Fans can also listen to the action locally and online via Spanish-language radio station La Pura Mega 88.1 FM / www.LaPuraMega.com.

 

NASL Fall Season
Atlanta Silverbacks  1 : 1  Indy Eleven
Saturday, August 22, 2015
Atlanta Silverbacks Park – Atlanta, GA
Attendance: 4,021

Indy Eleven: 
Fall Season: 2W-3D-4L (9 pts.), 8th place
Combined: 5W-7D-7L (22 pts.), 8th place

Atlanta Silverbacks: 
Fall Season: 4W-3D-3L (15 pts.), 5th place
Combined: 5W-8D-7L (23 pts.), 6th place

Scoring Summary: 
IND – Dane Richards (penalty kick) 6’
ATL – own goal (Greg Janicki) 76’

Discipline Summary:
IND –Dragan Stojkov (caution) 45+
IND – Erick Norales (ejection) 50’
ATL – Simon Mensing (caution) 70’
ATL – Simon Mensing (caution) 77’
ATL – Simon Mensing (ejection, second caution) 70’
ATL – Junior Burgos (caution) 82’
IND – Don Smart (caution) 90+’

Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2):  Kristian Nicht; Marco Franco, Cory Miller, Erick Norales (capt), Kyle Hyland; Dragan Stojkov (Don Smart 85’), Zach Steinberger, Daniel Keller, Duke Lacroix; Dane Richards (Charlie Rugg 68’), Wojciech Wojcik (Greg Janicki 55’)

Indy Bench: Keith Cardona, Jaime Frias, Marvin Ceballos, Victor Pineda

Atlanta Silverbacks (3-5-2): Stewart Ceus (GK); Rauwshan McKenzie, Simon Mensing (C), Paul Black (Shaka Bangura 73’); Kosuke Kimura, Michael Reed (Hans Denisson 70’), Junior Burgos, Paulo Mendes, Kyle Porter; Jaime Chavez, Pedro Mendes (Abdul Bangura 83’)

Tampa Bay Bench: C.J. Cochran, Josh Hughes, Matt Horth, Michal Mravec

Indy Eleven Ends Slide with 2-0 Win over Tampa Bay

Second Half Tallies by Dane Richards, Erick Norales Lift "Boys in Blue" to Much-needed Victory

INDIANAPOLIS (Wednesday, August 19, 2015) – Indy Eleven captured a much-needed three points over the Tampa Bay Rowdies, using second half goals by Erick Norales and Dane Richards to post a 2-0 win and snap a five-game winless streak in front of 8,500 fans at IUPUI’s Carroll Stadium.

After letting in the first goal in each of its last six games, Indy Eleven almost did it again in the 16th minute when Rowdies midfielder Maicon Santos opened fire from 25 yards out, but Eleven ‘keeper Kristian Nicht stood tall and parried the shot wide for a Rowdies corner.

As the half progressed Indy gained more of the chances, with the best of those coming in the 33rd and 34th minutes through midfielders Zach Steinberger and Duke Lacroix. The first attempt by way of a Steinberger header forced a routine save out of Pickens, while Lacroix’s chance was pushed just wide of the goal, leaving the teams to go into the halftime break level at nil.  

The Rowdies would be the first to knock on the door in the second half when Brian Shriver was left unmarked in the box and rifled a shot in the direction of Indy’s net in the 56th minute. Once again, Nicht held his own and kept the ball out of the net.  “Indiana’s Team” would take the ensuing goal-kick the length of the field in what looked to be their most promising attack of the opening hour of the match, but Richards’ far post cross was sent inches past the oncoming Lacroix.

But right on the hour mark Richards would atone for the previous close call with the opener right on the stroke of the hour mark. After an interception from midfielder Daniel Keller at the center circle, the rookie finished his 30-yard run by sending the Jamaican winger into the area, where he moved past Ben Sweat and fired a low shot past Pickens and inside the far left post to earn his first goal in an Indy kit and give the “Boys in Blue” the lead.

The home side wouldn’t quit there. As the rains begin to fall at Carroll Stadium, Richards went forward on yet another run in the 69th minute before being hauled down just outside the Tampa Bay penalty area. Norales and Kyle Hyland stood over the ensuing free kick, but it was the Indy captain who looked calm, cool and collected as he stepped to and fired the ball over the wall and into the upper right corner past a leaping Pickens to double the Indy advantage in the 70th minute.  The goal was Norales’ third on the season, pushing him into a tie with injured midfielder Dylan Mares for the team lead in the category.

Tampa Bay created an opportunity in the 75th minute to get one back when Darwin Espinal got open in the box, but his shot with space from 10 yards out sailed on him.

Another “Boy in Blue” would nearly grab his first goal in an Indy Eleven jersey in the 81st minute when Zach Steinberger collected a loose ball outside in the attacking third. The rookie out of local Butler University turned and hit a shot curling towards the upper right-hand corner, but Pickens made a sprawling save to knock it wide.  

Indy Eleven would go on to successfully close off any promising chances from Tampa Bay’s desperate pushes forward over the final 10 minutes, highlighted by Nicht’s save on Georgi Hristov’s near-angle blast a minute deep into stoppage.  Indy’s win marked just its second clean sheet on the season, meanwhile, the loss continued the Rowdies’ Fall Season slump, the Spring Season runner-up falling for the fifth time in its last seven contests with tonight’s result.

 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – INTERIM HEAD COACH TIM REGAN

On tonight’s performance:
“You look at this point in the season and you realize that you need wins because three losses in a row is bad for any team. It was a good response from the group [tonight] and I’m really pleased.”

On the clean sheet:
“The clean sheet is important because if you look at our recent results, the early goal has killed us. With that, teams have been able to sit back and we had to break them down which is not easy to do. It this sense, we got [Tampa Bay] on the counter a couple of times and it paid off quite well.”

On the performance of Dane Richards and Zach Steinberger:
“I’ve said it all along that the questions come from the beginning in terms of these new guys coming in. It just takes time. You can’t put an exact number of days on it, and both of them showed tonight that they’re getting more comfortable in their role and with their teammates.”
 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – FORWARD DANE RICHARDS

On the play setting up his goal:
“I saw [Daniel] Keller with the ball and I just got myself some space from the defender. Once I got the ball, I took a good first touch and put the ball on target.”

On being a veteran presence on a young team:
“When I got here, the team was on a good run so I just told them to be confident. A lot of goals are scored in this league so the important thing is to defend well. In the past games when we have been scored on so early it’s been hard to get back, so tonight I said just to be positive going forward and defensively we just needed to be sharp and that happened.”
 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – MIDFIELDER DANIEL KELLER

On the importance of the team’s 11-day break from action:
“It was good. It gave us a chance to look at what we were doing wrong as well as to realize what we were doing right. We didn’t need to fix everything, just a few minor details, but those minor details can be the difference between a win and a loss. I think tonight we were much more organized with those details.”

On the performance of the midfield in tonight’s match:
“I like to think that I’m more of a defensive player, but Zach Steinberger put in a great shift tonight both offensively and defensively along with Dragan [Stojkov] and Duke [Lacroix]. Those guys are pretty offensive minded, but I don’t think they get enough credit for the defensive work that they put in. We knew tonight would be a battle and as you can see there were just a lot of tough nose plays, and I think we were first to a lot of balls which is a key to winning the game.”

 

NASL Fall Season
Indy Eleven  2 : 0  Tampa Bay Rowdies
Wednesday, August 19, 2015
Michael A. Carroll Stadium – Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 8,500

Indy Eleven: 
Fall Season: 2W-2D-4L (8 pts.), 9th place
Combined: 5W-6D-7L (21 pts.), 10th place

Tampa Bay Rowdies: 
Fall Season: 2W-1D-5L (8 pts.), 10th place
Combined: 7W-5D-6L (26 pts.), 4th place

Scoring Summary: 
IND – Dane Richards (Daniel Keller) 60’
IND – Erick Norales (unassisted) 70’

Discipline Summary:
TBR – Justin Chavez (caution) 31’
IND – Zach Steinberger (caution) 42’
TBR – Tamika Mkandawire (caution) 69’

Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2):  Kristian Nicht; Marco Franco, Cory Miller, Erick Norales (capt) (Greg Janicki 85’), Kyle Hyland; Dragan Stojkov (Don Smart 72’), Zach Steinberger, Daniel Keller, Duke Lacroix; Dane Richards (Marvin Ceballos 81’), Charlie Rugg

Indy Bench: Keith Cardona, Victor Pineda, Brian Brown, Wojciech Wojcik

Tampa Bay Rowdies line-up (4-4-2): Matt Pickens; Rich Balchan, Gale Agbossoumonde, Tamika Mkandawire (capt), Ben Sweat; Brian Shriver (Robert Hernandez 71’), Justin Chavez (Juan Guerra 45’), Richard Menjivar, Corey Hertzog; Darwin Espinal, Maicon Santos (Georgi Hristov 74’)

Tampa Bay Bench: Kamil Contofalksy (GK), Darnell King, Stefan Antonijevic, Marcelo Saragosa

Indy Eleven Ends Slide with 2-0 Win over Tampa Bay

Second Half Tallies by Dane Richards, Erick Norales Lift “Boys in Blue” to Much-needed Victory

INDIANAPOLIS (Wednesday, August 19, 2015) – Indy Eleven captured a much-needed three points over the Tampa Bay Rowdies, using second half goals by Erick Norales and Dane Richards to post a 2-0 win and snap a five-game winless streak in front of 8,500 fans at IUPUI’s Carroll Stadium.

