Written by: Ryan Flynn
Heading into their first home game in nearly two months, the Sarasota Paradise were looking for a positive result in front of the home fans to honor Sarasota Paradise Day. The Paradise were able to enter the win column despite the weather delays present for this mid week matchup, defeating the Chattanooga Red Wolves 3-2.
Sarasota entered the game by placing an emphasis on playing on the front foot. They did just that, as they were able to control possession and apply pressure to the Chattanooga backline. Anderson Rosa would find the breakthrough in the 18th minute, as he was the first to react to a Chandler O’Dwyer deflection, responding with a strike of his own on target. Rosa’s low driven shot ricochetted off a Chattanooga defender and hit the back of the net, giving the Paradise a 1-0 lead and Rosa his fifth goal of the season.
Chattanooga would level the score in the 25th, when Paradise goalkeeper Alex Sutton came off of his line in an attempt to intercept a Chattanooga through ball for forward Matt Bentley. The referee determined that Alex Sutton made contact with the Chattanooga attacker prior to making contact with the ball in his own box, leading to a penalty decision. Chattanooga’s leading scorer Omar Hernandez stepped up and converted the penalty kick, giving him his 7th goal of the season and making the game 1-1.
The Paradise demonstrated their resilience that has been ever present throughout the season, as they continued to ask questions of Chattanooga’s backline. Jonathan Bolanos came within feet of giving them the lead in the 38th minute after receiving a long pass, but a Chattanooga defender caught up and deflected the ball out of bounds.
Sarasota would take the lead back in the 42nd, when Jonathan Bolanos tracked down a long cross from Paradise fullback Robert Burlew. Bolanos demonstrated great composure, controlling the ball before finding Rosa at the top of the box. Terzaghi extended his foot and redirected Rosa’s strike into the net, giving the Paradise a 2-1 lead. Fresh off of his second assist of the season against Charlotte last week, Terzaghi added his second goal of season to put the Paradise back in the driver’s seat.
The Paradise would successfully double their lead a few minutes later. Midfielder Chandler O’Dwyer showed good recognition and floated a ball into the Chattanooga box for a streaking Terzaghi to run onto. Terzaghi let the ball bounce before cutting it across the box first-time, finding the trailing Bolanos. Bolanos struck the ball first time, beating Chattanooga goalkeeper Jason Smith at the near post and sending Premier Sports Campus into eruption.
With a two-goal lead under their belts, the Paradise came out of the break poised to defend on home turf against a Red Wolves squad leading the league in conversion rate. The back line held steady, limiting their opponent to just four total shots all half. Goalkeeper Alex Sutton made several clutch stops, including one in the 71st where he leaped up to collect a header that looked goal-bound, preserving his team’s lead.
Chattanooga would get a goal back in the dying seconds of stoppage time courtesy of Greyson Mercer, but it wouldn’t be enough. As the final whistle sounded, Paradise fans and players celebrated the team getting back to winning ways and collecting a crucial three points.
STATS TO KNOW
- Jonathan Bolanos: 3 shot assists, 7 interceptions, and a balanced 50% challenge rate, pivotal in chance creation and defensive work.
- Anderson Rosa: Combined attacking threat (xG 0.22, xT 0.21) with solid defensive contributions (4 interceptions, 3 tackles).
- Andres Rodriguez: The Player to Watch controlled tempo with 55 passes and a 98% pass accuracy, only misplacing one pass for the entire 90 minutes. Defensively, Rodriguez had a perfect challenge success and was key in breaking up opposition play.
QUOTES
“[It’s] important to get back in the win column[…]just keep believing in the team, just keep the grit. We see that every day here in training that this team is special, we have something to go for.” – Anderson Rosa, Defender
“…tonight was a massive win for us because we played a lot of times away. We are happy because we got the three points. We do it there and we play for the team.” – Emiliano Terzaghi, Forward
“I think the first half was very good. I think with the ball we were patient. We were playing through them and around them, going outside to inside, which is something that we look to do.” – Andres Rodriguez, Midfielder
“It’s great to be at home and it’s awesome. I think our guys showed up for that but they also showed that we’re a very good football playing team and we want to entertain the crowd. So very excited to be in front of our home fans, very grateful that they stuck around and helped us win.” – Mika Elovaara, Head Coach
UP NEXT
The Paradise head to Omaha to take on league leaders Union Omaha.
Game Highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhzJAy_5skc