DETROIT – Detroit City FC battled Rhode Island FC to a heartbreaking 1-1 draw on the CBS Network on Saturday afternoon in the clubs debut on network television.
In the early moments, the match tilted in favor of Detroit thanks to the striking duo of Yazeed Matthews and Elvish Amoh. In the third minute, Clever combination play between the pair on the edge of the 18-yard box ended with a saved shot from Amoh and a rebounded attempt from Daniel Espeleta seconds later that flashed high of the Rhode Island goalframe.
Le Rouge continued to threaten the Rhode Island goal with shots from the top of the 18-yard box by Espeleta in the 5th and 12th minutes, both of which were blocked. Rhode Island would get their own sight of goal amid the two chances, forcing a save out of Nathan Steinwascher in the 8th minute.
As the half progressed, Rhode Island began to settle into the game, establishing themselves as the more dangerous of the two sides. In the final 25 minutes of the first half, Rhode Island generated nine of their 13 total shots in the match.
Key chances in the first half for Rhode Island came in the 39th minute and 43rd minute, with DCFC fending off the danger valiantly as the two sides headed into the break at 0-0.
The second half saw the tides turn as Le Rouge dominated the territory, playing most of the half in Rhode Island’s defensive third. Dominating the chances, Le Rouge generated six shots to Rhode Island’s three across the second 45 minutes.
The first big chance of the half fell to Maxi Rodriguez in the 74th minute. A cross whipped into the Rhode Island 18-yard box dropped to the feet of Rodriguez, who rattled his effort off the crossbar.
The continued pressure paid off three minutes later as Le Rouge found the opener. Recently acquired Jeciel Cedeno’s initial effort in the Rhode Island 18-yard box would be blocked. Falling to the feet of Ben Morris, who needed just one touch to clinically tuck the ball into the bottom right corner.
Following the goal, Le Rouge pushed numbers back as they looked to close out the match. Their only other threat on net in the match came in the 88th minute from a near-wonder goal by Ben Morris from behind the halfway line.
Rhode Island would go on to find their equalizer in the third of seven minutes of stoppage time with their second shot of the half thanks to an individual effort from Clay Holsted, as the two sides would be forced to share their points.
Detroit City will have a quick turnaround with midweek action this Wednesday. Le Rouge will face off against their first-round foes of last season’s playoff’s Pittsburgh Riverhound. This will be the second time the two sides face off after the Riverhounds secured a 2-0 win in Pittsburgh in April.
Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. EST. Tickets for all Detroit City matches can be found at www.detcityfc.com/tickets.
For more information about Detroit City FC, visit detcityfc.com and follow @DetroitCityFC on X and Facebook and @detroitcityfootballclub on Instagram.
Detroit City FC Starters: Nate Steinwascher, Brett Levis (64’), Devon Amoo-Mensah, Stephen Carroll, Michael Bryant, Rhys Williams, James Murphy (46’), Maxi Rodriguez, Daniel Espeleta (64’), Yazeed Matthews (76’), Elvis Amoh (64’).
Detroit City FC Subs: Ryan Williams (46’), Jeciel Cedeno (64’), Alex Villanueva (64’), Ben Morris (64’), Victor Bezerra (76’)
Detroit City FC Goalscorers: Ben Morris (77’)
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Primary Media Contact: Jarrett Maki (Sports Information Director, jarrett.maki@detcityfc.com)