After letting in the first goal in each of its last six games, Indy Eleven almost did it again in the 16th minute when Rowdies midfielder Maicon Santos opened fire from 25 yards out, but Eleven ‘keeper Kristian Nicht stood tall and parried the shot wide for a Rowdies corner.

As the half progressed Indy gained more of the chances, with the best of those coming in the 33rd and 34th minutes through midfielders Zach Steinberger and Duke Lacroix. The first attempt by way of a Steinberger header forced a routine save out of Pickens, while Lacroix’s chance was pushed just wide of the goal, leaving the teams to go into the halftime break level at nil.  

The Rowdies would be the first to knock on the door in the second half when Brian Shriver was left unmarked in the box and rifled a shot in the direction of Indy’s net in the 56th minute. Once again, Nicht held his own and kept the ball out of the net.  “Indiana’s Team” would take the ensuing goal-kick the length of the field in what looked to be their most promising attack of the opening hour of the match, but Richards’ far post cross was sent inches past the oncoming Lacroix.

But right on the hour mark Richards would atone for the previous close call with the opener right on the stroke of the hour mark. After an interception from midfielder Daniel Keller at the center circle, the rookie finished his 30-yard run by sending the Jamaican winger into the area, where he moved past Ben Sweat and fired a low shot past Pickens and inside the far left post to earn his first goal in an Indy kit and give the “Boys in Blue” the lead.

The home side wouldn’t quit there. As the rains begin to fall at Carroll Stadium, Richards went forward on yet another run in the 69th minute before being hauled down just outside the Tampa Bay penalty area. Norales and Kyle Hyland stood over the ensuing free kick, but it was the Indy captain who looked calm, cool and collected as he stepped to and fired the ball over the wall and into the upper right corner past a leaping Pickens to double the Indy advantage in the 70th minute.  The goal was Norales’ third on the season, pushing him into a tie with injured midfielder Dylan Mares for the team lead in the category.

Tampa Bay created an opportunity in the 75th minute to get one back when Darwin Espinal got open in the box, but his shot with space from 10 yards out sailed on him.

Another “Boy in Blue” would nearly grab his first goal in an Indy Eleven jersey in the 81st minute when Zach Steinberger collected a loose ball outside in the attacking third. The rookie out of local Butler University turned and hit a shot curling towards the upper right-hand corner, but Pickens made a sprawling save to knock it wide.  

Indy Eleven would go on to successfully close off any promising chances from Tampa Bay’s desperate pushes forward over the final 10 minutes, highlighted by Nicht’s save on Georgi Hristov’s near-angle blast a minute deep into stoppage.  Indy’s win marked just its second clean sheet on the season, meanwhile, the loss continued the Rowdies’ Fall Season slump, the Spring Season runner-up falling for the fifth time in its last seven contests with tonight’s result.

 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – INTERIM HEAD COACH TIM REGAN

On tonight’s performance:
“You look at this point in the season and you realize that you need wins because three losses in a row is bad for any team. It was a good response from the group [tonight] and I’m really pleased.”

On the clean sheet:
“The clean sheet is important because if you look at our recent results, the early goal has killed us. With that, teams have been able to sit back and we had to break them down which is not easy to do. It this sense, we got [Tampa Bay] on the counter a couple of times and it paid off quite well.”

On the performance of Dane Richards and Zach Steinberger:
“I’ve said it all along that the questions come from the beginning in terms of these new guys coming in. It just takes time. You can’t put an exact number of days on it, and both of them showed tonight that they’re getting more comfortable in their role and with their teammates.”
 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – FORWARD DANE RICHARDS

On the play setting up his goal:
“I saw [Daniel] Keller with the ball and I just got myself some space from the defender. Once I got the ball, I took a good first touch and put the ball on target.”

On being a veteran presence on a young team:
“When I got here, the team was on a good run so I just told them to be confident. A lot of goals are scored in this league so the important thing is to defend well. In the past games when we have been scored on so early it’s been hard to get back, so tonight I said just to be positive going forward and defensively we just needed to be sharp and that happened.”
 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – MIDFIELDER DANIEL KELLER

On the importance of the team’s 11-day break from action:
“It was good. It gave us a chance to look at what we were doing wrong as well as to realize what we were doing right. We didn’t need to fix everything, just a few minor details, but those minor details can be the difference between a win and a loss. I think tonight we were much more organized with those details.”

On the performance of the midfield in tonight’s match:
“I like to think that I’m more of a defensive player, but Zach Steinberger put in a great shift tonight both offensively and defensively along with Dragan [Stojkov] and Duke [Lacroix]. Those guys are pretty offensive minded, but I don’t think they get enough credit for the defensive work that they put in. We knew tonight would be a battle and as you can see there were just a lot of tough nose plays, and I think we were first to a lot of balls which is a key to winning the game.”

 

NASL Fall Season
Indy Eleven  2 : 0  Tampa Bay Rowdies
Wednesday, August 19, 2015
Michael A. Carroll Stadium – Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 8,500

Indy Eleven: 
Fall Season: 2W-2D-4L (8 pts.), 9th place
Combined: 5W-6D-7L (21 pts.), 10th place

Tampa Bay Rowdies: 
Fall Season: 2W-1D-5L (8 pts.), 10th place
Combined: 7W-5D-6L (26 pts.), 4th place

Scoring Summary: 
IND – Dane Richards (Daniel Keller) 60’
IND – Erick Norales (unassisted) 70’

Discipline Summary:
TBR – Justin Chavez (caution) 31’
IND – Zach Steinberger (caution) 42’
TBR – Tamika Mkandawire (caution) 69’

Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2):  Kristian Nicht; Marco Franco, Cory Miller, Erick Norales (capt) (Greg Janicki 85’), Kyle Hyland; Dragan Stojkov (Don Smart 72’), Zach Steinberger, Daniel Keller, Duke Lacroix; Dane Richards (Marvin Ceballos 81’), Charlie Rugg

Indy Bench: Keith Cardona, Victor Pineda, Brian Brown, Wojciech Wojcik

Tampa Bay Rowdies line-up (4-4-2): Matt Pickens; Rich Balchan, Gale Agbossoumonde, Tamika Mkandawire (capt), Ben Sweat; Brian Shriver (Robert Hernandez 71’), Justin Chavez (Juan Guerra 45’), Richard Menjivar, Corey Hertzog; Darwin Espinal, Maicon Santos (Georgi Hristov 74’)

Tampa Bay Bench: Kamil Contofalksy (GK), Darnell King, Stefan Antonijevic, Marcelo Saragosa

Ottawa Unleashes Its Fury on Indy Eleven in 4-1 Win at Carroll Stadium

Canadian Side Expands Lead in Fall Season Standings with Clinical Finishing Display at “The Mike”

INDIANAPOLIS (Saturday, August 8, 2015) – Ottawa Fury FC made it a clean sweep of its “Class of 2014” brethren Indy Eleven in their 2015 series tonight, using a pair of goals by Andrew Wiedeman early in the second half – including the game-winner in the 54th minute – to post a 4-1 win in front of 9,866 fans at IUPUI’s Carroll Stadium. 

With its third win in as many meetings over Indy Eleven in 2015, the Fall Season leader Ottawa pushed its unbeaten streak to 12 games and reclaimed the top spot in the NASL’s overall standings ahead of New York. Meanwhile, Indy Eleven saw its winless streak reach match a season-high four games after a fruitless three-day, eight-game stretch.

 

A fairly open start to the match became even more so in the 9th minute, when Sinisa Ubiparipovic opened the scoring for Ottawa.  The play began with Fury FC forward Tom Heinemann collecting a turnover near midfield and racing past the Indy Eleven backline before cutting back for Ubiparipovic, who made no mistake with a tidy finish into the right netting.

Indy Eleven had a great chance to equalize in the 17th minute, when a quick counter up the middle of the field through midfielders Marvin Ceballos and Dragan Stojkov sprang Dane Richards behind the Ottawa defense, but the Jamaican striker put his chance into the outside netting.  Indy would control the bulk of the possession through the final half hour of the first half, but no full chances would come from it, allowing Ottawa to carry its 1-0 lead into the break.

Just as they did in the first half, Fury FC would move the scoreboard nine minutes into the second stanza when Andrew Wiedeman collected Ryan Richter’s cross from the right flank and finished to the far left post on a near angle, doubling the visitor’s advantage.

