June 5, 2022 – United Soccer League Championship (USL) – Hartford Athletic News Release
On a beautiful sunny evening in the Lone Star state with temperatures peaking around 100 degrees by kickoff, Hartford Athletic battled the full 90 minutes to a 1-1 draw with El Paso Locomotive FC. The green and blue’s backline was stellar throughout in a contest that was clearly controlled by the opposition. The Athletic have now secured at least a point in three of the last four games and are slowly building momentum towards gaining ground in the USL Championship’s Eastern Conference playoff standings.
There was minimal action through 10 minutes of play, but Hartford Athletic forward Prince Saydee got the action started with a blazing run down the left sideline, dusting a Locomotive defender in the process. The Liberian’s left-footed cross was intended for forward Corey Hertzog, but veteran El Paso defender Yuma was positioned perfectly, clearing the ball away. The home side was constantly on the attack for much of the first 45 minutes and forced the Athletic defense to be sharp. Mo Jadama stopped multiple surging Locomotive chances and his 16th-minute block after an Aaron Gomez strike inside the box highlighted the Gambian’s night. Perhaps the most aggressive chance from El Paso came in the 42nd minute after defender Nicholas Hinds snuck through the Athletic defense, booming a left-footed strike that was reluctantly saved by sprawling Hartford goalkeeper, Jimmy Slayton. The University of Hartford alum has been outstanding in net all season and made multiple jaw-dropping stops along the way that could have blown open the score.
Hartford was able to regroup with the score level at halftime, but once again their output offensively wasn’t as strong as El Paso. An early second-half substitution of 16-year-old Diego Abarca proved to work out flawlessly in the home side’s favor as his 56th-minute stripe from just inside the box gave Locomotive FC a one-goal advantage….
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