BURNABY, BC – Whitecaps FC 2 battled hard but couldn't grab the three points as they dropped a 3-2 result to fellow Western Conference side San Jose Earthquakes II on Friday night at Swangard Stadium in Burnaby, BC.
In the eighth minute, ‘Caps first team goalkeeper Thomas Hasal was forced into an early save, as he parried away Earthquakes II midfielder Eduardo Blancas’ free kick effort from the top of the box.
Earthquakes II would make their bright start to the match pay off four minutes later, with forward Rodolfo Castro’s near-post shot finding the back of the net to give the away side a 1-0 lead.
Both teams continued to exchange possession during the half, but the score would remain going into the halftime interval.
WFC2 would come out of the break flying, as they found their equalizer through Simon Becher’s incredible half-volley inside the box to tie the match at 1-1.
The young ‘Caps came close to finding the go-ahead goal four minutes later, with substitute Jay Herdman putting his right-footed, curling effort just over the Earthquakes II goal.
Shortly after, Castro grabbed his second goal of the match by slotting home a loose ball at the top of the box to give Earthquakes II a 2-1 lead.
The away side’s lead wouldn’t last long, with WFC2 finding the equalizer three minutes later.
After Herdman’s initial header was saved by Earthquakes II goalkeeper Emmanuel Ochoa, Becher latched onto the rebound and smashed in his team-leading fifth goal of the season to level the score at 2-2.
Fast forward to the 66th minute, Becher had a chance to grab his hat-trick and give his team the lead but after rounding the goalkeeper on a breakaway, the American couldn’t direct his left-footed effort on target.
Earthquakes II retook their lead in the 71st minute through William Richmond, who finished a cross from Jerry Ayon at the back post to give his team a 3-2 advantage, which ended up as the game winner.
Up next, the young ‘Caps are set for three consecutive away matches, starting with a clash against Minnesota United FC 2 on Sunday, July 3 at the National Sports Centre Stadium in Blaine, Minnesota, with kickoff set for 5 p.m. PT. You can catch all the action live on mlsnextpro.com.
MATCH DETAILS
Referee: Luke Garland
Scoring Summary
12’ – SJ – Rodolfo Castro (William Richmond)
49’ – VAN – Simon Becher
55’ – SJ – Rodolfo Castro (Eduardo Blancas)
58’ – VAN – Simon Becher
71’ – SJ – William Richmond (Jerry Ayon)
Statistics
Possession: VAN 45.3% – SJ 54.7%*
Shots:* VAN 12 – SJ 11*
Shots on Goal:* VAN 5 – SJ 7*
Saves:* VAN 4 – SJ 3*
Fouls:* VAN 9 – SJ 10
Offsides: VAN 1 – SJ 3*
Corners:* VAN 3 – SJ 2
Cautions
17’ – SJ – Nathan Scott
84’ – VAN – Simone Masi
86’ – SJ – Diogo Baptista
87’ – SJ – Israel Carrillo
88’ – VAN – Cristian Campagna
Whitecaps FC 2
1.Thomas Hasal ©; 53.Simone Masi, 64.Cristian Campagna, 83.Finn Linder; 46.Filip Rakic (44.Chris Lee HT), 52.Vasco Fry (76.Joe Hanson 81’), 66.Giovanni Aguilar (68.Owen Antoniuk HT), 57.Elage Bah (47.Pípé Fernandez-Salvador 77’); 49.Emiliano Brienza, 29.Simon Becher; 48.Théo Collomb (92.Jay Herdman HT)
Substitutes not used
50.Max Anchor, 95.Joshué Ndakala
San Jose Earthquakes II
41.Emmanuel Ochoa; 58.Omar Lemus, 55.Israel Carrillo, 77.Casey Walls ©, 69.Tristan Viviani; 56.Nathan Scott (52.Ethan Kohler 76’); 50.Maximilian Arfsten (65.Diogo Baptista 80’), 64.Jerry Ayon (67.Joaquin Eisenberg, 76’) 60.Eduardo Blancas (59.Cruz Medina 80’), 20.William Richmond; 53.Rodolfo Castro
Substitutes not used
51.Eric De La Cerda, 57.Diego Otoya, 63.Benjamin Asiaba
