July 10, 2022 – United Soccer League Championship (USL) – Monterey Bay FC News Release
IRVINE, California – Monterey Bay F.C. (5-11-1, 16 points) defeated defending USL Championship Title Winners Orange County SC 2-0 at Championship Soccer Stadium in Irvine on Saturday night. Chase Boone and Christian Volesky scored for the Crisp and Kelp, Antony Siaha earned a clean sheet in his debut professional start, and the Union walked away with all three points.
Possession was even throughout the first 25 minutes of the contest as both sides felt out the match before Orange County SC began to create opportunities. In the 26th minute, the hosts fired a shot from the top-right corner of the box that took a deflection off of a Monterey Bay F.C. defender and out for a corner. The ensuing corner was headed away by Walmer Martínez, but was quickly crossed back into the box for a headed attempt that missed over the crossbar. In the 36th minute, Morey Doner drew a foul in the opponent’s half that led to a quick restart of play by Robbie Crawford. Crawford immediately found Boone in space on the left side of the box, who turned and slotted the ball inside the near post to give the Crisp and Kelp the 1-0 lead at the halftime break.
Two minutes into the second half, Orange County SC forced Siaha into an impressive diving save at the near post, keeping the home side off the board. Still pressing for the equalizer, Orange County whipped a ball into the box in the 60th minute, but Siaha leaped up and snatched the cross out of the air to thwart yet another close chance for the hosts. Two minutes later, a fantastic ball from James Murphy set Doner up perfectly on the tail end of a run down the right flank. Doner fired a grass-burning ball into the box and Volesky tucked it into the back of the net to double the visitor’s lead at 2-0. The Union found themselves with two more chances to extend the lead late in the match. In the second minute of added time, Jason Johnson found Boone open in the center of the box, but his shot skied over the crossbar. A second chance in rapid succession came from Adrian Rebollar, but his run ended with a shot that missed just wide of the near post. A minute later, the referee blew the final whistle on a solid performance from the visitors, ending the match at 2-0 in favor of the Union.
Man of the Match: Morey Doner earned Man of the Match honors with his stellar overall performance in Irvine. The speedy defender won all eight of his duels,…