Miami FC falls to San Diego Loyal SC
MIAMI -- The match between Miami FC and San Diego Loyal SC was an inter-conference game that took place at Miami FC's home, the FIU Stadium.
Miami FC started the game on the offensive side, forcing San Diego goalkeeper Koke Vegas to make two crucial saves in the early minutes. Miami FC's opening press was finally rewarded in the 15th minute, when a lucky deflection from San Diego's Grant Stoneman ended up in his team's own net, putting Miami FC up 1-0.
As the game got going, San Diego began to find their rhythm and settle in.
San Diego started attacking the Miami defense from the flanks. Determined to pull level on the road, San Diego's Evan Conway equalized in the 39th minute on a rebound from a shot created off a set piece. The half ended 1-1, with both teams heading into the locker room eyeing victory and ready to make the necessary changes.
In the second half both teams came out strong, and the game was dead even until the 60th minute when Miami FC's Kyle Murphy scored a beautiful solo goal following a counter attack, putting Miami FC up 2-1.
Things seemed to be going Miami FC's way until the 81st minute when San Diego drew even on an own goal from a cross inside the box. 4 minutes later, San Diego was awarded a corner kick. As Miami fought to defend the corner and hold their line, the ball fell perfectly for San Diego's Elliot Collier off a broken play, and he fired it into the bottom corner putting San Diego ahead 3-2.
Despite the tough result, Miami FC showed a lot character in the match. Both their offense and defense have shown signs of improvement, and scoring two goals against top opposition will be a positive note to move forward on next week. This result will be difficult to look back on for Miami FC after leading for the majority of the game, but there are plenty of positives for the team to build on heading in to next week.
Miami FC is gearing up to take on Orange County SC in an exciting match on Saturday, May 27 at 7 p.m. The game will be held at FIU Stadium.
CBS News Miami is the official broadcast partner for Miami FC. This story was reprinted with permission from MiamiFC.com.