Right on the hour mark Indy Eleven showed signs of life in attack with its first goal in over six halves of play.  Substitute forward Duke Lacroix turned up route one and finished a 30-yard run with a low shot past Fury FC netminder Romuald Peiser and into the right side of goal to cut the advantage in half at 2-1.  

However, Ottawa would answer right back ruthlessly with a pair in quick succession, first in the 62nd minute when Mauro Eustaquio received Heinemann’s square ball with space 10 yards from goal and finished low inside the right post, bringing the score to 3-1.  Just two minutes later Wiedeman would do all the work himself for Ottawa’s fourth, shouldering off an Indy defender 35 yards from goal and carrying inside the area uncontested before slotting low and to the right of a stranded Nicht. Ottawa would effectively and efficiently kill off the final half hour of play to take the air out of Carroll Stadium and continue its red-hot form, moving to 6-1-0 on the Fall Season.

After its three-game, eight-day stretch that was the busiest of the 2015 regular season to date, Indy Eleven will get a well-earned weekend off, next returning to action on Wednesday, August 19, back at Carroll Stadium against the Tampa Bay Rowdies.  Kickoff on “Networking Night” at “The Mike” is set for 7:30 p.m.; tickets for the match can be secured at www.www.indyeleven.com, and fans that can’t make it can follow the proceedings live on WISH-TV8, ESPN3.com and Exitos Radio 1590 AM.
 

NASL Fall Season
Indy Eleven 1 : 4  Ottawa Fury FC
Saturday, August 8, 2015
Michael A. Carroll Stadium – Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 9,866

Indy Eleven:
Fall Season: 1W-2D-4L (5 pts.), 10th place
Combined: 4W-6D-7L (18 pts.), 9th place

Ottawa Fury FC:
Fall Season: 6W-1D-0L (19 pts.), 1st place
Combined: 8W-6D-3L (30 pts.), 1st place

Scoring Summary: 
OTT – Sinisa Ubiparipovic (Tom Heinemann) 9’
OTT – Andrew Wiedeman (Ryan Richter) 54’
IND – Duke Lacroix (Dragan Stojkov) 60’
OTT – Mauro Eustaquio (Tom Heinemann) 62’
OTT – Andrew Wiedeman (unassisted) 64

Discipline Summary: 
OTT – Mason Trafford (caution) 17’
OTT – Rafael Alves (caution) 22’
IND – Brian Brown (caution) 22’
OTT – Richie Ryan (caution) 38’
IND – Marvin Ceballos (caution) 73’
OTT – Ryan Richter (caution) 82’

Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2):  Kristian Nicht; Marco Franco, Greg Janicki, Erick Norales (capt), Kyle Hyland; Dragan Stojkov (Zach Steinberger 73’), Daniel Keller, Marvin Ceballos, Victor Pineda (Duke Lacroix 57’); Brian Brown (Wojciech Wojcik 63’), Dane Richards

Indy Bench: Keith Cardona (GK), Cory Miller, Don Smart, Charlie Rugg

Ottawa Fury FC line-up (4-3-3): Romuald Peiser (GK); Mason Trafford, Colin Falvey, Rafael Alves, Ryan Richter; Sinisa Ubiparipovic (Philippe Davies 80’), Richie Ryan (capt), Mauro Eustaquio; Oliver Minatel (Paulo Junior 63’), Tom Heinemann, Andrew Wiedeman (Brandon Poltronieri 86’)

Ottawa Bench: Marcel DeBellis (GK), Drew Beckie, Aly Alberto Hassan, Carl Haworth

 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – INTERIM HEAD COACH TIM REGAN

On comparison between Wednesday’s game to tonight:
“They were two completely different games. Wednesday’s performance wasn’t poor. We were in the game and like we had done for six games in a row we went behind. When you go behind 1-0, the other team is allowed to sit in and wait to make you do something, and unfortunately that something isn’t enough. We haven’t been able to get back and take control of the game yet. Since the Carolina game when we won and the New York game before that, we haven’t scored first.”

On break before next match:
“We’ll take advantage of the time we have to get a little bit of rest from both the physical and the mental side and then we’ll ramp it back up and get ourselves back in gear. We definitely faded over the course of this week. Between the travel, the lack of training and guys in and out, it’s going to happen. I like to think that I could look at every guy and they would say that they could have given more.”

On the debut of midfielder Marvin Ceballos:
“I was pleased. He got in and you could see, especially in the first 30 minutes and first half total, that the attacking quality that he brings is really good. The number of times that they just blatantly fouled him and he drew yellow cards is going to continue. You can’t stop him around the midfield when he has the ball. Hopefully it just leads to more goals as he gets more comfortable with the team.”

 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – MIDFIELDER MARVIN CEBALLOS

On making team debut tonight:
“It felt very good to play in my first game [with Indy Eleven], but I wish the final score would have been different. I feel like I can definitely help this team by creating more spaces and going more forward with the ball. I felt very comfortable tonight, though. Tim [Regan] and my teammates gave me a lot of confidence so that it made it feel like it wasn’t my first game. Playing in front of these fans is really nice because they never stop supporting the team over the full 90 minutes.”

 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – FORWARD DUKE LACROIX

On his second-half goal: 
“In the moment, it was good to get the goal, but it was short lived after they got a goal real quick after that. Overall it was a bit of mixed emotions. It was nice to get one to get us back in the game, but at the same time they got one and we were back in the hole so it was just rough to get the goal but succumb to another goal right after.”

On the break prior to the Tampa Bay match in 11 days’ time:
“It’s nice that we have a bit of time before our next game. Tim preaches the point that we have to take our time and work for each other to be difficult to play against. I think that tonight we were lacking on both of those fronts and going forward, we have extra time to get back into the swing of things to help right the ship.”

Ottawa Unleashes Its Fury on Indy Eleven in 4-1 Win at Carroll Stadium

Canadian Side Expands Lead in Fall Season Standings with Clinical Finishing Display at “The Mike”

INDIANAPOLIS (Saturday, August 8, 2015) – Ottawa Fury FC made it a clean sweep of its “Class of 2014” brethren Indy Eleven in their 2015 series tonight, using a pair of goals by Andrew Wiedeman early in the second half – including the game-winner in the 54th minute – to post a 4-1 win in front of 9,866 fans at IUPUI’s Carroll Stadium. 

With its third win in as many meetings over Indy Eleven in 2015, the Fall Season leader Ottawa pushed its unbeaten streak to 12 games and reclaimed the top spot in the NASL’s overall standings ahead of New York. Meanwhile, Indy Eleven saw its winless streak reach match a season-high four games after a fruitless three-day, eight-game stretch.

 

A fairly open start to the match became even more so in the 9th minute, when Sinisa Ubiparipovic opened the scoring for Ottawa.  The play began with Fury FC forward Tom Heinemann collecting a turnover near midfield and racing past the Indy Eleven backline before cutting back for Ubiparipovic, who made no mistake with a tidy finish into the right netting.

Indy Eleven had a great chance to equalize in the 17th minute, when a quick counter up the middle of the field through midfielders Marvin Ceballos and Dragan Stojkov sprang Dane Richards behind the Ottawa defense, but the Jamaican striker put his chance into the outside netting.  Indy would control the bulk of the possession through the final half hour of the first half, but no full chances would come from it, allowing Ottawa to carry its 1-0 lead into the break.

Just as they did in the first half, Fury FC would move the scoreboard nine minutes into the second stanza when Andrew Wiedeman collected Ryan Richter’s cross from the right flank and finished to the far left post on a near angle, doubling the visitor’s advantage.

Right on the hour mark Indy Eleven showed signs of life in attack with its first goal in over six halves of play.  Substitute forward Duke Lacroix turned up route one and finished a 30-yard run with a low shot past Fury FC netminder Romuald Peiser and into the right side of goal to cut the advantage in half at 2-1.  

However, Ottawa would answer right back ruthlessly with a pair in quick succession, first in the 62nd minute when Mauro Eustaquio received Heinemann’s square ball with space 10 yards from goal and finished low inside the right post, bringing the score to 3-1.  Just two minutes later Wiedeman would do all the work himself for Ottawa’s fourth, shouldering off an Indy defender 35 yards from goal and carrying inside the area uncontested before slotting low and to the right of a stranded Nicht. Ottawa would effectively and efficiently kill off the final half hour of play to take the air out of Carroll Stadium and continue its red-hot form, moving to 6-1-0 on the Fall Season.

After its three-game, eight-day stretch that was the busiest of the 2015 regular season to date, Indy Eleven will get a well-earned weekend off, next returning to action on Wednesday, August 19, back at Carroll Stadium against the Tampa Bay Rowdies.  Kickoff on “Networking Night” at “The Mike” is set for 7:30 p.m.; tickets for the match can be secured at www.www.indyeleven.com, and fans that can’t make it can follow the proceedings live on WISH-TV8, ESPN3.com and Exitos Radio 1590 AM.
 

