Down to 10 Men, Redlands FC Salvage Draw

Saturday night at Dodge Stadium was a battle for a temporary hold of second place in the USL2 Southwest Division. The two teams battling for it, Stars FC and Redlands FC, played like they certainly knew what was at stake. The result was a physical match with plenty of ups and downs. 

Redlands entering the match had only trailed once at home. Stars came in and immediately changed that statistic. In the 11th minute, Ben Assane Fall came streaking down the wing, and blew by the Redlands defense. He then creeped towards the box and rifled one past Redlands keeper Tait Whittemore to make it 1-0. 

Despite conceding first, Redlands quickly became the better team. They dominated the  next half hour of play, but could not get a clean shot on net to test keeper Noah Lawrence outside of one lofted ball that was punched over the crossbar. A new first for Redlands came, and it was being down on home turf at halftime. 

The first 25 minutes of the second half looked identical to the final 30 of the first. Redlands attacked and dominated possession, but a handful of corners, wide shots, and a crossbar kept them from equalizing. 

Then, for what felt like the first time in forever, Stars sprung a counterattack. A long ball forced Redlands defender Matti Richter to take his man down. Richter was given a yellow card, his second of the game after a previous delay of game/unsporting behavior yellow, resulting in a red card. Redlands were now down a goal and down a man. 

But that did not phase the home side. Just moments after the red card, Redlands was on the prowl again. After a miscalculated gamble by the Stars high press, Redlands sprung free, before a tackle in the box granted Redlands a penalty. Efren Nunez stepped up, and got the keeper guessing the wrong way. In the 77th minute, the game was level at 1-1. 

The next 13 minutes of normal time, plus an extra 7 of stoppage time, featured a wide open game. Both teams had their opportunities, but neither could finish. The final whistle blew, and Redlands and Stars each earned a point. 

The point for Redlands is an important one. Now, if Redlands and Stars both win out, they will be equal on points. But Redlands currently holds the tiebreaker thanks to their +9 goal differential, compared to Stars +5. 

It also means that if Redlands wins out in their final three matches, they would be Southwest Division champions without needing any help. But it would likely require beating first place Ventura County on the final matchday. As for securing second place beforehand, that will depend on how Stars performs leading up to the final week of the season. 

For now, Redlands looks ahead to July 2nd as they take on Capo FC. Capo is a squad Redlands have already beaten once this season on the road. Now, they will face them inside Dodge Stadium. Redlands FC’s annual hot dog eating contest will also occur during halftime. See Redlands_FC on Instagram to sign-up.

For tickets and more information, visit redlandsfootballclub.com.