USL LEAGUE TWO: Peoria City sends Wanderers packing into the wilderness with lopsided drubbing
- Dan Stickradt
- Jul 1
- 3 min read
NATIONAL SOCCER NEWS: www.nationalsoccernetwork.com
PEORIA, Ill. — After 25 days away from home, Peoria City made a resounding return to Shea Stadium on Saturday night, rolling to a 6-0 victory over the Santafe Wanderers in front of an energetic crowd of 1,411 fans.
The win marks Peoria’s second triumph over the Kansas City-based Wanderers this season, having previously earned a 2-0 road result earlier in the campaign.
Saturday's festivities began with a special appearance from Iron Spirit Pro Wrestling, which hosted an event on the stadium concourse. During the show, it was announced that Iron Spirit Pro will return to Peoria on Saturday, Aug. 16, for “Peoria City Pandemonium,” a full wrestling event at The Yard Peoria, one of Peoria City’s presenting sponsors.
On the field, Peoria wasted no time igniting the home crowd.
In the sixth minute, DJ Koulai (Bradley University) opened the scoring, slotting home a finish off an assist from Tanner Anderson (St. Louis University).
It took Peoria City two more minutes to strike again, as defender Jeremy Saygbe (Liberia) doubled the lead after heading in a long throw from Josh Reddy (Clarke University) for his first goal of the season.
Peoria City extended the advantage to 3-0 in the 22nd minute, as Tommy Coughlin (Wisconsin-Green Bay) delivered a precise cross to Jose Gomez (Northern Illinois), who fired a first-time strike past the goalkeeper.
Captain Charlie Dickerson (Providence College) made it 4-0 with a long-range effort in the 27th minute, which skipped off the keeper's gloves and into the net.
Before halftime, sharp passing and unselfish play resulted in a fifth Peoria goal. Gomez linked up with Luke Persenico (Clarke University) before assisting Anderson, sending the Carp into the break with a commanding 5-0 lead.
Peoria added a sixth goal in the second half, as Koulai notched his second of the night – again assisted by Gomez. Koulai now leads the team with nine goals on the season.
Goalkeeper Samy Slimi (Tulsa University) earned his fourth clean sheet of the year and was named Man of the Match.
Peoria City (record not provided) will return to Shea Stadium on Wednesday night, hosting longtime rivals Des Moines Menace at 7:30 p.m. CT.
The club will honor the Peoria Notre Dame girls soccer team at halftime following their run to the IHSA Class 2A State Championship match.
Wednesday's showdown carries added significance, with Peoria City and Des Moines trading time atop the USL League Two power rankings in recent weeks. Peoria held the No. 1 spot for three weeks, while Des Moines has led the rankings for the past two weeks — despite being idle in League Two play.
Fans are encouraged to stick around after the match for Peoria City’s second postgame fireworks show of the season, just days ahead of Independence Day.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(Have a story suggestion for the Premier Media Group and the National Soccer Network regarding club/youth soccer, high school varsity, amateur soccer, collegiate soccer or professional soccer involving teams, players or coaches with ties to a particular state or states, contact Web and Content Editor/Director of News Dan Stickradt via email at dstickradt@thepremiermediagrp.com and news@nationalsoccernetwork.com, or call 248-525-2349.
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