Forward Madison FC 3 – 0 North Carolina FC
MADISON, WI—North Carolina FC closed out a three-game road trip in Madison Saturday night, falling 3-0 to the Flamingoes.
It felt like a low energy start for both sides as North Carolina and Madison spent the early minutes of the first half feeling each other out and seeing how much physical play the referee would allow.
NCFC had some promising opportunities to find the game’s first goal as they read plays well and used their speed to get into dangerous areas. But they struggled to break through the Madison defense, anchored by captain Mitch Osmond, and they didn’t take advantage of their set pieces in the attacking third. All of which would come back to bite them.
LATE HALF PUSH PUTS MADISON ON TOP
The longer Forward Madison held NCFC off of the scoreboard, the more confidence they developed toward the end of the first half. In the 39th minute, Francis Baptiste broke through the North Carolina defense, forcing Nick Holliday to come way off of his line. The NC goalkeeper got his hand to the ball and managed to slap it off of Baptiste for a goal kick.
Then, in the 44th minute, Madison held off another North Carolina attack and Isidro Martinez lofted a long ball over midfield perfectly into the path of Stephen Payne. The Flamingo attacker was clear of the NCFC defense, then took a touch to pull Holliday away from the net before neatly tucking the ball past Holliday to give Madison the 1-0 lead on the eve of halftime.
FRUSTRATION FOR NORTH CAROLINA
Madison continued to frustrate North Carolina’s offense in the second half with Mitch Osmond using his size advantage to shut down Oalex Anderson in the box. North Carolina struggled to take advantage of their free kick opportunities, which added to their frustration.
Madison added to their lead in the 64th minute off of a defensive giveaway. Baptiste jumped on the loose ball and delivered a cross a wide-open Wolfgang Prentice who blasted the ball past Holliday to make it 2-0 for the Mingoes.
With his team trying to rescue a point, Anderson tried to make some more magic in the attacking third in the 74th minute when he attempted to dribble through heavy traffic before the Madison defense regained possession.
Where North Carolina struggled on set pieces, Madison found success. Jake Crull made it 3-0 for Madison in the 75th minute when he got on the end of a Christian Chaney corner kick to put a result out of reach for NCFC.
The frustration started to boil over for North Carolina as the game ticked into the 80th minute when Rafa Mentzingen tried to carry the ball up field and was tripped up. The NCFC midfielder jumped up and shoved Mauro Cichero. Both players earned a yellow card on the play.
LATE ENERGY FROM SECOND HALF SUBS
Bradford looked to inject some offensive energy into his team by swapping Shak Adams and Garrett McLaughlin in for Jaden Servania and Luis Arriaga late in the second half. The attacking pair breathed some life into side, linking up on a great give and go play getting Adams in a dangerous position in the box. He drew Schipmann off of his line to make the save and Timmy Mehl headed the ball out to preserve the defensive clean sheet.
McLaughlin drew another foul in a dangerous spot late in stoppage time, but no red shirt connected with Louis Perez’s free kick. It was North Carolina’s final opportunity of the game, and they would leave Madison empty-handed.
REFEREE INJURY SUBSTITUTION
The game was delayed briefly in the 523rd minute when the head referee Matt Geringer picked up an injury and was unable to continue. The fourth official stepped into the central role and play resumed in the 55th minute.
HOME AT LAST
The Dead Whales return home Sunday, June 18 to face Lexington Sporting Club. Kickoff is scheduled for 3 p.m. You can get tickets at northcarolinafc.com/tickets.
LINEUPS
North Carolina FC (4-2-3-1): N. Holliday; C. Lue Young (D.J. Benton 78’), D. Navarro©, G. Fernandes, N. Flores Blanco; L. Arriaga (G. McLaughlin 65’), M. Maldonado; L. Pérez, J. Servania (S. Adams 78’), R. Mentzingen (M. Flick 82’); O. Anderson (P. Popp 82’)
Forward Madison FC (3-5-2): B. Schipmann; T. Mehl, M. Osmond©, J.Crull; S. Payne, D. Gebhard (R. Screen 71’), I. Martinez, A. Mesias (A. Wheeler-Omiunu 87’), W. Prentice (E. Conerty 90+5’); N. Bartman (C. Chaney 71’), F. Baptiste (M. Chichero 71’)
FINAL SCORE
North Carolina FC: 0
Forward Madison FC: 3
GOALS
North Carolina FC:
Forward Madison FC: S. Payne (I. Martinez) 44’; W. Prentice (F. Baptiste) 64’; J. Crull (C. Chaney) 75’
CARDS
North Carolina FC: M. Maldonado (YC 28’); J. Servania (YC) 77’; R. Mentzingen (YC) 80’; N. Flores Blanco (YC) 89’
Forward Madison FC: M. Chichero (YC) 81’