Antigua Barracuda 1 Orlando City 2
Devorn Jorsling continued his hot streak, scoring two goals in the first 26 minutes to lead Orlando City to their second straight win over Antigua Barracuda FC in three days. The 2-1 victory gives the Lions a 10 point lead in the USL PRO’s American Division and the win also makes Orlando City the first to reach 10 wins this season in USL PRO.
The match opened with the Barracudas on the attack. Seeking revenge from Friday’s defeat, Antigua came out guns blazing in the first five minutes. Orlando keeper Sean Kelley, seeing his first action of the regular season, was pressed into service twice in the early minutes from an Antigua a free kick and then a Ranja Christian breakaway.
After a tense opening ten minutes, the Lions took control of the match. Devorn Jorsling got the scoring going for Orlando when a long pass was knocked into the air inside the 18-yard box. Several Barracuda defenders attempted to clear, but the ball fell to Jorsling’s feet. The Trinidadian international slammed the ball home for his second goal of the regular season.
Jorsling’s goal took the air out of the Antiguan attack. City’s control over the match strengthened as they pushed forward again and again in attack, coming close several times. Charlie Campbell’s darting run in between several Barracuda defenders seemed destined for a goal, but Keita De Castro just managed to push Campbell’s shot over the bar for a corner kick.
The Lions doubled their lead in the 26th minute. Kevin Molino broke free of his defender on the right wing, and made a deep run with the ball. Just before reaching the touchline, Molino fired a low cross in front of goal. The initial pass did not find a target, but in the ensuing chaos in front of the net, the ball found Devorn Jorsling. Jorsling punched it home for his second of the match. The Lions continued their domination until the halftime whistle, heading into the locker rooms with a 2-0 lead.
The Barracudas opened the second half in much the same way they opened the first. Their renewed energy was rewarded in the 51st minute. After shutting down an Orlando City attack, the Barracudas countered quickly. A long through ball from behind the midfield stripe found Ranja Christian. Christian took Sean Kelley one-on-one, and put his shot low just inside the near post to bring the Barracudas within a goal.
The rest of the second half was a defensive battle. As time melted off the clock, the Barracudas pushed more and more players forward into an all-or-nothing attack. Orlando continued to stand firm, clearing attack after attack with relative ease. The Lions did manage to counter a few times late in the match. Max Griffin nearly put the Lions up by two goals in the 85th minute, but his low shot to the far post sailed just wide of the net.
Next up for the Lions is the third round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Tuesday as City travel to Frisco, Texas, to clash with Major League Soccer’s FC Dallas. Kickoff is set for 8:00 pm Central, 9:00 pm Eastern and the match will be broadcast on www.fcdallas.com.
Scoring Summary
12th Minute – Orlando: Devorn Jorsling
26th Minute – Orlando: Devorn Jorsling
51st Minute – Antigua: Ranja Christian
Orlando City Line-up
GK: Sean Kelley
D: Mechack Jerome, Kieron Bernard, Rob Valentino, Jack Traynor
M: Kevin Molino (87’ – Lewis Neal), Lawerence Olum, Luke Boden (70’ – Justin Fojo), Eric Ustruck
F: Devorn Jorsling (58’ – Max Griffin), Charlie Campbell
