UTICA REMAINS IN PLAYOFF RACE WITH 9-4 WIN OVER TACOMA

by Michael Lehr/UCFC

Utica, NY - Utica City FC hosted the Tacoma Stars with their playoff hopes on the line. Utica City dominated end to end and sealed a 9-4 win. They must win tomorrow to make the playoffs.

In the first quarter, UCFC jumped out to an early 1-0 lead thanks to a goal by Nate Bordeau that was assisted by Andrew Hoxie. Moises Gonzalez added to the lead at the end of the quarter with a beautifully placed shot on a free kick. 

Just thirty-three seconds into the second quarter, Christhian Segura made it a 3-0 game on a goal that was assisted by Tim Goldman. At 5:20 of the second, Tacoma got on the board when Alex Megson found the back of the net. UCFC answered back and finished out the second half with a flurry of goals that got the fans at the Adirondack Bank Center on their feet. At 9:15, Segura registered his second goal of the game to make it 4-1. Utica City then scored two goals in less than a minute. First, it was Gonzalez scoring off an assist from Segura. Nate Bordeau then tallied his second of the night on an assist from Ronaldinho to give UCFC a 6-1 lead heading into halftime.

In the third quarter, Bordeau scored his third goal off an assist from Jake Schindler to complete the hat trick. At 13:06, Tacoma’s Philip scored to make it 7-2. Several minutes later, Tacoma cut into the UCFC deficit once again when Alessandro Canale scored, making it a 7-3 game. At 7:50, Bo Jelovac scored on a penalty kick to extend UCFC’s lead once again. Tacoma’s Alex Caceres answered back but that would be the last of their scoring for the evening. Utica City’s Joey Tavernese scored the final goal of the night and capped off an exciting game in front of the home crowd. 

UCFC hosts Chihuahua tomorrow at 3:00 to keep the playoff push alive. They also need Ontario and Kansas City to lose in regulation. Tickets are still available at uticacityfc.com/tickets.