Gulf Coast League 2 Report: Semifinals are Here
- Dan Floyd
- 5 days ago
- 3 min read
NATIONAL SOCCER NEWS: www.nationalsoccernetwork.com
The quarterfinals saw BRSC impose their will on Red River, and the other match was a high-intensity game that was settled in a penalty shootout.
BRSC 4-1 Red River FC
BRSC is headed to the semi-finals, with a chance to return to the Championship game. The Capitals got on the board first with a goal by Gylles Mitchell. Red River answered in the 30th minute, and appeared to be headed to halftime with the score tied up. But BRSC found two quick goals within one minute of each other, sending Red River to the break down by two goals. The home side would add a fourth almost immediately after the break, leaving Red River to scramble to try to get back in it. Any hopes of that were finally dashed when Omario Velasquez got yellow cards in the 59th and 65th minutes, leaving Red River with ten men for the final 25 minutes of the game.
LFSC Phoenix 4(3) - 4(1) Mississippi Blues.
There was plenty of drama in this one, and the Phoenix thought they had it put away on a couple of occasions before finally winning the shootout. The Blues certainly didn't make it easy, taking an early lead, and riding that 1-0 lead into halftime. Mississippi added a goal at the 60 minute mark, and were riding a 2-0 lead - famous as the most dangerous lead in the sport. The Phoenix came storming back, scoring three goals over an eight minute stretch, and surely thought they were going to ride that momentum. But the Blues got up off the deck and scored an equalizer at the death.
Extra time saw more insanity, as Phoenix were awarded a PK and took the lead in the 105th minute. Then the Blues were gifted an own goal by Phoenix just three minutes later, and the match was sent to a shootout to be decided. After all of the drama and back-and-forth, the Phoenix took care of business from the spot, and will move on to the semi-finals.
Semifinals:
Gulf Coast United vs BRSC Capitals; Thursday, July 2 at 7:15pm
Gulf Coast United has had a pretty dominant run through the season, sporting a 35 goal differential during the regular season. A chunk of that came at the expense of Invictus, who dropped out before the season ended, but they also hung 9 goals on Hattiesburg FC. BRSC similarly pounded the Hurricanes during the regular season, and each team lost only once during the regular season. Make no mistake, this is a marquee match-up between division winners that can both put up some big numbers. Expect this one to be wild, and could easily go to a shootout. I give GCU a slight edge for being at home.
Central Louisiana vs LSFC Phoenix; Saturday, July 4 at 7:15pm
Central had the bye to get ready for this one, and they could potentially benefit from it being scheduled on the fourth - will Phoenix get a full squad to travel on the holiday? Assuming everyone is full strength, this should be a close match. Central plays a tight defense and generally controls the action. The Phoenix will be looking to score early and get Central out of a comfortable flow. This should be close, and Central's post-season experience should give them the edge.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PREMIER MEDIA GROUP / NATIONAL SOCCER NETWORK /
NATIONAL SOCCER NETWORK ON FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61561215500230
— All Rights Reserved, Premier Media Group / National Soccer Network
Comments