Atlanta United 2 1 – Charlotte Independence 1
Atlanta United 2 hosted the Charlotte Independence June 13, 2018 at Coolray Field. (photo : Padraig O’Dea)
Atlanta United 2 returned home and gained a point on a tough draw with Charlotte Independence 1-1 at Coolray Field in front of 2,087. Atlanta United Academy U-19 goalkeeper Justin Garces made three saves in his professional debut while Shawn Nicklaw forced an own-goal with a strike from distance as both sides split the points.
Charlotte struck early to grab the lead in the 6th minute from a corner kick by Jorge Herrera. Charlotte midfielder Kevan George headed the cross down which Eamon Zayed pounced on and struck past Justin Garces.
Atlanta United 2 controlled the first half with possession but was unable to put a shot on goal. The second half they built on their control of the macth and found the the equalizer in the 79th minute with a banger from. The home side pressed for the winner with an array of shots from Jon Gallagher, Andrew Carlton, Devon Sandoval, and José Hernández but were unable find the back of the net.
Atlanta United 2 vs Charlotte Independence at Coolray Field in Lawrenceville. (Photo: Karl L. Moore)
Scoring
Shawn Nicklaw rifled a shot from more than 30 yards for the only goal scored by Atlanta United 2. Nicklaw found a pocket of space and drilled a right-footed shot. The defenders shot kissed the crossbar and struck the back of Charlotte goalkeeper Andrew Dykstra into the goal.
— ATL UTD 2 (@atlutd2) June 14, 2018
Personnel Details
Justin Garces the Atlanta United Academy product and USMNT U-17 keeper from last years World Cup made his professional debut starting goalkeeper. After the early goal Garces settled into the match and recorded three saves. Garces assessed his and the team’s performance after the match, “I felt pretty good tonight. We started off on the back foot conceding an early goal, but I feel like we turned that around and the team did well in the first half and came back in the second half.”
Atlanta United 2 vs Charlotte Independence at Coolray Field in Lawrenceville. (Photo: Karl L. Moore)
Line-ups
Atlanta United 2
- GK: Justin Garces
- Defenders (4): Jose Hernandez, AJ Cochran, Andrew Kendall-Moullin, Shawn Nicklaw
- Defensive Midfielders (2): Oliver Shannon, Chris Goslin
- Attacking Midfielders(3):, Yosef Samuel (Jon Gallagher – 73’), Andrew Carleton, Laurent Kissiedou (Jose Carranza – 78’)
- Forward (1): Devon Sandoval
Unused Substitutes
- Will Crain, Jackson Conway, Chad Letts, Kevin Barajas, Paul Christensen
Charlotte Independence
- GK: Andrew Dykstra
- Defenders (4): Bilal Duckett, Henry Kalungi, Joel Johnson, Samuel Vines
- Midfielders (4): Kevan George, Jorge Herrera, Alex Martinez, Je-Vaughn Watson (Jake Areman – 85’)
- Forwards (2): Éamon Zayed (Greg Jordan – 83’), Cordell Cato
Unused Substitutes
- Mutaya Mwape, Donnie Smith, Brandon Miller, Ricardo Perez
Up Next
Atlanta United 2 return to action at home Saturday, June 16 against Ottawa Fury FC at 7:00 p.m.