NASL Fall Season
Indy Eleven 1 : 4  Ottawa Fury FC
Saturday, August 8, 2015
Michael A. Carroll Stadium – Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 9,866

Indy Eleven:
Fall Season: 1W-2D-4L (5 pts.), 10th place
Combined: 4W-6D-7L (18 pts.), 9th place

Ottawa Fury FC:
Fall Season: 6W-1D-0L (19 pts.), 1st place
Combined: 8W-6D-3L (30 pts.), 1st place

Scoring Summary: 
OTT – Sinisa Ubiparipovic (Tom Heinemann) 9’
OTT – Andrew Wiedeman (Ryan Richter) 54’
IND – Duke Lacroix (Dragan Stojkov) 60’
OTT – Mauro Eustaquio (Tom Heinemann) 62’
OTT – Andrew Wiedeman (unassisted) 64

Discipline Summary: 
OTT – Mason Trafford (caution) 17’
OTT – Rafael Alves (caution) 22’
IND – Brian Brown (caution) 22’
OTT – Richie Ryan (caution) 38’
IND – Marvin Ceballos (caution) 73’
OTT – Ryan Richter (caution) 82’

Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2):  Kristian Nicht; Marco Franco, Greg Janicki, Erick Norales (capt), Kyle Hyland; Dragan Stojkov (Zach Steinberger 73’), Daniel Keller, Marvin Ceballos, Victor Pineda (Duke Lacroix 57’); Brian Brown (Wojciech Wojcik 63’), Dane Richards

Indy Bench: Keith Cardona (GK), Cory Miller, Don Smart, Charlie Rugg

Ottawa Fury FC line-up (4-3-3): Romuald Peiser (GK); Mason Trafford, Colin Falvey, Rafael Alves, Ryan Richter; Sinisa Ubiparipovic (Philippe Davies 80’), Richie Ryan (capt), Mauro Eustaquio; Oliver Minatel (Paulo Junior 63’), Tom Heinemann, Andrew Wiedeman (Brandon Poltronieri 86’)

Ottawa Bench: Marcel DeBellis (GK), Drew Beckie, Aly Alberto Hassan, Carl Haworth

 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – INTERIM HEAD COACH TIM REGAN

On comparison between Wednesday’s game to tonight:
“They were two completely different games. Wednesday’s performance wasn’t poor. We were in the game and like we had done for six games in a row we went behind. When you go behind 1-0, the other team is allowed to sit in and wait to make you do something, and unfortunately that something isn’t enough. We haven’t been able to get back and take control of the game yet. Since the Carolina game when we won and the New York game before that, we haven’t scored first.”

On break before next match:
“We’ll take advantage of the time we have to get a little bit of rest from both the physical and the mental side and then we’ll ramp it back up and get ourselves back in gear. We definitely faded over the course of this week. Between the travel, the lack of training and guys in and out, it’s going to happen. I like to think that I could look at every guy and they would say that they could have given more.”

On the debut of midfielder Marvin Ceballos:
“I was pleased. He got in and you could see, especially in the first 30 minutes and first half total, that the attacking quality that he brings is really good. The number of times that they just blatantly fouled him and he drew yellow cards is going to continue. You can’t stop him around the midfield when he has the ball. Hopefully it just leads to more goals as he gets more comfortable with the team.”

 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – MIDFIELDER MARVIN CEBALLOS

On making team debut tonight:
“It felt very good to play in my first game [with Indy Eleven], but I wish the final score would have been different. I feel like I can definitely help this team by creating more spaces and going more forward with the ball. I felt very comfortable tonight, though. Tim [Regan] and my teammates gave me a lot of confidence so that it made it feel like it wasn’t my first game. Playing in front of these fans is really nice because they never stop supporting the team over the full 90 minutes.”

 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – FORWARD DUKE LACROIX

On his second-half goal: 
“In the moment, it was good to get the goal, but it was short lived after they got a goal real quick after that. Overall it was a bit of mixed emotions. It was nice to get one to get us back in the game, but at the same time they got one and we were back in the hole so it was just rough to get the goal but succumb to another goal right after.”

On the break prior to the Tampa Bay match in 11 days’ time:
“It’s nice that we have a bit of time before our next game. Tim preaches the point that we have to take our time and work for each other to be difficult to play against. I think that tonight we were lacking on both of those fronts and going forward, we have extra time to get back into the swing of things to help right the ship.”

Indy Eleven Can’t Catch Breaks in 0-2 Loss at FC Edmonton

Eddies Tally on Either Side of the Half to Send “Boys in Blue” to Defeat in Alberta

EDMONTON (Wednesday, August 5, 2015) – Indy Eleven fell behind early and looked to be in position for an equalizing penalty kick midway through the second half, but instead saw FC Edmonton double its advantage from the spot just minutes later en route to a 2-0 win at Clarke Field.

Indy Eleven’s first three-game-in-eight-day stretch would force interim head coach Tim Regan to shuffle his roster, with only three players – center backs Greg Janicki and Cory Miller and central midfielder Zach Steinberger – holding their spots from last Saturday’s home match against Atlanta.  The home-standing Eddies would control the bulk of the first half, and they would be rewarded for their attacking forays in the 16th minute when defender Albert Watson rose at the back post to head home Lance Laing’s corner kick, putting FC Edmonton up 1-0 early.

Striker Tomi Amoebi nearly put Edmonton up a pair of occasions after the half hour mark, narrowly connecting on Daryl Fordyce’s free kick at the top of the six-yard box in the 32nd minute and pulling a 1-v-1 chance against Eleven netminder Keith Cardona just wide of the right post five minutes later.

Forward Charlie Rugg would breathe some life into the Indy Eleven attack in the final minutes of the opening half, but a header off midfielder Don Smart’s cross would be pushed just wide in the 44th minute while a shot a minute later was fired right into the chest of Eddies ‘keeper Matt VanOekel.  

The goal-scorer Watson would be at the heart of another big play in the 64th minute, when Rugg worked his way into the area and tried to chip-and-run his way past the FC Edmonton captain.  While the ball appeared to deflect off the defender’s arm, no whistle was blown, which made the visitors even more incredulous five minutes later when a similar play on the other end was whistled.  Laing’s attempted flick-on made contact with the arm of Eleven defender Judson McKinney, and Ameobi would atone for his previous close calls from the spot, sending Cardona to his left and finishing low and to his right to double the Edmonton lead. 

The home side would absorb the Indy pressure well over the final 20 minutes to post its third win of the Fall Season while sending Indy Eleven to its third loss in its last four outings.  The result dropped “Indiana’s Team” to the eighth spot in both the NASL’s Fall and Combined Season standings, yet the squad remains within three points of fourth-place Minnesota on the Fall table and four points from fourth-place Carolina on the Combined table with 14 regular season games remaining.

The “Boys in Blue” won’t have much time to think about tonight’s loss, as the squad will be back at IUPUI’s Carroll Stadium for a third straight weekend this Saturday, August 8, to host the NASL’s other Canadian club, Combined and Fall Season leader Ottawa Fury FC.  The last “Class of 2014” clash of 2015 will mark “Faith and Family Night” at “The Mike,” and fans looking for tickets – including a special $79 Family 4-Pack featuring four tickets, hot dogs, chips and sodas – can secure their spots at www.www.indyeleven.com.  Fans that can’t make it can follow the proceedings live on WISH-TV8, ESPN3.com and Exitos Radio 1590 AM.

 

NASL Fall Season
FC Edmonton  2 : 0  Indy Eleven
Wednesday, August 5, 2015
Clarke Field – Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Attendance: 3,120

Indy Eleven:
Fall Season: 1W-2D-3L, 8th place
Combined: 4W-6D-6L, 8th place

FC Edmonton:
Fall Season: 3W-2D-2L, 3rd place
Combined: 5W-5D-7L, 7th place

Scoring Summary: 
FCE – Albert Watson (Lance Laing) 16’
FCE – Tomi Ameobi (penalty kick) 70’

Discipline Summary: 
FCE – Lance Laing (caution) 80’
FCE – Johann Smith (caution) 83’

Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2):  Keith Cardona; Judson McKinney, Greg Janicki (capt), Cory Miller, Jaime Frias; Don Smart, Daniel Keller (Dane Richards 73’), Zach Steinberger, Duke Lacroix (Brian Brown 55’); Charlie Rugg, Wojciech Wojcik (Victor Pineda 45’)

Indy Bench: Kristian Nicht (GK), Marco Franco, Kyle Hyland, Brad Ring

FC Edmonton (4-5-1): Matt VanOekel; Eddie Edward, Albert Watson (capt), Kareem Moses, Johann Smith; Dustin Corea (Sainey Nyassi 67’), Ritchie Jones, Daryl Fordyce, Thaigo de Freitas (Cristian Raudales 65’), Lance Liang; Tomi Ameobi (Frank Jonke 79’)

Edmonton Bench: Tyson Farago (GK), Allan Zebie, Tomas Granitto, Hanson Boakai

Indy Eleven Can’t Catch Breaks in 0-2 Loss at FC Edmonton

Eddies Tally on Either Side of the Half to Send “Boys in Blue” to Defeat in Alberta

EDMONTON (Wednesday, August 5, 2015) – Indy Eleven fell behind early and looked to be in position for an equalizing penalty kick midway through the second half, but instead saw FC Edmonton double its advantage from the spot just minutes later en route to a 2-0 win at Clarke Field.

