Written By: Ryan Flynn
Ethan Bryant’s 20th minute goal helped Paradise stretch their unbeaten streak to four games as they split the points with Spokane Velocity in a 1-1 draw.
The Paradise came into this game on the on the heels of a 2-1 road win at New York Cosmos, and looked to keep their momentum rolling against a Spokane team on a two-game winning streak of their own.
Paradise defense prevented another chance in the 17th, as Alex Sutton dove to save a crossing attempt at goal from Shavon John-Brown before blocking Neco Brett’s follow-up attempt to keep Velocity off the scoresheet.
The scoring opened in the 20th thanks to an incredible team goal from Paradise. Starting with a tackle from Jonathan Bolanos that jarred the ball loose and allowed Aaron Walker to collect, the ball was fed to Garrett McLaughlin on a fast break. Sprinting downfield, McLaughlin connected with Anderson Rosa on the left side of the box who sent it on a low cross to Ethan Bryant, allowing Bryant to put one past the keeper for his first goal in a Paradise uniform and give his team a 1-0 lead.
Spokane nearly tied it in 31st, getting a break from a counterattack that saw Luis Gil receive the ball and beat a man, racing downfield and firing off a shot that was grabbed by the arms of a waiting Sutton.
The teams would trade possession throughout the rest of the half, with the closest attempt from either side being Jonathan Bolanos’s shot in the 35th minute.
Sarasota maintained that 1-0 lead into the second half, where their defense stymied Spokane’s attack. Pinching attacks up the middle, Sarasota forced Spokane to play out wide for the first ten minutes of the half, where they would continually clear the ball and disrupt their opponent’s rhythm. As the half progressed, the Paradise defense continued to hold Velocity goalless, with Sutton making countless saves to keep Paradise in front. Saves in the 52nd and 74th minutes from shots directly on goal, two of his seven on the night, were key in Sarasota holding on to their 1-0 lead.
Spokane nearly equalized off a free kick in the 89th minute, when Nil Vinyals’s attempt was blocked by Sutton and the follow-up by Neco Brett in front of goal sailing wide into the Florida night.
Velocity would get their equalizer five minutes into stoppage time, Marky Hernández putting back a ricochet from Brett that tied the game at 1-1 and stunned the home crowd.
With the result, Paradise extend their unbeaten streak to four games as they continue to fight for a playoff spot in the final months of the season.
SATS TO KNOW
- Ethan Bryant (CAM): 4.0 rating, 4 interceptions, 67% challenge success, key in disrupting Spokane’s build-up.
- Jonathan Bolanos (LW): 4.0 rating, contributed 0.22 xG, helped convert counter-attacks into chances
- Aaron Walker (CDM): 100% challenge success, 39 passes, vital in breaking up play and initiating counters.
QUOTES
“I thought the fight tonight was great. At the same time, I do feel that we also deserve to get one point. So it helps us a little bit in the standings. It puts us closer to Fort Wayne, who’s right now the eighth team in the league and therefore in that final playoff spot. And we just continue to work hard and focus on one day at a time and one result at a time.” – Mika Elovaara, Head Coach
“Obviously unbeaten in four, which is good for the group. We need to keep that confidence going. We know that this league is, and especially this time of the season, it’s all about momentum and peaking at the right time” – Ethan Bryant, Midfielder
“I’m pleased with the performance. I think guys dug in like they always do. But I know this group is hoping for more. And I expect that we’ll get back to work this week. We’ve got at least a week until our next match away in Madison. So expect a big one there.” – Alex Sutton, Goalkeeper
“I thought we defended very well. I thought we were very structured. The way we defended, we were in our zones. When we got the ball, we were able to go in and attack, and we did score a goal off the counter.“ – Andres Rodriguez, Midfielder
UP NEXT
Paradise travel to the Midwest next week to take on Forward Madison FC, looking to push their unbeaten streak to five matches.
Game highlights: https://youtu.be/dj6mi_28zmE