JOHNSTON, RI – It was a milestone first win for new Stockade FC Head Coach Jamal Lis-Simmons and it came with plenty of late drama. Stockade FC traveled to Rhode Island on Saturday for a match-up with Rhode Island Reds which was full of dramatics.
Mikey Lanzetta opened the scoring for Stockade FC 12’ minutes into the match after Juan Parada played a short free kick to Alejandro Riquelme. Riquelme played a looping ball over the Red’s back line and Lanzetta timed his run perfectly for a gorgeous back post finish.
Jared Mazzola was impressive in his starting debut for Stockade FC. The Quinnipiac keeper made 7 saves in the match including a monumental 42’ minute one-handed stop which looked sure to bring the home side level before halftime.
The Reds controlled much of play in the early stages of the second half as they pushed for an equalizer which they finally found through a Gentian Selimi strike in the 62’ minute. The final 30 minutes of the match saw much back-and-forth attacking as play opened.
The match dramatics were far from over when Juan Parada stepped up for the final corner of the match and delivered a stunning back post ball which Tyler Swanbeck was able to head down and direct into the back of the net to give Stockade FC a thrilling 2-1 win in the 90+ minute allowing Kingston to return home with all 3 points.
“I’m proud of the way our guys fought tonight. I thought we played well in the first half creating some quality opportunities,” said Jamal Lis-Simmons. “The second half we were under much more pressure and had a harder time finding our rhythm, but our guys continued to grind and we were able to find the winner late. It’s always tough to win on the road and it took a real team effort to earn these 3 points.”
Earning debuts in the Starting XI was Noah Robinson, a St. Joseph’s College of Maine standout who spent 2018 with former-NPSL foe Seacoast United Mariners before joining the club this year, and Paul Makaj, a freshman for Fordham men’s soccer and former Arlington High School star. The day also marked debuts for a few others off the Stockade FC bench. Joey Landicino (Stonybrook), Cam LaVallee (Cortland) and Vinny Colantuono (URI) all made significant impacts off the bench for Lis-Simmons in their first matches with the club.
“We came out hot and we were able to create a lot of solid chances in the first half. We weren’t able to bury them. but credit to the boys for showing resilience and battling to the very last minute,” said Technical Director Dan Hoffay.
The late heroics send Stockade FC (1W, 1L, 1T) back home to Kingston for two Memorial Day Weekend matches at Dietz Stadium. On Friday May 24 at 7PM, Stockade FC hosts New York Athletic Club and on Sunday May 26 at 6PM, Stockade FC hosts Hartford City FC at Dietz Stadium.
Stockade Man of the Match: Jared Mazzola (Stockade FC #00) the Quinnipiac GK made 7 saves including a monster one handed diving stop in the first half. Mazzola kept Stockade FC level during a 20 minute flurry of chances for RI Reds in the second half as they searched for the lead. Mazzola’s play ultimately allowed Stockade FC to find the lead on a 90’+ 3 Goal to claim all 3 points in Rhode Island!
