By Ryan Makuch
The AFC Ann Arbor men drew 2-2 on the road to Kalamazoo FC in the penultimate USL League Two regular-season bout on Sunday, July 10. The Mighty Oak logged a pair of second-half goals, opening the scoring, and snatching a late equalizer to ensure they were not to miss out on a share of the points.
The AFCAA men built solidly into the game as the first half saw plenty of ‘feeling out’ between both sides. Two key chances came for Kalamazoo FC, but the AFCAA defense snuffed out both chances. First, a sweeper-keeper save from Jonathan Gomes, well out of his net in the 20th minute to make a stop, and then a crunching tackle in the box from Jackson Kasanzu in the 24th minute kept things level at 0-0.
It took under ten minutes in the second half for The Mighty Oak to make their response, coming on a bit of a mad scramble. Sean Kerrigan, fresh on as a substitute, saw his initial shot saved, but KZFC failed to clear the ball from danger, and Curt Calov finished from a tight angle in the 53rd minute to score his third goal of the season.
In the 57th minute, The Mighty Oak almost made it 2-0, as Yushi Nagao made a superb run down the right-wing and fed Junior Nare centrally. But, on the natural grass of Mayors Riverfront Park in Kalamazoo, the shot saw very little power in it, and the effort was cleared safely away before it could cross the goal line.
The AFCAA defense would be called into action throughout the next phase of the game, with the individuals stepping up valiantly when pressed into service. David Garcia made a vital stop on KZFC’s dynamic Cyrus Harmon in the 68th minute–an essential tackle to make as Harmon was a step away from rushing clean through on goal. Then, five minutes later, Jonathan Gomes made a double-save, including the second on an effort from point-blank range, to keep The Mighty Oak ahead.
However, KZFC found themselves a foothold into the match, and goals in the 81st and 89th minutes bookended a ten-minute spurt where the home side sent wave after wave of attack cascading into the Ann Arbor defense. In between these goals was another excellent stop from Gomes, as well as KZFC hitting the crossbar on a well-operated maneuver in the box.
Just a minute after KZFC leveled the game, substitute Sean Kerrigan would put the ball in the back of the net with a bit of fortune as a deflected clearance bounced off the eventual AFCAA Man of the Match and into the back of the net. This made it 2-2, and The Mighty Oak had the last chance of the match in stoppage time, but no attacker could get a clear shot off, and the referee blew the final whistle, giving both sides a dramatic point.
The draw has ensured that AFC Ann Arbor’s playoff hopes will come down to the final day. AFCAA sits one point ahead of Flint City Bucks (who have a game in hand) with one match remaining in the season, coming this Wednesday against Midwest United FC at 7:30 PM at Hornet Stadium.
About AFC Ann Arbor
Association Football Club Ann Arbor (AFC Ann Arbor) was founded in 2014 and competes in USL2 (men’s) and USLW (women’s) national amateur leagues. We are a community-based club, focused on equity, justice, and anti-racism. We consider all of our stakeholders, including supporters, players, staff, and ownership to be part of the #AFCAAFamily. Come On You Mighty Oak!