Indy Eleven’s first three-game-in-eight-day stretch would force interim head coach Tim Regan to shuffle his roster, with only three players – center backs Greg Janicki and Cory Miller and central midfielder Zach Steinberger – holding their spots from last Saturday’s home match against Atlanta.  The home-standing Eddies would control the bulk of the first half, and they would be rewarded for their attacking forays in the 16th minute when defender Albert Watson rose at the back post to head home Lance Laing’s corner kick, putting FC Edmonton up 1-0 early.

Striker Tomi Amoebi nearly put Edmonton up a pair of occasions after the half hour mark, narrowly connecting on Daryl Fordyce’s free kick at the top of the six-yard box in the 32nd minute and pulling a 1-v-1 chance against Eleven netminder Keith Cardona just wide of the right post five minutes later.

Forward Charlie Rugg would breathe some life into the Indy Eleven attack in the final minutes of the opening half, but a header off midfielder Don Smart’s cross would be pushed just wide in the 44th minute while a shot a minute later was fired right into the chest of Eddies ‘keeper Matt VanOekel.  

The goal-scorer Watson would be at the heart of another big play in the 64th minute, when Rugg worked his way into the area and tried to chip-and-run his way past the FC Edmonton captain.  While the ball appeared to deflect off the defender’s arm, no whistle was blown, which made the visitors even more incredulous five minutes later when a similar play on the other end was whistled.  Laing’s attempted flick-on made contact with the arm of Eleven defender Judson McKinney, and Ameobi would atone for his previous close calls from the spot, sending Cardona to his left and finishing low and to his right to double the Edmonton lead. 

The home side would absorb the Indy pressure well over the final 20 minutes to post its third win of the Fall Season while sending Indy Eleven to its third loss in its last four outings.  The result dropped “Indiana’s Team” to the eighth spot in both the NASL’s Fall and Combined Season standings, yet the squad remains within three points of fourth-place Minnesota on the Fall table and four points from fourth-place Carolina on the Combined table with 14 regular season games remaining.

The “Boys in Blue” won’t have much time to think about tonight’s loss, as the squad will be back at IUPUI’s Carroll Stadium for a third straight weekend this Saturday, August 8, to host the NASL’s other Canadian club, Combined and Fall Season leader Ottawa Fury FC.  The last “Class of 2014” clash of 2015 will mark “Faith and Family Night” at “The Mike,” and fans looking for tickets – including a special $79 Family 4-Pack featuring four tickets, hot dogs, chips and sodas – can secure their spots at www.www.indyeleven.com.  Fans that can’t make it can follow the proceedings live on WISH-TV8, ESPN3.com and Exitos Radio 1590 AM.

 

NASL Fall Season
FC Edmonton  2 : 0  Indy Eleven
Wednesday, August 5, 2015
Clarke Field – Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Attendance: 3,120

Indy Eleven:
Fall Season: 1W-2D-3L, 8th place
Combined: 4W-6D-6L, 8th place

FC Edmonton:
Fall Season: 3W-2D-2L, 3rd place
Combined: 5W-5D-7L, 7th place

Scoring Summary: 
FCE – Albert Watson (Lance Laing) 16’
FCE – Tomi Ameobi (penalty kick) 70’

Discipline Summary: 
FCE – Lance Laing (caution) 80’
FCE – Johann Smith (caution) 83’

Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2):  Keith Cardona; Judson McKinney, Greg Janicki (capt), Cory Miller, Jaime Frias; Don Smart, Daniel Keller (Dane Richards 73’), Zach Steinberger, Duke Lacroix (Brian Brown 55’); Charlie Rugg, Wojciech Wojcik (Victor Pineda 45’)

Indy Bench: Kristian Nicht (GK), Marco Franco, Kyle Hyland, Brad Ring

FC Edmonton (4-5-1): Matt VanOekel; Eddie Edward, Albert Watson (capt), Kareem Moses, Johann Smith; Dustin Corea (Sainey Nyassi 67’), Ritchie Jones, Daryl Fordyce, Thaigo de Freitas (Cristian Raudales 65’), Lance Liang; Tomi Ameobi (Frank Jonke 79’)

Edmonton Bench: Tyson Farago (GK), Allan Zebie, Tomas Granitto, Hanson Boakai

Familiar Face Helps Atlanta to 1-0 Win over Indy Eleven

Former “Boy in Blue” Pedro Mendes Tallies Game’s Lone Goal in 15th Minute

 

INDIANAPOLIS (Saturday, August 1, 2015) – Former Indy Eleven attacker Pedro Mendes would exact revenge on his former squad on Saturday night, as the forward’s 15th minute goal would be enough to give the Atlanta Silverbacks a 1-0 win in front of 9,632 fans at IUPUI’S Carroll Stadium.

After handling a majority of the possession over the course of the opening quarter-hour, the home side would fall behind in the 15th minute when Mendes reaped the benefits of a slotted pass from fellow forward Jaime Chavez, placing his shot from 10 yards out past Indy ‘netminder Kristian Nicht to give the visitors an early 1-0 lead.

Indy Eleven dialed up multiple attacking numbers in the ensuing minutes, with a four-shot possession in the 17th minute through Dane Richards, Victor Pineda—who had two attempts on goal—and Kyle Hyland going for naught, followed by a 19th minute set-piece opportunity which striker Brian Brown headed on frame.  Atlanta goalkeeper Stewart Ceus would acrobatically make a diving stop of Brown’s effort, and the Silverbacks would hold their own for the rest of the stanza, keeping a stronghold of the game and its scoreline as they carried a 1-0 lead into halftime.

The “Boys in Blue” would come out of the break desperately searching for the equalizer and would nearly find it in the 53rd minute when Richards used his pace and footwork to drive the ball from the midfield stripe past three defenders. The Jamaican attacker would work into the Atlanta penalty area before his touch took him too far, leading to the Haitian ‘keeper Ceus cutting off his low shot and ending the attack.

Another golden opportunity would go array in the 67th minute when a shot by midfielder Dragan Stojkov from just outside the area was fired just past the left post, set up by quick square passes from Hyland and second-half substitute Wojciech Wojcik.  Another opportunity for Stojkov would arrive in the 75th minute when a spell of lengthy possession opened up another chance for the Macedonian, but his 20-yard attempt jumped up on him early and sailed over the crossbar.

Hyland would be the next to register  a dangerous look at goal, as he broke through Atlanta’s defense in the 76th minute and put a low shot in the direction of the back right post, but Ceus’ fingertips pushed the ball wide and out for a corner.

Indy continued its push to draw level with a Richards chance in the 85th minute, a failed corner clearance by the Silverbacks falling to his foot inside the area.  A quick turn resulted in a bending shot to the left post, but the attempt would bounce just inches wide of Ceus, the far woodwork and the outstretched legs of oncoming “Boys in Blue” Wojcik and Charlie Rugg.

Atlanta would effectively kill off the remainder of the game, sending Indy Eleven to just its second home loss of the 2015 season and its first shutout at “The Mike” in 11 league games, dating back to last Sept. 27 against Carolina. Indy Eleven won’t have much time to think about the setback, as “Indiana’s Team” will turn around quickly for a midweek contest at FC Edmonton this Wednesday, Aug. 5, with kickoff in Alberta set for 9:00 p.m. ET (live on ESPN3.com).

The “Boys in Blue” will be back at IUPUI’s Carroll Stadium for a third straight weekend next Saturday, August 8, when the squad will host the NASL’s other Canadian club, Combined and Fall Season leader Ottawa Fury FC.  The last “Class of 2014” clash of 2015 will mark “Faith and Family Night” at “The Mike,” and fans looking for tickets – including a special $79 Family 4-Pack featuring four tickets, hot dogs, chips and sodas – can secure their spots at www.www.indyeleven.com.  Fans that can’t make it can follow the proceedings live on WISH-TV8, ESPN3.com and Exitos Radio 1590 AM.

 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – INTERIM HEAD COACH TIM REGAN

On the game’s physicality: 
“We knew coming into the game that there were going to be a lot of challenges in the air and a lot of hard defending of balls in the air that you have to deal with. Overall on the night, I think we did a pretty good job of that if you take away the goal. If we could rewind that and we set ourselves up in training to defend that play – we had eight guys back, but somebody just needs to make a play on the ball.”

On the debut of midfielder Zach Steinberger: 
“For Zach, just like it was for Dane [Richards] where it’s going to take time to get into the team. I thought he performed well tonight when he got on the ball. It’s going to get cleaner as time goes on and he’s going to get more comfortable with the players too. Overall, the game impacts him negatively because it’s slow and the ball doesn’t have a whole lot of time on the field. There’s a lot of stoppages and slowness to the game and we weren’t able to speed it up when we had control of it.”

