Lower Alabama Report: July 30

Dothan's playoff run ends; Legion gets a big Jagermeister win

Dothan United

Image credit: Vermont Green; GK Herceg (in orange) was man of the match against Dothan.

Dothan United's storybook season has come to an end in Vermont. They won the Southern Conference Championship on Friday, beating Ft Lauderdale United 2-1, the first trophy in the club's history. That win put them into the national semi-finals on Sunday, where they faced Vermont Green.

Vermont came into the match undefeated on the season, and their enthusiastic fan base bought up all of the tickets for this round in seconds. Sunday's match saw that base turn out at home in full force. The game was an epic defensive battle, that featured end-to-end action. Neither side could find a breakthrough, and Dothan keeper Yago Darub made several outstanding saves. Regular time ended with the score tied at 0-0, and the two teams fought through an intense overtime which still didn't get a goal for either side. The game went to penalty kicks, and the entire game came down to one incredible save by the Vermont keeper. Vermont moves on to host the national championship game against Ballard FC on Saturday, August 2 at 7:00 Eastern time. The Dragons came up short, but brought home some well-deserved hardware.

Birmingham Legion FC

Image credit: Birmingham Legion. Legion loanee Lucca Dourado looks on, as Sebastian Saucedo is about to fire in the game-winner.

Birmingham got a huge win last weekend to advance as a wildcard into the knockout round of the Jagermeister Cup. They entered the day with a few different scenarios that would see them through, but by mid way through the second half of their game against Forward Madison, that had changed. Legion were sitting on a precarious 1-0 lead with the new realizations that the game had become must-win. They conceded an equalizer in the 71st minute as they were about to substitute some offense-minded fresh legs into the game. The substitutions did their job, and Sebastian Saucedo got the winning goal for Legion in the 81st minute. Birmingham will have to travel back up to Rhode Island for the next Cup match.

Next up for Birmingham is a trip out west to face Phoenix Rising, Saturday, August 2 at 9:30 Central time. The conversation starts with the forecast that's calling for the daytime high in Phoenix to be 113 degrees, and will still be in the high 90's (at least) for kickoff. No thank you. Phoenix has been climbing up the table, and are in fifth place at the time of writing. They come into Saturday’s game after a short turn, with a game at Orange County on Wed night on the road. Rising have given up 26 goals in just 16 games, and have also scored 26. A couple of storylines to watch: Danny Trejo was with Phoenix during their championship run, and will be a factor if he's able to play (pulled muscle); Phoenix back Collin Smith spent a season on loan at Legion, and has been a workhorse at Phoenix this year, playing the full ninety minutes in almost every match. Expect a high-scoring game, and lots of substitutions to deal with the heat.

Huntsville City FC

Huntsville City was at home against Orlando City B on Friday, and they put together a dominant 4-0 win over a team that had their number. They unveiled a new orange kit for the match, and they should think about riding the luck that came with them.

Next up at Crown Legacy Saturda, August 2 at 5:00 Eastern time. These two teams played to a 3-3 draw in June, with Crown getting the extra point from the shootout. Crown Legacy has had a leaky defense, giving up 35 goals compared to just 19 allowed by Huntsville. That being said, Crown also scores goals at a decent pace, and is solidly middle of the table. Huntsville needs to make a move here, and take the full three points to try to get back up to the top 3-4 in the table.