Orlando City B vs. Richmond Kickers: Final Score 2-1 as Young Lions’ Woes Continue

Orlando City B (1-8-3, 6 points) fell 2-1 to the Richmond Kickers (7-3-2, 23 points) tonight in a makeup game in Virginia. Two first-half goals were enough for the Kickers to hold onto the win but OCB scored its first goal in nearly five-and-a-half games. Wilfredo Rivera provided the OCB goal.

OCB’s lineup for this game saw Jonathan Rosales and Mason Lamb re-enter the lineup in the back. Raul Aguilera was given the armband with Mateo Rodas missing and Teddy Ndje got his second start of the season. A strange tweak in the lineup saw Moises Tablante, OCB’s biggest attacking threat, play left back.

It was a tough 90 minutes for the Young Lions as they were unable to achieve any type of offensive attack until the very end and played the final 22 minutes a man down. In the seventh minute of the game, Aguilera took a shot that was blocked right off his foot by Greg Boehme. OCB would not be able to get another shot off for the next 67 minutes.

As for the Kickers, they had plenty of chances. In the 13th minute, a free kick by ex-OCB player Ryley Kraft reached the back post where Ivan Magalhaes was waiting. The defender got his head on the ball but hit it just wide of the target.

Four minutes later, they had another great opportunity when a poor clearance by Tablante fell to Boehme. The midfielder took a quick shot on goal but it sailed high of the target and the Young Lions escaped again.

Richmond’s leading scorer this season, Emiliano Terzaghi, had his best chance of the game in the 26th minute. The striker found some space just outside the box and shot toward the far post. OCB goalkeeper Austin Aviza did well to dive to his right for the save.

The ensuing corner kick finally provided a breakthrough for Richmond. A night of poor clearances finally caught up to OCB as the Kickers scored the opening goal. After the long corner was headed back across the box, Ndje’s poor clearance went right to Jonathan Bolanos, who didn’t miss his chance, slamming the ball into the back of the net.

The Kickers doubled their lead in the 43rd minute when Franklin Carabali took down Bolanos in the box. The referee didn’t reach for his pocket but pointed to the spot. Having already scored once, Bolanos wasn’t going to let anyone else take the penalty he earned. The decision turned out well for Richmond as Bolanos put the ball right down the middle, easily beating the diving Aviza.

The hosts started the second half where they left off the first, creating chances on goal. A giveaway on the OCB side of the field allowed Richmond to attack once again. Terzaghi found an open Boehme, who wasn’t closed down by Carabali. Fortunately for OCB, the wide open shot was over the crossbar and safely out of play.

A bad game got worse in the 68th minute when Tablante was cautioned for a late challenge. The midfielder-turned-defender had previously been cautioned for a similar offense in the 35th minute, resulting in a yellow. The sending off meant the Young Lions were down to 10 men for the final 22 minutes of the game.

In the 89th minute, Richmond was given its second penalty of the game. Wahab Ackwei found fellow substitute Oalex Anderson in the box but the attacker’s first touch was too strong. However, he beat Daniel Rosario to the ball and the defender’s challenge was far too late.

While Anderson seemed insistent on taking the penalty, it was Stanley Alves that ultimately took the kick. He aimed for just inside the right post but Aviza guessed the right way, going down to make the stop and keeping the deficit at two.

Three minutes into injury time, the game got interesting. Jonathan Rosales sent a low cross into the box for Rivera, who was charging toward the near post. The defender, Magalhaes, lost his footing, allowing Rivera to get his right foot to the ball. The accuracy by Rivera was perfect as the ball went into the far corner.

It was OCB’s first goal since Sept. 3 when Jose Quintero scored against North Texas SC. The team went just over 510 minutes of play between goals. While OCB was thoroughly dominated in this game, it was something positive to take away.

The final possession numbers were pretty even as the Kickers held just 51% possession throughout the game. But most of their possession was in the OCB final third while the Young Lions’ possession was largely in their own half of the field. The more important numbers were that OCB was outshot 16-7 and 7-1 in shots on target.

In the end, it’s another close loss for OCB as the Young LIons remain at the bottom of the USL League One table. While the team was largely dominated in this game, they get a big monkey off their backs by ending their long goalless streak. They’ll try to turn that goal into points on Saturday when they host Chattanooga Red Wolves SC.