The Chattanooga Red Wolves have achieved a decisive domination over Charlotte Independence, with a final score of 4-2.
The fight was on in uptown Charlotte as Chattanooga arrived for their long-awaited rematch with the Jacks. The Wolves took the charge early with several powerful presses, one of which allowed for a long cross by Lombardi that was barely deflected by an Independence man.
The tone was set in the 13th with a goal from Charlotte’s Souaibou Marou, a header that flung totally opposite Smith. Faced with a deficit, the Wolves stepped things up, keeping their opponents barred for the rest of the half. They took four shots on target, including an impressive yet disallowed goal by Aaron Lombardi that was ruled offside.
The second half was when the Wolves set the pitch ablaze. In the 50th, Lombardi received a backheel from Pedro Hernandez and slammed a shot into the back of the net. Charlotte keeper Matt Levy had no time to even move before being beaten. Just eleven minutes later, Lombardi earned a brace, scoring on an assist from Omar Hernandez and again firing by Levy before he had a chance to react.
Fueled by the fire of their advantage, Chattanooga continued to press. Charlotte slipped in again in the 65th, equalized with a bouncing shot over Smith. Not to be outdone, the Wolves strove for more. A flying kick by Angelo Kelly nearly turned the score back in Chattanooga’s favor, but the shot went just over the crossbar.
The back-and-forth carried on in heavy tension. As the clock neared the final fifteen minutes, the fervor within both teams was loud and clear. Kinzner had been given a yellow card, and two had been issued to Charlotte. The two sides seemed bound for high-scoring bouts, with the history of the Wolves’ 2-3 loss earlier in the season coming to mind—that was, until the 88th, when a cross from Omar Gomez was thundered in by Pedro Hernandez. Just like that, it became impossible for the past to repeat itself.
Charlotte surrendered to desperation. They surged forward, begging not to have both their 10-match unbeaten and unbeaten home streaks taken in one night. Briefly after Pedro’s goal, they equalized, until the point was ruled as clearly offsides.
The Jacks’ final opportunity to tie appeared in stoppage time, when a shot on target was deflected by Smith, out for a corner. At this juncture, it was all Charlotte could do to at least take a draw, and so they pulled keeper Levy into the Wolves’ box. They had the corner. They had the numbers. Yet as the shot flew, it found not a Jacks man, but the head of defender Christian Engmann.
Bouncing it out of the box, the Wolves chained the ball to a breakaway. Levy hesitated, then flew as fast as he could toward his net. Gomez passed to Ayimbila, who with unmatched speed carried it past Levy. Levy and one last Independence man challenged the swift #33 to beat him to their goal, but a final, pristine touch sent the shot whirling in—and propelled Chattanooga to a whopping 4-2 victory, shattering both of Charlotte’s impressive streaks and earning a well-deserved three points on the road.
Want more heart-stopping action like this? Come on out and join the Red Wolves for their next game, a home match against reigning league champions One Knoxville.