Duluth FC vs. Dakota Fusion
Moorhead, MN
June 3, 2023 | Matchday 6
Current 2023 Records (W-L-T):
Duluth: 6-0-0
Fusion: 2-1-1
Starting XI: Ezekiel Foltz, Myles Edmondson, Jake Starling, Santiago Erazo, Stefan Roeb, Conor Behan, Andres Solaes, Rory Doyle, Liam Pritchard, Tyler Limmer, Kostya Domaratskyy
Substitutions: Colin O’Mahony for Edmondson, Cian Gantley for Roeb, Felipe Santos for Limmer, Paul Bobai for Behan, Dylan Zavatini for Erazo, Felipe Arteaga for Pritchard
Goals:
15’ – Stefan Roeb (DFC)
17’ – Stefan Roeb (DFC)
23’ – Tyler Limmer (DFC)
45’ – Kostya Damaratskyy (DFC)
58’ – Dakota Fusion
69’ – Paul Bobai (DFC)
Duluth returned to the road on Saturday, June 3, following a two-game home stand, looking to earn their sixth win of the season in Moorhead against the Dakota Fusion. It was a matchup that promised possibilities, with the Fusion earning an upset win against Duluth at home last season. In 2023, however, the story was different. Duluth won, and they won with style.
It was fullback Stefan Roeb who proved to be Duluth’s biggest early threat in the final third as the match began, scoring goals in the 15th and 17th minutes to give Duluth an early lead on the road. Just six minutes later, Tyler Limmer flicked on a close range shot to make it 3-0 for the BlueGreens.
A clever shot from the edge of the box from Kostya Domaratskyy snuck into the far corner of the net to make it 4-0 just before halftime, giving Duluth its second 4-0 halftime lead of the season so far.
The second half, which featured a range of substitutions, saw both teams lock into a quieter 45 minutes of soccer. The Dakota Fusion scored in the 58th minute to narrow the gap, but substitute Paul Bobai got the last touch on a run from Domaratskyy to re-extend Duluth’s lead to 5-1.
The result gives Duluth an impressive 6-0-0 start to the season, meaning they have beat every single team in their conference and now have the chance to double things up in the second half of the season.
Med City and the Dakota Fusion remain the clearest competitors with Duluth for the conference’s top spots, but the BlueGreens’ statement wins against both teams this week show Duluth has no intention of letting go of first place. The win also comes days before Duluth will host the Minnesota United U19’s in a Minnesota Super Cup game on June 7.
The other results on Saturday were a 5-3 win for Joy Athletic against the Minnesota TwinStars and a 2-1 win for La Crosse Aris over the Sioux Falls Thunder.
