Orlando City B vs. Greenville Triumph SC: Final Score 1-0 as Late Goal Sinks Young Lions

Orlando City B (3-10-4, 13 points) nearly held on for a draw after a short week, a trip to South Carolina, and a long weather delay. But with just two minutes remaining in regular time, Aaron Walker provided the winner as the Young Lions fell 1-0 to Greenville Triumph SC.

OCB made some changes to the lineup this week after pulling out a late draw at home Wednesday night. Juliano Chade, who usually starts in goal, was on the bench for this one, replaced by Christian Herrera. Wilfred Williams also entered the starting lineup at center back, replacing the suspended Matheus Silva, who received two yellow cards Wednesday night.

The first big moment in this game came in the 18th minute. Cole Seiler sent a cross into the box, which was played poorly by Leonardo Simas. His heavy first touch sent him toward the end line, where he was converged on by Greenville attackers. He was able to play the ball forward for Thiago Souza, but Souza’s touch sent him back into the box. As Jake Keegan reached the ball first, Sozua stuck his foot out and tripped the forward. Referee Gustavo Solorio had no choice but to point to the spot.

Keegan stepped up to take the kick but it was a poor attempt. The ball was at the right height for Herrera, who guessed the right way and stuck his right hand in the air to make the save.

Just after the penalty was saved by Herrera, the players were called off the field as lightning was in the area. The delay lasted for about two hours and 40 minutes. By the time the game had restarted, the fans had been asked to leave the facility and the remainder of the game was behind closed doors.

There was a flurry of action early in the second half with both teams having opportunities on goal. In the 47th minute, Omar Mohamed carried the ball into the box and found former OCB midfielder Paul Clowes at the top of the area. He fired on goal but the shot was over the target.

A minute later, Walker stole the ball on the OCB half of the field and took a long shot. The low strike forced Herrera to go down to his right to make the stop. Shortly after that save, Simas found Tresor Mbuyu to the left of goal. Beating his man into the box, Mbuyu attempted a shot from a tight angle but Greenville goalkeeper Dallas Jaye went down to make the save.

Greenville had the next good chance in the 85th minute. Quick passing between Walker and Seiler allowed Maxwell Hemmings to find space outside the box. His hard, low shot was on target and forced Herrera to dive to his left to make a nice save.

In the 88th minute, OCB wasn’t so fortunate. After Chris Bermudez received a ball from Tyler Polak, he was taken down hard by Ates Diouf. As some of the OCB players slowed down, apparently assuming a foul would be called, the ball found Walker at the top of the box. His low strike skipped past Herrera and into the OCB net.

The 1-0 loss was a fair result as OCB was outplayed. It was a tough task for the young team, having a quick turnaround after playing Wednesday night. The long delay after just 20 minutes didn’t make things any easier. Greenville held 59% of the possession in this game and out-shot the Young Lions, 14-10. While Greenville hit the target four times in the game, OCB was only able to manage one shot on target.

The loss is OCB’s 10th this season, making the Young Lions the first USL League One team to hit double-digit losses. Despite this, they remain in ninth place in the league, a point ahead of the Richmond Kickers. However, OCB has played the most games in the league this season with 17 — two more than the Kickers.

After playing two games in separate locations this week, OCB will have a full week to rest and prepare to take on last-place Richmond in Virginia next Saturday night.