FORT PITT DOWNS DYNAMO 2-0

The Fort Pitt Regiment used an early goal and a late goal to end their seven-game skid with a 2-0 win over the Dayton Dynamo.  Giving up goals in the opening minutes of play and the waning minutes of a half over the past four games provided plenty of frustration as they looked to find their first win since the season opener.

Jesse Scheirer took advantage of a Dayton miscue to put the Red Coats on the board in the second minute.  The forward snagged a mishit pass to notch an easy goal before the spectators had settled into their seats.

Andres Vega iced the match in the 89th minute with a curling shot into the upper 90 of the far post.  Vega gathered a loose ball on the left wing that was mishandled by the Dynamo backline found some space and unleashed the bent shot that Ryan Hulings had no chance of stopping.

Between the second and 89th minutes, the game was a back-and-forth affair with both teams more than willing to attack the other’s goal.  The Regiment took seven shots while Dayton launched 12 shots; the difference was the goalkeepers’ ability against quality shots.

Brendan Alfery backstopped the FPR defense with a couple of outstanding 1v1 stops in his own box and showed an acrobatic side with a pair of high-flying parry efforts to keep the Dynamo off the scoreboard.  Alfery’s biggest save was a first half stoppage time save on a Bradley Schluter rip headed just under the bar that would have tied the game just before halftime.

Hulings came up big in the 53rd minute when Lamine Balde got off a quick shot from the top of the box that sent the Dynamo keeper into the air to joust the ball over his goal to keep his team within a goal.  The sequence was one of several during the opening minutes of the second half in which the Regiment pressed the attack to find a second goal.

Dayton challenged Alfery in the 69th when Tate Robertson’s five-hole shot was stopped and again in the 77th when David Janusz lofted a cross toward Angelo Willi lurking in the area only to have the FPR keeper intercede.

The final ten minutes of play was filled with scrambling defenses and frantic moments along with a couple of cautions to the Regiment’s Fausto Ordenana for arguing and Zach Graziani for a hard tackle.

The Regiment climbs to 2-7 while Dayton is now 5-3-3 in the Eastern Conference.

The Regiment travels to Syracuse on July 7 and hosts FC Buffalo on July 9.