With several players sidelined due to illness or injury, the St. Louis Ambush went on the road and pulled off a 7-3 win over Utica City FC Sunday afternoon at the Adirondack Bank Center in Utica, New York. The victory snaps a three-game skid for the Ambush, who improved to 3-4-1 on the season, while Utica dropped to 3-6-0.
Former Ambush star Gordy Gurson got the first tally for Utica with a shot in the low corner of the goal in the sixth minute of the opening stanza. Gurson’s goal would be the lone one of the period. Will Eskay put St. Louis on the board in the second minute of the second quarter with a masterful shot that threaded the needle through a grouping of players spread out in front of the goal. The score remained knotted 1-1 at the haltfime break.
St. Louis went on a power play when Gurson earned a blue card for tripping in the sixth minute of the third period. The visitors wasted no time capitalizing on the opportunity as Robert Kristo scored the go-ahead goal 19 seconds into the power play. The Ambush went up 3-1 when Kristo sent a wall pass to Sam Guernsey, who pounded it into the net in the eighth minute. St. Louis increased the lead to 4-1 in the fourteenth minute of the third quarter when Lucas Almeida beat Utica goalkeeper Andrew Coughlin. A potential goal at the buzzer by Utica was called off by officials due to the clock running out. That resulted in a challenge by Utica head coach Hewerton Moreira. The video review upheld the “no goal” call and the third frame ended with St. Louis up 4-1.
Eskay widened the gap for the Ambush in the third minute of the final quarter when he took a backheel pass from Almeida and scored for the second time in the match to make it 5-1. Less than a minute later, with the sixth attacker in play for Utica, Gurson answered with his second of the afternoon for a 5-2 score. Eskay completed the hat trick with an empty-netter with just over eight minutes left in the game. Almeida notched an empty netter in the twefth minute for his second of the duel to make it a 7-2 contest, but Utica answered when Nilton Andrade scored less than a minute later for a 7-3 score that would prove to be the final.
Utica outshot St. Louis 38-22. Ambush goalkeeper Paulo Nascimento turned in an outstanding performing, making 19 saves on 22 opportunities, for an .864 save percentage. In goal for Utica, Andrew Coughlin made eight saves on 13 attempts (.615 Sv%).
The Ambush come home for their next battle when they welcome the cross-state rival Kansas City Comets to The Family Arena on Friday, January 20, 2023 at 7:35 p.m. CST. All Ambush games are available for webcast at twitch.com.
