May 18, 2018; Portland, OR, USA; Portland Timbers 2 vs LA Galaxy II at Providence Park. Photo: Sam Ortega-Portland Timbers 2
Portland Timbers 2 7: Los Angeles Galaxy II 3
Goals came in droves, on Friday, as Portland Timbers 2 (6-3-2, 20pts) demolished LA Galaxy II (1-6-3, 6pts) 7-3. Forward Foster Langsdorf scored a hat trick, his first and the first in T2 history.
Have a day, @FosterLangsdorf. ???
Have a ? at the first hat trick in team history. #t2fc #PORvLA pic.twitter.com/SF0FpAgfp0
— Portland Timbers 2 (@TimbersFC2) May 18, 2018
Dominant early, T2 were well in control of the match when Langsdorf opened the scoring the 25th minute. Winger Victor Arboleda pounced on a botched defensive header and hit a volleyed cross to the far post, which a surging Langsorf tapped in.
Langsdorf scored his second goal in the 42nd minute, after right back Jimmy Mulligan picked him out with an early cross. The unmarked Langsdorf slotted the ball home with ease.
With 15-year-old phenom Efrain Alvarez coming on for Los Dos, T2 hit the skids early in the second half. Four minutes into the second half, Alvarez would score a superb goal, cutting Portland’s lead in half. The youngster picked up the ball in a wide area, made a run toward the edge of the 18-yard-box, and hit a left footed curler far post.
He's 15 YEARS OLD. Efrain Alvarez scores two (more) bangers for @LAGalaxyII, good for six goals in his last three @USL matches. pic.twitter.com/lo0REICEvN
— LA Galaxy (@LAGalaxy) May 18, 2018
Portland would regain their two-goal cushion in the 57th minute. Langsdorf earned a penalty kick after being taken down from behind in the box. Sitting on a hat trick, he took the set piece himself, sending the Los Dos goalkeeper Eric Lopez the wrong way and converting the attempt. The goal was Langsdorf’s team-leading fifth of the season.
Los Dos were down but not out and would get one back just two minutes later. Midfielder Miguel Aguilar received the ball just outside the 18-yard-box, making a cutting run inside before sending a left footed effort past Portland’s sprawling keeper Alex Mangels.
In the 68th minute, LA levelled the score with Alvarez finding the ball at the top of the 18-yard-box and hitting a volleyed effort which again left Mangels in the lurch. The goal was the sixth on the season for Alvarez, who leads Los Dos in scoring. A reminder: Alvarez is only 15.
Despite relinquishing their lead, T2 showed they were made of sterner stuff. Midfielder Eryk Williamson played the hero again, scoring the game-winning goal in the 81st minute, his second in as many matches. Arboleda, ever the menace, made a darting dribble along the end line strewing Los Dos defenders throughout the box. LA’s goalkeeper knocked the ball away but only as far as Williamson, who passed the ball into the net.
.@erykw19 makes it 4 for @TimbersFC2 as they regain the lead!#USL #PORvLA pic.twitter.com/skAcYUzrav
— USL (@USL) May 18, 2018
At this point the LA defense crumpled like their hopes of winning, conceding three goals in stoppage time. The first came from a Marvin Loria free kick 24 yards out. Moments later, Arboleda earned a much-deserved goal, after harrying defender Hugo Arellano into a bad pass. The Colombian snatched the ball and beat the keeper, scoring his fourth goal of the year. The third goal in stoppage, and seventh for T2, would come from a Loria strike which deflected off the back of forward Augustine Williams before finding the back of the net. The final whistle shortly followed.
T2 are back at it on Tuesday, when they face 2. Bundesliga side FC St. Pauli in a friendly at Providence Park.
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