LEXINGTON, Ky. – Lexington Sporting Club concluded its home USL League One schedule against Charlotte Independence on Saturday.
The match also stood as the final home USL League One contest for the club after the announcement of its move to the USL Championship.
Things got off to a strong start for the home Greens as, after Ates Diouf was downed just outside the box, scoring ace Cameron Lancaster sent the ball home into the left corner of the net for a 1-0 advantage in the 22nd minute.
Regrettably for the home side, after one Charlotte goal would be called back for offside, the second would not as a deflection by Amal Knight was caught by Juan Carlos Obregon Jr., who easily slid it into the net for an equalizer.
Independence FC would get a second before the halftime break in the 41st as Luis Alvarez was found by Joel Johnson for the score.
Following four minutes of stoppage time, the officials blew play dead for halftime with Charlotte up 2-1.
Coming back out for the second half of action, things remained tense with both sides putting up scoring chances, but, ultimately, no more goals would come in regulation.
That’s not to say the contest didn’t have any further goals, however, as, in the 90+5th minute, the wind of fate blew in Lexington’s direction as Alexis Cerritos slotted a ball into the back of the net after an assist from Abel Caputo.
“It was a great feeling for sure, I wasn’t really thinking about it at the moment. I wanted to go get the third but it was nice to do it in the stadium with (the fans) watching,” Cerritos said. “Thank you guys (fans) for always coming out and supporting in the good times and bad times. I feel like we have a good group and obviously we didn’t provide the results that we wanted. But I hope we can do that next year and I hope we have the same support as this year as well.”
The goal, which sent the home fans into a frenzy, would be the final of the contest as the full-time whistle delivered a 2-2 final score.
“It’s a game where we felt like we wanted more and felt we should’ve gotten more,” Lexington Head Coach Darren Powell said. “Some draws feel like a loss and some feel like a win, I feel like tonight felt more like a win. All the players contributed tonight, people came into the game later and really helped the team and urged them on. I would also say the fans were fantastic to inspire the team and get behind them. That was a special moment.”
Lexington controlled the possession in the match, holding onto the ball 63.9% of the time while Charlotte won in expected goals with a 1.78-1.07 advantage.
Lexington SC will conclude its USL League One season on the road at CHI Memorial Stadium in Chattanooga, Tennessee, against the Chattanooga Red Wolves. Kickoff against Red Wolves SC is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET and will air live on ESPN+.
About Lexington Sporting Club
Lexington Sporting Club is a U.S. Soccer professional soccer club competing in USL League One (U.S. Soccer third division men’s professional soccer), and in USL Super League (women’s professional soccer launching in 2024). The two professional teams are the pinnacle of the soccer ecosystem in Lexington that features more than 1,000 players within its youth and academy systems. Lexington SC in the process of building the club’s formal stadium, performance center and training fields.