Monterey Bay Earns Point with Wild 2-2 Finish Against Memphis 901 FC in Seaside

May 12, 2024 – United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Monterey Bay FC News Release

SEASIDE, California – Monterey Bay F.C. (4-3-3, 15 points) earned a point against Memphis 901 FC (3-5-0, 9 points) with a 2-2 result that featured a wild finish at Cardinale Stadium, presented by Britannia Arms. Mobi Fehr scored the opening goal of the match in the first half, and after falling down 2-1, Tristan Trager bagged a 90th minute equalizer to save the night and secure a point. 19-year-old Xavi Gnaulati made both his home and league debut for the Union as a second-half substitute in the match, four days after making his overall Club debut in midweek U.S. Open Cup play.

After absorbing some early pressure from the visitors, Monterey Bay earned its own solid spell of possession around the 8th minute. That possession resulted in a couple of rapid fire chances, however the hosts were unable to capitalize. In the 22nd minute, Trager was chopped down in the box after slicing through two defenders, but Alex Dixon’s right-footed effort from the spot was saved low and to the goalkeeper’s right. Monterey Bay found the breakthrough in the 35th minute of the match when Dixon played the ball ahead to Carlos Guzmán down the left sideline. Guzmán flicked the ball over his defender on the left edge of the box before firing a low pass across the face of goal. Fehr crashed into the six with a sliding effort and smashed the ball into the back of the net to give the Crisp-and-Kelp the 1-0 lead at the break.

15 minutes into the second half, Memphis 901 FC’s Marlon whipped a low ball across the six yard box, but it was interrupted by Antony Siaha. With the saved ball rolling inside the endline, Siaha was forced to chase it to the corner flag before clearing it downfield. The clearance landed at the feet of Memphis’ Akeem Ward, and with Siaha currently out of goal, Ward looked up and fired off a shot from distance. With the net open, the ball looked to be headed for goal, but Siaha trekked back with pace and leaped into the air to push the shot over the crossbar. However, just nine minutes later, Memphis 901 FC’s Bruno Lapa finally managed to put the visitors on the board, leveling the match at 1-1. Monterey Bay earned a corner kick in the 79th minute of the match that resulted in a scramble in the box, but the final header by Trager from inside the six missed over the top of the crossbar. Monterey Bay pushed ahead again and earned a free kick in the 80th minute, but the…