South Georgia Tormenta FC notched its first win of the season Thursday night with a 2-0 win against the division-leading Nashville SC. Tormenta squared off against Nashville once again Saturday night at Erk Russell Athletic Park.
The home team once again netted two goals, but couldn’t quite get a second consecutive victory, settling instead for a 2-2 draw to end its season series against Nashville with a win, a loss and Saturday’s tie.
“It’s a little perplexing,” Tormenta coach John Miglarese said. “I think we played well enough to win. Nashville played well too, but we had the chances to win this game. For whatever reason, that has been the case in a number of matches this season where we didn’t end up with a win.”
A tense back-and-forth match erupted late as the teams traded goals.
Tormenta had been turned away – be it by the post or by Nashville keeper William Kyle’s stellar performance – from multiple chances to take the lead. As the match entered the 80th minute, a blocked shot by the Nashville defense and another save by Pyle added to the frustration. But a corner kick for Tormenta – after yet another deflected shot – finally found the foot of Max Hasenstab, who slotted it low and past a sprawling Pyle for a 2-1 lead.
A healthy Tormenta crowd that had been on edge for much of the game finally exploded with the goal and it seemed as if a second straight win over the division leader was imminent.
But the celebration was over before it had a chance to wind down on its own.
A quick foul by Tormenta off of the restart gave Nashville a free kick. The ball sailed deep into the South Georgia box. It initially cleared all Nashville players, but also travelled so deep as to cause a crowd of players to converge on the goal line.
The ball smacked off of the right post before pinballing off of both Tormenta and Nashville players, finally coming to a rest at the back of the net for a 2-2 tie.
“It was a little bit of a lapse,” Miglarese said. “We worked hard to take the lead, but then we don’t play well off the restart and give up a quick foul.”
“It’s crazy,” Tormenta midfielder Mikie Rowe said. “In all of these games, we feel like the better team and we feel like we play a better game, but the results just haven’t been there.”
Early on, the match featured the punching and counter-punching that could be expected of two teams that had matchup up just 48 hours earlier.
Tormenta didn’t control possession quite as well as it had on Thursday, but in the 34th minute Jaimie Merriam collected a pass just outside of the Nashville box, dribbled once toward the middle of the field and let loose a left-footed sniper shot that tucked neatly into the top right corner of the goal for a 1-0 lead.
South Georgia maintained the momentum through the end of the half, but Pyle kept Nashville in the match, notching six saves – some in rapid-fire fashion – over a five-minute span and negating what seemed to be some sure goals for Tormenta.
Nashville’s offense slowly built up better attacks in the second half. There were no solid shots on goal through the first two-thirds of the game, but a Tormenta foul inside its own box in the 62nd minute set up Blake Wilson for a penalty kick that he slipped past Tormenta keeper Keegan Meyer.
In three matches against Tormenta, Wilson’s goal was the fifth for Nashville and the third to come by way of a penalty kick.
“I’m proud of the effort and we played well, but didn’t quite get the win,” Miglarese said. “A tough call and a lapse on a restart made a big difference. I think we’ve shown how well we can play, but those little things that hurt are why we need to continue to improve every day as we move ahead.
Tormenta has played five of its first six games at home and must now play six of its last eight on the road. The long journey begins with a trip to the Palmetto State as Tormenta visits Myrtle Beach Thursday before heading to SC United next Saturday.
Storm Can't Sweep
