AC Raleigh bounce Soda City from UPSL Mid-Atlantic playoffs
Late, late goal forces extra time where Raleigh grab game-winner off PK
Just when it looked like Soda City FC was moving into the next round of the UPSL Mid-Atlantic playoffs, AC Raleigh scored a late, late goal off a corner kick and then claimed the win off an ice-cold penalty kick conversion in extra time to advance to the conference finals.
The match saw Soda City score the opening goal off a curling free kick that Joseph Davis bent up and over the wall past the Raleigh keeper into the near post for the 1-0 lead in the 18th minute.
AC Raleigh looked to be jumping right back into the game the 23rd minute after winning a penalty kick but the kick ran wide of the left post and kept Soda in the lead. Just minute later, Raleigh forward Finley Mitchell was able to beat the Soda keeper to a ball looped into the box where he headed the ball out of the traffic and into the empty net to level the score 1-1 in the 30th minute.
The score line would stay 1-1 into the halftime break and then in the 67th minute Soda would again take the lead off a free kick. A corner kick was served into the goal mouth where Soda’s Troy Paul headed the ball right down the middle to push Soda City back into the advantage.
The match looked to be Soda’s after a pair of late stoppage-time free kicks were easily collected by Blaize McGinnis in the Soda net. Then in the 96th minute, the match script got a major edit.
AC Raleigh’s Lucas Kelly was left unmarked just six yards out from the goal where he powered in a header to tie the match in dramatic fashion and force extra time.
Soda City in extra time created a wild sequence of play in front of the Raleigh net but couldn’t find the final touch in the scramble to gain the advantage in the 99th minute. Raleigh weathered the increased Soda pressure and things looked like they were headed for penalties in the 117th minute when Raleigh again made a major edit to the match script.
A free kick was kept alive and recycled a couple of times before a searching ball served into the box forced a Soda City trip awarding Raleigh a penalty kick in the 118th minute. Raleigh’s Teddy Pierce had ice water in his veins as he ripped the penalty high into the upper right corner of the net and then just stood there cool-as-you-like after the ice-cold penalty conversion to stun the defending UPSL National Champs. Raleigh played out the final minutes of extra time and celebrated their stunning 3-2 win in Irmo.
AC Raleigh advances to the UPSL Mid-Atlantic Final to face Asheville FC on July 5.