Following back-to-back wins over rival Joy Athletic Club, the Bluegreens are back in Duluth to face Minnesota Blizzard FC in a matchup between two teams atop the North Conference early in the season.
The two teams fought hard for position early on, finding opportunities, especially in the fourth minute when the speedy Roy Nazawa dribbled in close before his pass to Seth Davidson was deflected, leaving Duluth with two corner kicks that they weren’t able to capitalize on.
In the eighth minute, it was once again Roy Nazawa on a lead pass coming from Akim Sulemana, after drawing the Blizzard goalkeeper, Daniel Burgos, out of the 6-yard box, Nazawa attempted a lob shot that was just within reach for Burgos, to keep it knotted at 0-0.
A possession later, Nathan Porter received a pass in the box for a header opportunity but was called for offside. The Blizzard immediately charged down the field, led by Ethan Snyder, who passed a few defenders before his shot was saved by Augustin Warnod.
Following many more minutes of back-and-forth soccer, it was the Blizzard capitalizing on a turnover in the 25th minute by the Bluegreens’ backline, and Snyder took advantage, stealing possession before firing a shot past Warnod to take the 1-0 lead.
In the 33rd minute, Roy Nazawa received his second yellow card, forcing him out of the match and leaving Duluth shorthanded for the remainder of the match.
“I think it’s less about personnel and more about just overall assignment,” said Bluegreens Head Coach William Maanstroem about his team’s reaction to losing a player. “Everybody on the team knows what it takes to win and everyone wants to win.”
A few minutes later, Cian McGoey for the Blizzard found an opening on the left side; McGoey shifted to the middle as he looked to add another goal on the board, but at the last moment, his shot was deflected by Mateus Valsecchi.
In a wild 42nd minute, starting with a corner kick by The Blizzard that was deflected away, their offense reset, leaving Liam Corr open on the near side, where he was able to fire a crossing shot that the keeper couldn’t stop, but after further conversations between the referees, they deemed Corr offside.
In the first half’s extra time, it was back-and-forth action until a corner kick set up Snyder for a header that went wide, leaving the score at 1-0 for the halftime break.
To open the second half, a Reece Black corner kick was headed by Corr and then Snyder, whose shot was eventually kicked away by Davidson.
In the 50th minute, Akim Sulemana gathered a lead pass surrounded by a flurry of Blizzard defenders and was able to dribble out of the coverage and find Gabriel Rossman, who fired a shot just wide of the net, keeping the score at 1-0.
The Bluegreens’ best opportunity for the equalizing goal came in the 58th minute as Davidson began a run at midfield before passing to Sulemana, who reversed sides, finding Kenjy Vertil-Dorelus for a shot in goal, but the goal was taken away again due to offside.
Following a run by Davidson in the 65th minute, which was stopped by a great Blizzard tackle, leaving the ball alone, the Bluegreens’ Sulemana snatched it up, leaving a short pass for Davidson in front of the goal to set up his own give-and-go as Davidson gave it back to Sulemana for a chip-shot equalizer goal at 1-1.
“I feel like we have a really good chemistry from day one since we got here. We talk a lot about those little one-twos very often, and I feel like we (are) a team that’s not selfish, so if I ask for it, most of the time it’s coming back,” said Sulemana.
Over the next few minutes, Bluegreens did a good job keeping possession on their feet, but weren’t able to get past the Blizzard backline until the 85th minute, when Matheus Gomes had a shot on goal but couldn’t convert.
A Blizzard corner kick in the 87th minute was the next opportunity on goal for either team, but the shot by Alexander Estrada Cortez was deflected by Joseph Wilson, which allowed the Bluegreens to quickly reverse the field. Joao Magalhaes led the charge and found Sam Carles breaking away on the left side, who tried to pass it back to Sulemana, but the connection was broken, and it went out of bounds.
In extra time, the Blizzard looked to take advantage of multiple corner kicks and wide defensive spacing to score with one opportunity, pulling Warnod more than 20 yards out of the goal before he used the header to keep it with the Bluegreens.
Following a foul on Magalhaes a few minutes later, Duluth’s corner kick opportunity was deflected out but picked up by Dylan Vaughn, whose shot was left short, rebounded by Matthew Locher, who collided with multiple Blizzard defenders, losing the ball, and the rest of extra time was much of the same, leaving the game as a draw 1-1.
“To be a man down and a goal down, to come back and, in my honest opinion, have a few really good chances to win the game, it shows it comes down to more than just what I say,” said Maanestroem on the team’s comeback draw.
