Saint Louis FC came from behind to draw 2-2 against Orange County SC in front of 3,697 fans at Toyota Stadium in Match 20 of the USL Regular Season.
Orange County SC opened the scoring in the 30th minute through former STLFC player Mats Bjurman as he flicked on a header from a long throw-in for his third goal of the season. STLFC would respond through substitute Kyle Greig in the 70th minute before Orange County reclaimed their lead with a goal from Giovanni Ramos-Godoy that beat STLFC goalkeeper Tomas Gomez at his near post in the 76th minute. However, Saint Louis FC would not be denied and they equalized through a scrappy rebound goal from Orlando City-loanee Pierre Da Silva in the 79th minute to earn the point. The draw sees Orange County improve to 11-6-4 with 37 points while Saint Louis FC improves to 5-6-8 with 23 points in the USL Western Conference.
The first half started with limited chances as both teams looked to create space in a tight game. The first chance arrived for the home side in the 19th minute as Albert Dikwa collected the ball at the top of the box and he turned and hit the crossbar with his shot. OC would respond with a dangerous corner kick in the 27th minute that required a goal-line clearance from Joey Calistri who was stationed on the post. Orange County would then break the deadlock in the 30th minute as a long throw-in from Kontor Owusu-Ansah found the head of Bjurman to flick inside the far post and maintain the 1-0 advantage going into the halftime break.
The second half saw a number of substitutions made by both teams but it was STLFC substitute Greig that made the difference as he let loose from outside the box for his team-leading seventh goal of the season in the 70th minute. OC would respond with a shot from substitute Ramos-Godoy that snuck inside the near-post even though Gomez got a hand on it in the 76th minute to reclaim the lead. Saint Louis FC would get back into the game almost immediately, however, when Wal Fall fired his shot from outside the box which was spilled by OC goalkeeper Louis Lopez Fernandez and Greig was there for the rebound but it was eventually slammed home by Da Silva for his first goal of the season in the 79th minute to see both teams earn the point.
“I thought the guys showed tremendous togetherness, spirit and character to come back twice,” said STLFC Head Coach Anthony Pulis. “The message at halftime was to win the second half and we did that. I couldn’t be prouder of the team and the way they kept fighting to earn a hard-fought point against a quality opponent.”
UPCOMING GAMES:
Saint Louis FC at Reno 1868 FC – Saturday, July 28 at 9:30 p.m. CT at Greater Nevada Field
Orange County SC vs. Portland Timbers 2 – Wednesday, August 1 at 2:30 p.m. CT at Champions Soccer Stadium
