Chattanooga FC Win Southeast Conference Championship

By Chattanooga FC

It was all smiles tonight for the boys in blue as Chattanooga FC raised the Southeast Conference trophy in the rain for the eighth time in eleven years.  The home team scored early and often, resulting in a 4-1 victory over Asheville City SC.

Defender and eventual Man of the Match Gabriel Torres opened the scoring in the 29th minute with a left-footed laser beam at an acute angle in the upper right corner.  Torres extended his scoring streak to two goals in as many games. Just five minutes later, the home team struck again. This time it was a quick one timer from the captain and all-conference midfielder Juan Hernandez, who found the back of the net thanks to a well played Cameron Woodfin pass.

Asheville CIty pulled one back off of a penalty kick, and both teams broke for the half with the score at 2-1.

“Our team played a complete game tonight, and I was very impressed with the effort everyone put forth,” Chattanooga FC head coach Bill Elliott said. “Our guys stayed focused, worked hard, and most importantly took care of opportunities that fell their way.”

As the rain kept falling, the boys in blue persisted undeterred.  In the 50th minute, Juan Hernandez stole the ball in the Asheville side of the field, and found a streaking Joao Costa at just the right moment and the Brazilian did not miss.  It was now a 3-1 lead for Chattanooga FC.

Chattanooga FC’s Brazilian attacking duo continued to dominate late in the game as Joao Costa found Zeca Ferraz for a beautiful goal to build a 4-1 lead, which was too much for the visiting team.

Chattanooga FC faces Miami FC in the Sunshine State at Barry University on Tuesday, July 16th in the semifinal round of the NPSL South Region playoffs.  

Photo Credit: Ray Soldano