Fort Lauderdale – The Strikers continue their unbeaten streak in the third match of a four game road trip. The match ended in a 1-1 draw against the NSC Minnesota Stars. The Strikers look to continue the trend Wednesday, May 11th at 7:30 p.m. when they round out their road trip against the Carolina Railhawks. The Strikers return home to face their cross state rivals FC Tampa Bay on Saturday, May 14th. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.
“Tonight it took a great free kick from Minnesota to take away points from us. I thought we were very organized and disciplined defensively,” said Head Coach Daryl Shore. “We have to do a better job of taking our chances in the attack because we should have had a second goal which would have put the game away.”
The first half momentum went to the Strikers with multiple chances early on. Paulinho LePetit forced a save from Minnesota’s keeper in the third minute when he shot low to the near post. In the15th minute the Strikers had another opportunity when Aaron Wheeler found Paulinho at the top of the box for a shot that was barely wide.
The Strikers went into halftime with a 1-0 lead after Eduardo “Chacho” Coudet converted his fourth straight penalty kick of the season. In the 35th minute, forward Martin Nunez was fouled in the penalty area by Stars defender Jack Stewart.
It was an equal second half with both teams having opportunities until the Stars equalized in the 89th minute. Stars forward Simone Bracalello placed a free kick into the upper corner of the net from 30 yards out.
