Asheville City SC threw everything and the kitchen sink at USL League One side Greenville Triumph SC Tuesday night, forcing penalties after 120 minutes of scoreless action between the two Carolina sides. However, Sebastian Velasquez drove the nail in the coffin on Asheville’s chances of advancing, scoring the winning penalty as the Triumph took the shootout 4-3.
“Someone actually got in my head from the crowd and they reminded me of 2013, of the MLS Cup where I missed a PK and he kept saying my name and saying ‘I remember Kansas City’,” Velasquez recalled.
Velasquez, who was born in Colombia but grew up in the Upstate of South Carolina, felt this was his chance to redeem himself with this Greenville team and for his hometown. For Triumph head coach Rick Wright, he believed Velasquez would seal the deal and send Greenville to the next round.
“We know it’s never over until it’s over he’s very secure. He’s a vet, you know? He’s our last guy,” Wright said.
Despite a rather uneventful first half, Greenville were the more dominant side but neither them or Asheville could find their place in the match. The first big chance for either side came in the 57th minute when Asheville’s Simon Carlson took a shot well beyond 25 yards but it flew over the bar. A few minutes later, Greenville’s Leo Castro saw his shot saved by Francois Djiba. The Triumph had a chance to seal it in the 87th minute but Ropapa Mensah’s shot went just wide.
In added extra time, it was Asheville City who were the more dominating side, with big chances coming in the 95th, 101st and 109th minutes. The 101st was the biggest chance where the ball trickled into the center of the box, right to Asheville’s Robby Lyons only to see it sail over the crossbar.
“You’re going to miss chances like that but he’s a strong kid. He’ll learn from it but overall, his performance was fantastic,” said Asheville City head coach Scott Wells following the loss.
In the shootout, both sides traded goals in the first two rounds. Greenville took advantage after Asheville’s Victor Stromsten saw his spot kick saved by Seth Torman. Asheville managed to get the advantage back after Ropapa Mensah had his penalty saved, only to see the advantage dissipate in the next penalty as Johnny Fenwick hit it with too much power and it caromed off the crossbar.
Enter Sebastian Velasquez, who slotted the penalty home with ease and went on to celebrate with the traveling fans that made the roughly 60-plus mile journey from the Upstate to Greenwood Field in Asheville Tuesday night.
“We’re not happy about the performance but I think resilience brought us together as a team and we were able to win,” Velasquez said.
The Triumph will take on fellow USL League One side Westchester SC in the next round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. That match is set to be played on either April 1st or 2nd.
No matter what, Wright said his team is looking forward to the next round.
“We’ve upset some people before, you know. We beat Oakland a couple of years ago,” Wright recalled, also mentioning the scares his side gave Louisville City and Charlotte FC in the past few seasons. “Like you say, the magic of the cup. I know that the guys look forward to it.”
