Utica Stifles Blast off the Back of de Andrade’s Stellar Performance in 8-5 Victory

February 4, 2024 – Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) – Utica City FC News Release

UTICA, NY – Exactly one week removed from a 7-3 victory over the Kansas City Comets, Utica City FC returned to action with a home tilt against the Baltimore Blast. Utica, with two wins against Baltimore under its belt this season, would make it 3 with an 8-5 victory over the Blast.

It was the man on fire for Utica to get the scoring started. Nilton de Andrade found a ball at the 6:02 mark and fired a low effort that skimmed along the turf and into the net. The goal marked the continuation of a now 9-game point streak for de Andrade. Thirty seconds later, Baltimore would make it 1-1 with a top-left strike from Victor Parreiras. The scoring continued in quick fashion as Juan Alava came crashing down on a loose ball in front to tap home-giving UCFC a one-goal lead again at the 7:19 mark. Those three goals, all scored within 80 seconds, would be the only goals of the first, and Utica would take a 2-1 lead into the second.

The game would settle down in the second, with UCFC goalkeeper Brian Wilkin saving a lone early chance for Baltimore at the 3:19 mark. The next opportunity would come for Utica at the 9:23 mark, with Steven Fernandez receiving a perfect pass from Moh Ndiaye and clipping a ball into the Baltimore net for a 3-1 lead. Wilkin would come up big with two saves in the closing stages of the first half, preserving a two-goal lead for the home side as the teams headed in for halftime.

Six minutes into the third, Utica would add on to the lead as Franck Tayou blasted a shot to the left of the boards that found Ronaldinho Diniz waiting in the box, and it was a simple finish for Ronaldinho’s 13th goal of the season. Alava would get a blue card shortly after for kicking, and on the ensuing power play Juan Pereira would rifle a shot top left and make it a 4-2 game. Four minutes later, at the 12:33 mark in the third, Baltimore would cut into the lead again with a thunderous strike from Parreiras to make the score 4-3 heading into the final frame of action.

With the game close, UCFC needed a solid fourth quarter to pull away from Baltimore. Tayou got the scoring started at the 4:17 mark, receiving a pass from de Andrade off of the wall, driving forward and firing a ball into the net for a 5-3 scoreline. De Andrade would then score his own, getting his second goal of the game with a laser past the Baltimore keeper for 6-3. Baltimore, never out of it, would pull goalkeeper…