On the absence of captain Erick Norales on the back line:
“Erick has been our best player all year. When he’s off the field it’s obviously going to hurt the team. Now, would he have won the game for us tonight? I’m not sure. But clearly with our captain and most steady performer off the field, losing him hurts the team.”

 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – DEFENDER CORY MILLER

On Indy Eleven’s second half attacking:
“I thought [a goal] was absolutely coming. We decided to settle down and play the ball and stop getting so nervous when we were getting under pressure. We kept getting in because they were reckless in the way they were pressing. We finally got in and figured it out, but we just couldn’t finish.”

On a short week ahead:
“It’s both good and bad. [Bad for] the body, but it’s good to get this game out of your head and just get back into it. We’re going to be hungry from this loss and last week’s tie so we’re on a stretch where we need to get a result and I think next week we’ll pull it out.”

 

NASL Fall Season
Indy Eleven  0 : 1  Atlanta Silverbacks
Saturday, August 1, 2015
Michael A. Carroll Stadium – Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 9,632

Indy Eleven:
Fall Season: 1W-2D-2L, 7th in NASL
Combined: 4W-6D-5L, 6th in NASL

Atlanta Silverbacks:
Fall Season: 3W-1D-2L, 2nd in NASL
Combined: 4W-6D-6L, 7th in NASL

Scoring Summary: 
ATL- Pedro Mendes (Jaime Chavez) 15’

Discipline Summary: 
ATL- Kyle Porter (caution) 19’
ATL- Pedro Mendes (caution) 74’
ATL- Paulo Mendes (caution) 88’

Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2):  Kristian Nicht; Marco Franco, Greg Janicki (C), Cory Miller, Kyle Hyland; Dragan Stojkov (Don Smart 77’), Brad Ring, Zach Steinberger (Charlie Rugg 65’), Victor Pineda; Brian Brown (Wojciech Wojcik 60’), Dane Richards

Indy Bench: Keith Cardona (GK), Judson McKinney, Jaime Frias, Daniel Keller

Atlanta Silverbacks line-up (3-5-2): Stewart Ceus (GK); Paul Black, Simon Mensing (C), Rauwshan McKenzie; Kyle Porter, Josh Hughes, Junior Burgos (Paulo Mendes 78’), Michael Reed, Kosuke Kimura; Jaime Chavez (Matt Horth 85’), Pedro Mendes (Shaka Bangura 79’)

Atlanta Bench: CJ Cochran (GK), Mohammed Issahaku

Familiar Face Helps Atlanta to 1-0 Win over Indy Eleven

Former “Boy in Blue” Pedro Mendes Tallies Game’s Lone Goal in 15th Minute

 

INDIANAPOLIS (Saturday, August 1, 2015) – Former Indy Eleven attacker Pedro Mendes would exact revenge on his former squad on Saturday night, as the forward’s 15th minute goal would be enough to give the Atlanta Silverbacks a 1-0 win in front of 9,632 fans at IUPUI’S Carroll Stadium.

After handling a majority of the possession over the course of the opening quarter-hour, the home side would fall behind in the 15th minute when Mendes reaped the benefits of a slotted pass from fellow forward Jaime Chavez, placing his shot from 10 yards out past Indy ‘netminder Kristian Nicht to give the visitors an early 1-0 lead.

Indy Eleven dialed up multiple attacking numbers in the ensuing minutes, with a four-shot possession in the 17th minute through Dane Richards, Victor Pineda—who had two attempts on goal—and Kyle Hyland going for naught, followed by a 19th minute set-piece opportunity which striker Brian Brown headed on frame.  Atlanta goalkeeper Stewart Ceus would acrobatically make a diving stop of Brown’s effort, and the Silverbacks would hold their own for the rest of the stanza, keeping a stronghold of the game and its scoreline as they carried a 1-0 lead into halftime.

The “Boys in Blue” would come out of the break desperately searching for the equalizer and would nearly find it in the 53rd minute when Richards used his pace and footwork to drive the ball from the midfield stripe past three defenders. The Jamaican attacker would work into the Atlanta penalty area before his touch took him too far, leading to the Haitian ‘keeper Ceus cutting off his low shot and ending the attack.

Another golden opportunity would go array in the 67th minute when a shot by midfielder Dragan Stojkov from just outside the area was fired just past the left post, set up by quick square passes from Hyland and second-half substitute Wojciech Wojcik.  Another opportunity for Stojkov would arrive in the 75th minute when a spell of lengthy possession opened up another chance for the Macedonian, but his 20-yard attempt jumped up on him early and sailed over the crossbar.

Hyland would be the next to register  a dangerous look at goal, as he broke through Atlanta’s defense in the 76th minute and put a low shot in the direction of the back right post, but Ceus’ fingertips pushed the ball wide and out for a corner.

Indy continued its push to draw level with a Richards chance in the 85th minute, a failed corner clearance by the Silverbacks falling to his foot inside the area.  A quick turn resulted in a bending shot to the left post, but the attempt would bounce just inches wide of Ceus, the far woodwork and the outstretched legs of oncoming “Boys in Blue” Wojcik and Charlie Rugg.

Atlanta would effectively kill off the remainder of the game, sending Indy Eleven to just its second home loss of the 2015 season and its first shutout at “The Mike” in 11 league games, dating back to last Sept. 27 against Carolina. Indy Eleven won’t have much time to think about the setback, as “Indiana’s Team” will turn around quickly for a midweek contest at FC Edmonton this Wednesday, Aug. 5, with kickoff in Alberta set for 9:00 p.m. ET (live on ESPN3.com).

The “Boys in Blue” will be back at IUPUI’s Carroll Stadium for a third straight weekend next Saturday, August 8, when the squad will host the NASL’s other Canadian club, Combined and Fall Season leader Ottawa Fury FC.  The last “Class of 2014” clash of 2015 will mark “Faith and Family Night” at “The Mike,” and fans looking for tickets – including a special $79 Family 4-Pack featuring four tickets, hot dogs, chips and sodas – can secure their spots at www.www.indyeleven.com.  Fans that can’t make it can follow the proceedings live on WISH-TV8, ESPN3.com and Exitos Radio 1590 AM.

 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – INTERIM HEAD COACH TIM REGAN

On the game’s physicality: 
“We knew coming into the game that there were going to be a lot of challenges in the air and a lot of hard defending of balls in the air that you have to deal with. Overall on the night, I think we did a pretty good job of that if you take away the goal. If we could rewind that and we set ourselves up in training to defend that play – we had eight guys back, but somebody just needs to make a play on the ball.”

On the debut of midfielder Zach Steinberger: 
“For Zach, just like it was for Dane [Richards] where it’s going to take time to get into the team. I thought he performed well tonight when he got on the ball. It’s going to get cleaner as time goes on and he’s going to get more comfortable with the players too. Overall, the game impacts him negatively because it’s slow and the ball doesn’t have a whole lot of time on the field. There’s a lot of stoppages and slowness to the game and we weren’t able to speed it up when we had control of it.”

On the absence of captain Erick Norales on the back line:
“Erick has been our best player all year. When he’s off the field it’s obviously going to hurt the team. Now, would he have won the game for us tonight? I’m not sure. But clearly with our captain and most steady performer off the field, losing him hurts the team.”

 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – DEFENDER CORY MILLER

On Indy Eleven’s second half attacking:
“I thought [a goal] was absolutely coming. We decided to settle down and play the ball and stop getting so nervous when we were getting under pressure. We kept getting in because they were reckless in the way they were pressing. We finally got in and figured it out, but we just couldn’t finish.”

On a short week ahead:
“It’s both good and bad. [Bad for] the body, but it’s good to get this game out of your head and just get back into it. We’re going to be hungry from this loss and last week’s tie so we’re on a stretch where we need to get a result and I think next week we’ll pull it out.”

 

NASL Fall Season
Indy Eleven  0 : 1  Atlanta Silverbacks
Saturday, August 1, 2015
Michael A. Carroll Stadium – Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 9,632

Indy Eleven:
Fall Season: 1W-2D-2L, 7th in NASL
Combined: 4W-6D-5L, 6th in NASL

Atlanta Silverbacks:
Fall Season: 3W-1D-2L, 2nd in NASL
Combined: 4W-6D-6L, 7th in NASL

Scoring Summary: 
ATL- Pedro Mendes (Jaime Chavez) 15’

Discipline Summary: 
ATL- Kyle Porter (caution) 19’
ATL- Pedro Mendes (caution) 74’
ATL- Paulo Mendes (caution) 88’

Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2):  Kristian Nicht; Marco Franco, Greg Janicki (C), Cory Miller, Kyle Hyland; Dragan Stojkov (Don Smart 77’), Brad Ring, Zach Steinberger (Charlie Rugg 65’), Victor Pineda; Brian Brown (Wojciech Wojcik 60’), Dane Richards

Indy Bench: Keith Cardona (GK), Judson McKinney, Jaime Frias, Daniel Keller

Atlanta Silverbacks line-up (3-5-2): Stewart Ceus (GK); Paul Black, Simon Mensing (C), Rauwshan McKenzie; Kyle Porter, Josh Hughes, Junior Burgos (Paulo Mendes 78’), Michael Reed, Kosuke Kimura; Jaime Chavez (Matt Horth 85’), Pedro Mendes (Shaka Bangura 79’)

Atlanta Bench: CJ Cochran (GK), Mohammed Issahaku

Indy Eleven Fit to Be Tied Once Again with New York Cosmos

Teams Trade First Half Stoppage Time Goals, Counting for All the Scoring in 1-1 Draw at Carroll Stadium

INDIANAPOLIS (Saturday, July 25, 2015) – For the sixth time in as many career meetings, Indy Eleven and the New York Cosmos were fit to be tied, this time after the teams used first half stoppage time goals from Dylan Mares and Walter Restrepo, respectively, to play to a 1-1 draw in front of 10,206 fans at IUPUI’s Michael A. Carroll Stadium on Saturday night.

