Las Vegas Knights vs. ASC Hammers February 14, 2010; Las Vegas Sports Park
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15 February 2010
The Las Vegas Knights rebounded from their only loss of the season in fine fashion, as they brought down the hammer on ASC Hammers Sunday. The Knights began the match in fine form with an early Goal in the first 5 minutes from Rene Abrego on the first corner of the night; Manny placed the ball to the top of the arc for Rene to fire home. The Hammers responded from a fine piece of individual skill from Juan Mendez who leveled the score with a rocket to the upper 90 to beat the Knights keeper Philip Webb. That was pretty much all the celebrating the Hammers would do on the night, as the Knights responded right back. The team maintained possession and moved the ball well, setting up a fine goal from Ben Stott to the lower left corner on an assist from Esad Morina two minutes later. Continuing their dominance, the Knight's third goal was one of true brilliance! There were a total of 7 one-touch direct passes, beginning with a pass from the back from Steve Lazarus, to the top of the arc, with one final pass from Derik van Gessel to Lucho Suarez to fire home from point blank range. With the Knights on a roll the final goal of the quarter came from a layoff from Manny Kouhaiz to Lucho Suarez who finished brilliantly, 4-1 Knights.
The second quarter began much like the first when Itzik Rapaport placed the ball to Rudy Rodriguez to make it 5-1. The Hammers regrouped and made some good runs, and seemed like they were going to get back into the game, only to be shut down by a strong defensive unit. The Knights Defense: Mitch Jenkins, Travis Norberg, Steve Lazarus, Ken Tegaki, and Josh Copeland, limited the Hammers to shooting from outside of the box. The Hammers, despite the Knight’s fine defensive display managed to place several shots on goal. Knights keeper Philip Webb, playing in fine form, made a series of great saves to prevent ASC from any hopes of getting back into the game. Half time score 5-1.
The Knights continued their great form with solid possession in the midfield by Lucho Suarez, Ben Stott, Esad Morina, Berto Garcia, Derik van Gessel, Rene Abrego, and Rudy Rodriguez; which allowed the Knights to go on a four goal scoring run in the third quarter. Goal number 6 came from a great goal from Lucho Suarez, assisted by Esad Morina, just two minutes into the quarter. Another fine assist from Esad set up Itzik Rapaport to fire home inside the box just a few minutes later. A great run from Travis Norberg up the left side of the field, set up a one-two pass from Manny Kouhaiz for Travis to fire home goal number 8 with five minutes to go in the third quarter. With a minute left in the 3rd , great footwork from Lucho Suarez combined with a solid shot on goal, created a loose ball in front of the net for Rene to tap home; 9-1 Knights.
Although firmly in control of the match to start the fourth quarter, the Knights began a little shaky. The Knights got into foul trouble and started early on a defensive power play. ASC Hammers had several opportunities to score, but solid defense in combination with some fine goal keeping prevented the Hammers from Breaking through. Just when it seemed that the Knights would shut down another defensive power play, a mistake in the back with a bit of unlucky bounce off the board allowed ASC to finish their second and last goal of the night. Despite the mishap, the Knights responded back with another goal to make it 10 on the night. Reestablishing possession in the midfield created an opportunity for Josh Copeland to fire outside the box, which was saved initially off the board by the Hammers keeper, the rebound to be headed home by Itzik Rapaport. The final goal of the Knight came from some strong defensive work in the midfield by Derik van Gessel, which created a turn over, and provided an opportunity for Derik to finish home; 11-2 Knights win.
The Knights are firmly in a position to take their first division title in team history, and book their seat in the Premier Arena Soccer League Finals that will be held March 5th and 6th in Las Vegas. The Knights final task of the season is to host their division rivals San Diego Fusion at home next weekend Sunday, February 21st at 3:00pm. With a win or a draw, the Knights will clinch their first division title since their inaugural season just four years ago. COME OUT AND SUPPORT YOUR LAS VEGAS KNIGHTS IN THEIR QUEST TO WIN THE FIRST TEAM DIVISION TITLE!!!
