USL1 Groundhopping - Greenville Triumph Open New Stadium with Victory, Red Wolves Pile 5 Past Richmond
- Calum Ewing
- Jun 25
- 5 min read
NATIONAL SOCCER NEWS: www.nationalsoccernetwork.com
On May 27 and June 3, NSN went on a groundhopping trek to cover two USL League One clubs: the Greenville Triumph and Chattanooga Red Wolves. The former was opening their brand new home ground, GE Vernova Park, while the latter had less media attention but a good crowd witnessing soccer in a swamp.
Starting with the most recent match, the Greenville Triumph welcomed a club-record 4,252 fans to witness a gritty 1-0 win against Forward Madison. GE Vernova Park’s debut welcomed the end of the Triumph’s nomadic era, and while the facility was impressive alongside the European castle-like Bridgeway Station, it was incomplete with seperate temporary locker rooms being installed and the lack of their second tier of suites.
The pitch and overall seating for the packed-in crowd was fantastic, however, and it only took two minutes for the Triumph to get their first look on goal. After a low corner from the left side of the pitch deflected to the top of the box, Connor Evans stepped up to hit a first-time strike off the middle-right side of the crossbar!
For the following eleven minutes, Madison would compose themselves and gain majority control of possession, yet that wouldn’t stop Greenville from taking the lead. Starting in their own half, forward Azaad Liadi combined on the left side of the pitch with Patrick Seagrist and Connor Evans to advance into the final third. After an additional 1-2 combination with Devin Boyce put Liadi into the box at a tight angle, he managed to slot the ball past the goalkeeper and off the inside of the back post for the 1-0 lead. Cue LOUD euphoria from the Triumph faithful.
However, the vibes in the stadium nearly shifted instantly after a mistake in the back a few minutes after the goal allowed Madision to get a 1v1 with goalkeeper Amal Knight, who sprung out of goal quickly to make a sprawling save.
Madision would continue to control possession for the rest of the first half, but continously lost the ball out wide in the final third, limiting chance creation. This pattern forced by solid Triumph defensive work continued until the 80th minute when Knight pulled off an unbelievable save, getting his hand to a ball in the top right corner from a deflected free kick just twenty yards out.
The Triumph would have two chances to seal the game near the end, with one on the right side of the box being skied into the crowd in the 87th minute, and the second being a strike from Devin Boyce saved by Madison’s JT Harms dropping down to his left. However, the failure to be clinical late would not hurt them, and the Triumph ended a losing skid and were inspired to a USL Cup win over Loudoun on June 10. Unfortunately, Greenville are back to losing ways, failing to gain a point from their last 3 matches.
Now to the previous game in Chattanooga, Tennessee, it was a thriller as the Red Wolves battled the elements to a 5-0 thrashing of the Richmond Kickers on May 27. It rained for hours before the match, leaving massive puddles and a muddy surface for each team to work with.
The scoring started early in the 4th minute, when a mad scramble in the box off a long throw saw Matt Bentley flick the ball towards Ropapa Mensah at the edge of the 6-yard box. He made no mistake from there, firing a shot that hit the goalkeeper’s arm into the top left corner for the 1-0 lead.
Omar Gomez would add his name to the scoresheet just seven minutes later. A long free kick from the Red Wolves’ defensive third deflected backwards off a Richmond defender’s head, playing Gomez through on goal for an easy 1v1 finish.
The rest of the first half saw a bit of a goalkeeping battle, as Chattanooga’s Jason Smith had to pull off an impressive double save, punching away a free kick before coming out for a 1v1 save covering his right post. Richmond’s Fillion responded soon after with a 1v1 save to keep the score at 2-0, this being after a bouncing ball found its way through a mass of bodies to the back post.
The last chance of the first half was a dissallowed Richmond goal! A shot parried by Jason Smith diving to his right was not held, and as he reached for the ball, a Kickers forward rushed in for the tap-in. While it was hard to tell if Smith had possession of the ball before the tap-in or if the effort resulted in the goalkeeper being kicked, a foul was called by the referee and no goal was given.
The second half was all Red Wolves. Early on, Matt Bentley continued his strong run of form in the 2026 season by turning past a defender, beating two more, and effortlessly finishing past the goalkeeper into the left side of the net for the 3-0 advantage.
Jason Smith would be called into action once more for a acrobatic save, diving high to his right after a Richmond volley just two minutes after the goal. That would be the last real threat faced all night. Omar Hernandez would take one touch after a Richmond clearance before shooting a laser from the top of the box into the top left corner for a fourth, and Mensah would grab his brace with a simple finish in the box after a low cross from the right flank for the fifth goal.
Greyson Mercer would have a chance for the sixth goal late, but his shot on a near-open goal hit off Pedro Hernandez on the ground. Another chance for a sixth would come with a great cross into the 6-yard box, but Fillion was there for a massive denial.
Once full-time was blown, the Red Wolves had confidently reminded USL League One fans why they topped the league in the regular season for so long last year. Since the result, they have done fairly well, winning their last two USL1 matches, drawing One Knoxville in the USL Cup (lost 4-5 on penalties), and only falling to the red-hot Charlotte Independence on May 30.
Both teams are in much different places after the positive results we witnessed, and this summer will prove vital to either or both clubs can push for a playoff spot in a competitive League One slate. The Red Wolves certainly have the talent to compete, and Greenville will have fantastic support from one of the best local fanbases in GE Vernova Park.
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