FRANCK TAYOU’S DOUBLE HAT-TRICK LEADS UCFC TO 11-5 VICTORY OVER THE AMBUSH

Utica, NY - Utica City FC fans filled the Adirondack Bank Center for the final regular season home match of the 2023-2024 MASL season. After taking down the Ambush 11-5 last night, UCFC matched that result on Sunday behind 6 goals from Franck Tayou. 

Utica City FC started the game hot, with Keaton Woods putting Utica up top after receiving a pass from Nilton De Andrade. The De Andrade assist marked his 16th consecutive game with a point, and within a minute the home side was up by one. The Ambush responded with Christian Briggs, but UCFC took the lead back after Tayou danced past Joel Barroso in the St. Louis net. Tayou added another goal shortly after, and Ronaldinho Diniz made it 4-1 by scoring a goal between the legs of Barroso. Just seconds later, the Ambush kept it close with Curtis Kirby scoring his second goal of the weekend to make the score 4-2 at the end of the first quarter. The second quarter only saw one goal between the two sides, at the 13:38 mark, as Skylar Funk found a way past Brian Wilkin in the UCFC net. At halftime, the score sat 4-3 for Utica. 

The third quarter started off on the right foot for the home side, as 3 minutes in as Tayou completed his hat-trick and gave City a 5-3 lead. Cole Stephens added another, poking home a rebound after a shot from Emmanuel Belliard. Those two goals were the lone strikes in the third quarter, with the home side heading into the fourth up by a score of 6-3. The fourth started quickly again, as Tayou made it four in the afternoon with a vintage finish in the box. A Zach Druhe boarding call sent UCFC on the power play, and De Andrade continued his dominant afternoon with a steal and score on the man advantage. With the score 8-3, Tayou wasn’t done yet. Utica’s man up top made it 5 on the night with a blast into the top left corner. UCFC kept up the pressure, and this time De Andrade was the goal scorer to push the home side into double digits. After a penalty was given to Lucas Almeida, the Ambush were able to score a short-handed goal from the legs of Funk. St. Louis found another goal from Briggs, cutting the deficit to 10-5. Tayou would have the last laugh on the night, as he received a pass from Ronaldinho and slotted home his sixth goal of the night. That would be the final tally of the match, as UCFC finished the weekend sweep against the Ambush by a score of 11-5. 

The final regular season game is away at Baltimore next weekend. The match next Saturday begins at 6:05 pm EST. Following the conclusion of the regular season, Utica City FC awaits the playoff schedule for the 2024 Ron Newman Cup. As soon as the schedule is released, tickets for any of the matchups will be available at uticacityfc.com/tickets.