 

The game would open up in an attacking lull, with neither side threatening the other’s penalty area with much pressure for the first 15 minutes before the “Boys in Blue” would have two consecutive shots saved by Cosmos ‘keeper Jimmy Maurer.  Recent Indy Eleven loanee Dane Richards started the first quality attack by latching onto a long ball from Indy’s defensive third, but Maurer got underneath him and cleared the ball out of the area. The clearance went no further than Indy midfielder Brad Ring, who took the ball under his control and fired, but the low liner was once again saved by Maurer.

New York would take possession for a majority of the middle of the opening half, pinging the ball around with control in the midfield while notching continuous attacks. The first of New York’s chances came in the 27th minute with a Walter Restrepo in-swinging cross for Lucky Mkosana, who headed the ball into the path of Danny Szetela in front of net, but the midfielder smacked the chance from close range over the crossbar. The Cosmos would regroup and come back on the attack just moments later when Mkosana found Raul in space in Indy’s penalty area, but the Spanish legend popped the ball over Kristian Nicht’s head and onto the top of the netting.

The tension on the field came to fruition in the 34th minute when Indy Eleven midfielder Dragan Stojkov was cautioned as a result of a hard aerial challenge on Cosmos defender Ayoze at midfield. Less than 120 seconds later Ayoze returned the favor, sliding dangerously into the side of Stojkov, sending him barreling onto Carroll Stadium’s track and receiving a yellow card as a result.

As the half wound down both teams were seeking a stronger attacking presence, and Indy’s Brian Brown would nearly finish an attempt for the home side in the 45th minute when he slipped behind the defense, but his shot caromed off the crossbar and out of danger.  The Cosmos would race downfield and be the first to capitalize when Raul slotted a pass in the step of Walter Restrepo, which he placed between Nicht and the post in the second minute of stoppage time for the Colombian’s second goal of the Fall Season—both of which have come against Indiana’s Team.

It would not take long for the game to get back to level pegging however, as on the ensuing kickoff Stojkov drove a ball to Mares that he calmed and fired low into the right side netting with the outside of his left boot.  Mares’ team-leading third goal of 2015 brought the game to a 1-1 draw at the break and helped swing momentum back onto the side of the home squad.

Coming out of the break, the Cosmos looked to re-gain their grasp of the game as they advanced with speed into Indy Eleven territory in the 59th minute. Restrepo looked to double his tally as he fired a shot at Nicht, who batted the ball down into the path of Mkosana, but his resulting shot from close range was blocked by Indy defender Marco Franco and out of danger.

The game would take a big shift in the 65th minute, when Indy captain Erick Norales and recent substitute New York substitute Sebastian Guenzatti were sent off as a result of traded blows. Norales took offense to a challenge made by Guenzatti and lowered his head into the Cosmos player, which was quickly followed with a swinging arm by Guenzatti towards Norales’ head – and a quickly-flashed red card by the center referee to both players.

As the game entered the homestretch, New York nearly would earn their second goal of the match through Haji Wright and Raul minutes apart. Wright’s opportunity came in the 79thminute when he found space behind Indy’s defense and was in front of goal, but he was whistled for a push on Franco before his shot rolled into the back of the net. Minutes later Raul was left stranded on his own island in front of goal and curled a shot past Nicht for an apparent goal, but the assistant referee’s flag was raised to signal that the Spanish midfielder was behind the defense and thus offside.

It was up to the home team to hold their own over the final few minutes as New York tallied countless attacks into the penalty area. Playing without their captain Norales, Indy Eleven’s makeshift backline would hold strong and even help to create some dead ball chances of their own in the five minutes of stoppage. However, all attempts went for naught as the sides settled for a familiar 1-1 result, the third in as many meetings this season.  However, the tensions would remain high even after the final whistle, as the Szetela would be shown a yellow card for dissent after confronting the referees on the field moments after the match was blown dead.

Tonight’s result keeps Indy Eleven at the .500 mark and in 6th place in both the NASL’s combined table (4W-6D-4L, 18 pts.) and the Fall Season standings (1-2-1, 5 pts.). The “Boys in Blue” will stay IUPUI’s Carroll Stadium for a second straight weekend next Saturday, August 1, when Indy Eleven will play host to the Atlanta Silverbacks (2W-6D-6L, 12 pts. Combined;  1-1-2, 4 pts. in Fall) in a match that fans can follow live on WISH-TV8, ESPN3.com and Exitos Radio 1590 AM.  Tickets for “Kix & Flix Night” featuring a post-game screening of the comedy classic Spaceballsare available at www.www.indyeleven.com.

 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – INTERIM HEAD COACH TIM REGAN

On the game overall:
“It was a bizarre game. The sequence at the end of the first half with the shot off the crossbar and the two goals in quick succession is something you don’t see a lot. The second half was relatively tame. There wasn’t a lot going on except for subs, red cards and injuries. On our end, we maybe got a little bit lucky on the defensive side with an offside call that goes our way. On the other end, we were close. We didn’t create as many chances as I would have liked or the team would have liked, but we’re pushing.”

On the team’s resiliency to end the first half with Mares’ equalizer:
“For a young team it’s difficult to do. It’s easy to get down on yourself because you haven’t been in a lot of those moments, so the response is a key to the whole game. At that point, we’re going to have to make some attacking changes and against New York that can come back to bite you because they’re really good. It was a great play and a simple play.”

On Erick Norales’ sending off: 
“With Cory Miller being suspended from the previous week we lost a little bit of depth at center back, and we knew we were going to have to move people around. But Daniel Keller and Marco Franco played center back in college so I was comfortable with either one. It was just a matter of how the rest of it was going to go.”

 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – FORWARD DANE RICHARDS

On the game overall:
“We didn’t play excellent, but we played well enough to get the tie and that’s good. We managed to score against one of the better teams in the league, but I thought we should’ve been more cautious, especially when there was two minutes extra time before halftime. But, we got back a goal right away so that was good.

“The second half was a bit slower than the first half. We created chances and they created chances so it was a fair result, I think.”

On settling in with Indy Eleven: 
“Training does it all. In practice, we’re getting used to each other. I could see it in the game today and it was better than the first game. Definitely we’re getting better each practice and our communication is better so hopefully it will get even better soon.”
 

NASL Fall Season
Indy Eleven  1 : 1  New York Cosmos
Saturday, July 25, 2015
Michael A. Carroll Stadium – Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 10,206

Records (standings as of press time):

Indy Eleven:
Fall Season: 1W-2D-1L (5 pts.), 6th in NASL
Combined: 4W-6D-4L (18 pts.), 6th in NASL

New York Cosmos:
Fall Season: 0W-2D-1L (2 pts.), 11th in NASL
Combined: 5W-7D-1L (22 pts.), 2nd in NASL

Scoring Summary: 
NYC- Walter Restrepo (Raul) 47+’
IND- Dylan Mares (Dragan Stojkov) 48+’

Discipline Summary: 
IND- Dragan Stojkov (caution) 34’
NYC- Ayoze (caution) 36’
NYC- David Diosa (caution) 45’
NYC- Carlos Mendes (caution) 52’
IND- Erick Norales (ejection) 65’
NYC- Sebastian Guenzatti (ejection) 65’
NYC- Danny Szetela (caution) (post-game)

Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2):  Kristian Nicht; Marco Franco, Greg Janicki, Erick Norales (C), Kyle Hyland; Brad Ring (Charlie Rugg 78’), Dragan Stojkov (Daniel Keller 78’), Dylan Mares, Victor Pineda; Brian Brown, Dane Richards (Don Smart 72’)

Indy Bench: Keith Cardona (GK), Judson McKinney, Wojciech Wojcik
 

New York Cosmos line-up (4-4-2): Jimmy Maurer; Hunter Gorskie, Samuel Caceres, Carlos Mendes (C) (Haji Wright 69’), Ayoze; Walter Restrepo, Adam Moffat (Andres Flores 66’), Danny Szetela, David Diosa; Raul, Lucky Mkosana (Sebastian Guenzatti 61’)

New York Bench: Brian Holt (GK), Mads Stokkelien, Leo Fernandes, Jimmy Mulligan

Indy Eleven Fit to Be Tied Once Again with New York Cosmos

Teams Trade First Half Stoppage Time Goals, Counting for All the Scoring in 1-1 Draw at Carroll Stadium

INDIANAPOLIS (Saturday, July 25, 2015) – For the sixth time in as many career meetings, Indy Eleven and the New York Cosmos were fit to be tied, this time after the teams used first half stoppage time goals from Dylan Mares and Walter Restrepo, respectively, to play to a 1-1 draw in front of 10,206 fans at IUPUI’s Michael A. Carroll Stadium on Saturday night.

