October 4, 2024 – United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Hartford Athletic News Release
On The Table: Hartford Athletic: Ninth in the East (37 points) | Loudoun United: Eighth in the East (38 points)
Hartford Athletic host Loudoun United tomorrow night in their most significant match of the season so far, with the chance to bring themselves into playoff positioning for the first time since May 18th.
SETTING THE SCENE
Hartford Athletic can jump ahead of Loudoun United FC into eighth place in the East for the final playoff spot with five matches left in the 2024 campaign. With the result of this match being a potential six-point swing, this contest is pivotal for the playoff push for both sides. The fans in the 860 and the 203 have rallied behind the Green and Blue, supporting the team to an 8-3-4 record at Trinity Health Stadium this season. In fact, Athletic haven’t lost a match at home since June 21st in a closely contested 1-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Rowdies after a heart-breaking penalty goal by Manuel Arteaga in the 87th minute. Coincidentally, the Rowdies were the team that Loudoun last beat on the road, posting a 2-0 victory at Al Lang Stadium on August 17th. Athletic have a challenging road trip set up for the final stretch of the season, as the three teams in the remaining away matches have a combined 19-12-9 home record.
SCHEDULE SHAKEUP
Due to the impacts of Hurricane Helene, Hartford’s match at the Tampa Bay Rowdies was postponed last week. A reschedule date is still to be announced.
LAST TIME OUT
Hartford Athletic are coming off a commanding 2-0 victory over Oakland Roots SC at home on Saturday, September 21st. They came out on the front foot, putting four shots on target before Marlon Hairston cleaned up a Triston Hodge rebound to give the home side the early lead. Oakland forced two comfortable saves from Renan Ribeiro the rest of the half, and Mamadou Dieng hit the post for Hartford in the 38th minute. Just 11 minutes into the second 45, Jordan Scarlett was given a red card for a hard tackle on Irakoze Donasiyano. Down a man, Ribeiro and Hartford staved off eight shots before Kyle Edwards doubled Athletic’s lead. Thomas Vancaeyezeele hustled to possess a deflected ball off a free kick in the box, played it over to Edwards, and the striker from St. Vincent buried his first goal of the season to the bottom right side of the net. With a sold-out home crowd in a raucous state, the Green and Blue charged through the final 20 minutes of the match to…
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