On a 95 degree night in the capital of South Carolina, Hickory FC persisted through the heat and delivered a high scoring affair from their end to keep pace in the playoff race. From the get go, Hickory held control of the match and never let SC United get into a rhythm. Early building out of the back and patience defined Hickory FC’s ability to get a feel for the game and establish dominance early on. Shots by midfielder Mario Albert and forward Bautista Rossi set the tone for how Hickory would apply pressure all night on the Bantams.
The first goal finally arrived in the 33rd minute of the match, after Left Back Bautista Schmidt crossed a long ball to Winger Javan Ochieng towards the right side of the box. After collecting the pass, Ochieng delivered a cross that deflected towards Albert, and the midfielder sent a rocket from outside the box to deliver Hickory FC´s first of many goals throughout the night.
Just moments later, Javan Ochieng showed a moment of brilliance, collecting the ball from the right flank and dribbling past defenders for his first goal as a Hickory FC player. Hickory FC led 2-0 leading up to the break, however, an opportunity for SC United to climb back into the match came with a free kick around the 44th minute, with their shot deflecting off the top of the cross bar. This ended a first half seemingly controlled and dominated completely by Hickory FC.
SC United wouldn’t go quietly into the night however, as they began to apply pressure themselves and earned multiple free kick and corner opportunities. These opportunities would be missed however, along with Hickory keeper Daniel Miklosi making a phenomenal save from a Bantams header, and led to 0 goals scored for the hosts. After the Bantams early run of form in the second half, Hickory FC decided to apply the dagger, with substitute Midfielder Tate Asante’s shot getting saved by SC United, but fellow substitute Centre-Back Alvaro Bonet scoring off the rebound. The night was capped off by another substitute, Winger Ivan Morcillo, who scored an amazing free kick goal in the 89th minute. Positioned on the left side outside the box, Morcillo sent a curving shot that bent past the Bantams keeper into the top left corner of the net. Moments later during the final bit of extra time, Morcillo scored again, securing his brace, with the assist coming from Right Back Luke Munson off a low cross into the box. This capped off a dominant night for Hickory FC, securing a much needed 3 points and currently holding the 2nd spot in the South Atlantic division´s table.
Hickory FC will need to maintain this form in the upcoming matches if they want to safely secure their playoff spot. Up next includes another road trip to Wilmington, NC against Port City FC, before returning for a 3 game home stand which includes a massive June 27th matchup against division leaders Charlotte Independence 2.