 

The game would open up in an attacking lull, with neither side threatening the other’s penalty area with much pressure for the first 15 minutes before the “Boys in Blue” would have two consecutive shots saved by Cosmos ‘keeper Jimmy Maurer.  Recent Indy Eleven loanee Dane Richards started the first quality attack by latching onto a long ball from Indy’s defensive third, but Maurer got underneath him and cleared the ball out of the area. The clearance went no further than Indy midfielder Brad Ring, who took the ball under his control and fired, but the low liner was once again saved by Maurer.

New York would take possession for a majority of the middle of the opening half, pinging the ball around with control in the midfield while notching continuous attacks. The first of New York’s chances came in the 27th minute with a Walter Restrepo in-swinging cross for Lucky Mkosana, who headed the ball into the path of Danny Szetela in front of net, but the midfielder smacked the chance from close range over the crossbar. The Cosmos would regroup and come back on the attack just moments later when Mkosana found Raul in space in Indy’s penalty area, but the Spanish legend popped the ball over Kristian Nicht’s head and onto the top of the netting.

The tension on the field came to fruition in the 34th minute when Indy Eleven midfielder Dragan Stojkov was cautioned as a result of a hard aerial challenge on Cosmos defender Ayoze at midfield. Less than 120 seconds later Ayoze returned the favor, sliding dangerously into the side of Stojkov, sending him barreling onto Carroll Stadium’s track and receiving a yellow card as a result.

As the half wound down both teams were seeking a stronger attacking presence, and Indy’s Brian Brown would nearly finish an attempt for the home side in the 45th minute when he slipped behind the defense, but his shot caromed off the crossbar and out of danger.  The Cosmos would race downfield and be the first to capitalize when Raul slotted a pass in the step of Walter Restrepo, which he placed between Nicht and the post in the second minute of stoppage time for the Colombian’s second goal of the Fall Season—both of which have come against Indiana’s Team.

It would not take long for the game to get back to level pegging however, as on the ensuing kickoff Stojkov drove a ball to Mares that he calmed and fired low into the right side netting with the outside of his left boot.  Mares’ team-leading third goal of 2015 brought the game to a 1-1 draw at the break and helped swing momentum back onto the side of the home squad.

Coming out of the break, the Cosmos looked to re-gain their grasp of the game as they advanced with speed into Indy Eleven territory in the 59th minute. Restrepo looked to double his tally as he fired a shot at Nicht, who batted the ball down into the path of Mkosana, but his resulting shot from close range was blocked by Indy defender Marco Franco and out of danger.

The game would take a big shift in the 65th minute, when Indy captain Erick Norales and recent substitute New York substitute Sebastian Guenzatti were sent off as a result of traded blows. Norales took offense to a challenge made by Guenzatti and lowered his head into the Cosmos player, which was quickly followed with a swinging arm by Guenzatti towards Norales’ head – and a quickly-flashed red card by the center referee to both players.

As the game entered the homestretch, New York nearly would earn their second goal of the match through Haji Wright and Raul minutes apart. Wright’s opportunity came in the 79thminute when he found space behind Indy’s defense and was in front of goal, but he was whistled for a push on Franco before his shot rolled into the back of the net. Minutes later Raul was left stranded on his own island in front of goal and curled a shot past Nicht for an apparent goal, but the assistant referee’s flag was raised to signal that the Spanish midfielder was behind the defense and thus offside.

It was up to the home team to hold their own over the final few minutes as New York tallied countless attacks into the penalty area. Playing without their captain Norales, Indy Eleven’s makeshift backline would hold strong and even help to create some dead ball chances of their own in the five minutes of stoppage. However, all attempts went for naught as the sides settled for a familiar 1-1 result, the third in as many meetings this season.  However, the tensions would remain high even after the final whistle, as the Szetela would be shown a yellow card for dissent after confronting the referees on the field moments after the match was blown dead.

Tonight’s result keeps Indy Eleven at the .500 mark and in 6th place in both the NASL’s combined table (4W-6D-4L, 18 pts.) and the Fall Season standings (1-2-1, 5 pts.). The “Boys in Blue” will stay IUPUI’s Carroll Stadium for a second straight weekend next Saturday, August 1, when Indy Eleven will play host to the Atlanta Silverbacks (2W-6D-6L, 12 pts. Combined;  1-1-2, 4 pts. in Fall) in a match that fans can follow live on WISH-TV8, ESPN3.com and Exitos Radio 1590 AM.  Tickets for “Kix & Flix Night” featuring a post-game screening of the comedy classic Spaceballsare available at www.www.indyeleven.com.

 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – INTERIM HEAD COACH TIM REGAN

On the game overall:
“It was a bizarre game. The sequence at the end of the first half with the shot off the crossbar and the two goals in quick succession is something you don’t see a lot. The second half was relatively tame. There wasn’t a lot going on except for subs, red cards and injuries. On our end, we maybe got a little bit lucky on the defensive side with an offside call that goes our way. On the other end, we were close. We didn’t create as many chances as I would have liked or the team would have liked, but we’re pushing.”

On the team’s resiliency to end the first half with Mares’ equalizer:
“For a young team it’s difficult to do. It’s easy to get down on yourself because you haven’t been in a lot of those moments, so the response is a key to the whole game. At that point, we’re going to have to make some attacking changes and against New York that can come back to bite you because they’re really good. It was a great play and a simple play.”

On Erick Norales’ sending off: 
“With Cory Miller being suspended from the previous week we lost a little bit of depth at center back, and we knew we were going to have to move people around. But Daniel Keller and Marco Franco played center back in college so I was comfortable with either one. It was just a matter of how the rest of it was going to go.”

 

INDY ELEVEN QUOTE SHEET – FORWARD DANE RICHARDS

On the game overall:
“We didn’t play excellent, but we played well enough to get the tie and that’s good. We managed to score against one of the better teams in the league, but I thought we should’ve been more cautious, especially when there was two minutes extra time before halftime. But, we got back a goal right away so that was good.

“The second half was a bit slower than the first half. We created chances and they created chances so it was a fair result, I think.”

On settling in with Indy Eleven: 
“Training does it all. In practice, we’re getting used to each other. I could see it in the game today and it was better than the first game. Definitely we’re getting better each practice and our communication is better so hopefully it will get even better soon.”
 

NASL Fall Season
Indy Eleven  1 : 1  New York Cosmos
Saturday, July 25, 2015
Michael A. Carroll Stadium – Indianapolis, IN
Attendance: 10,206

Records (standings as of press time):

Indy Eleven:
Fall Season: 1W-2D-1L (5 pts.), 6th in NASL
Combined: 4W-6D-4L (18 pts.), 6th in NASL

New York Cosmos:
Fall Season: 0W-2D-1L (2 pts.), 11th in NASL
Combined: 5W-7D-1L (22 pts.), 2nd in NASL

Scoring Summary: 
NYC- Walter Restrepo (Raul) 47+’
IND- Dylan Mares (Dragan Stojkov) 48+’

Discipline Summary: 
IND- Dragan Stojkov (caution) 34’
NYC- Ayoze (caution) 36’
NYC- David Diosa (caution) 45’
NYC- Carlos Mendes (caution) 52’
IND- Erick Norales (ejection) 65’
NYC- Sebastian Guenzatti (ejection) 65’
NYC- Danny Szetela (caution) (post-game)

Indy Eleven line-up (4-4-2):  Kristian Nicht; Marco Franco, Greg Janicki, Erick Norales (C), Kyle Hyland; Brad Ring (Charlie Rugg 78’), Dragan Stojkov (Daniel Keller 78’), Dylan Mares, Victor Pineda; Brian Brown, Dane Richards (Don Smart 72’)

Indy Bench: Keith Cardona (GK), Judson McKinney, Wojciech Wojcik
 

New York Cosmos line-up (4-4-2): Jimmy Maurer; Hunter Gorskie, Samuel Caceres, Carlos Mendes (C) (Haji Wright 69’), Ayoze; Walter Restrepo, Adam Moffat (Andres Flores 66’), Danny Szetela, David Diosa; Raul, Lucky Mkosana (Sebastian Guenzatti 61’)

New York Bench: Brian Holt (GK), Mads Stokkelien, Leo Fernandes, Jimmy Mulligan