Chattanooga, TN (May 24, 2026) - Carolina Core FC came up short in a hard-fought road battle on Saturday, falling 1-0 to Chattanooga FC after a tightly contested match decided by a single goal in the second half.
The Core found themselves under pressure early as Chattanooga controlled much of the opening stretch and repeatedly tested the Foxes' back line. Despite the sustained attacking pressure from the Tennessee side, The Core remained strong defensively with Mohamed Diakite making key plays to help keep the match level through the opening stages.
The Core gathered momentum throughout the half, finding some success down the right sideline to test the Chattanooga defense. The biggest moment in the opening 45 minutes came before halftime when goalkeeper Nick Holliday produced a tremendous goal-line stop in the 45th minute to preserve the clean sheet. His third save of the half ensured the match remained scoreless heading into the break.
The second half carried the same physical, back-and-forth intensity, with neither side willing to surrender control in midfield. Chattanooga eventually found the breakthrough in the 59th minute when Alex Krehl connected on a low-driven cross for a close-range finish.
The Core responded with resilience, keeping possession in the opposing half to force multiple defensive stops from the Chattanooga side. Goalkeeper Nick Holliday continued to provide a steady presence in goal, coming up with another impressive save through a notable lower-body block to keep the deficit within reach as Carolina pushed for a late equalizer.
Play would come to a halt as the match was temporarily suspended due to a weather delay in the 93rd minute.
Once play resumed, The Foxes put the lead under pressure, nearly finding a late equalizer in the 94th minute when Tim Zeegers nearly connected on a dangerous swinging cross flashed across the box.
The Core now look to bounce back as they return home Saturday, May 30 at 6 p.m. ET to host Red Bull New York II.
MATCH DETAILS
Date: May 24, 2026
Competition: MLS NEXT Pro
Venue: Finley Stadium Davenport Field | Chattanooga, TN
Kickoff: 3.00 p.m. ET
Weather: 75 degrees, Cloudy
SCORING SUMMARY
FT 0-1
CFC - '59 Alexander Krehl
LINEUPS
CCFC: Nick Holliday; Nelson Martinez, Santiago Yepes ('86 Charles Orbaugh), Mohamed Diakite, Dominique Colon; Tim Zeegers, Robert Montenegro ('61 Nolan Evers), Thomas Raimbault (72' Corey Lundeen); David Diaz ('61 Antonio Pineda), Dyllan John ('45 Arnaud Tattevin), Anthony Sumo Jr.
Substitutes not used: Charles Alenga, Robinson Aguirre, Trevor Jackson, Grayson Rockhill
Chattanooga FC: Eldin Jakupovic; Tate Robertson, Farid Sar-Sar, Anton Sorenson (90' +3 Junior Flores), Mattias Hanchard; Steeve Louis Jean, Daniel Mangarov (90' +2 Ashton Gordon), Anthony Garcia (66' Damian Barker John), Luke Husakiwsky; Alex Krehl (66' Alexis Arrua), Yuval Cohen (79' Keegan Ancelin)
Substitutes not used: Yves Tcheuyap, Nathan Koehler, Kenneth Tsokli, Griffin Huff
STATS SUMMARY
CCFC / CFC
Shots: 7 / 18
Shots on Goal: 2 / 5
Saves: 0 / 0
Corners: 4 / 9
Possession: 50%/ 50%
Fouls: 13 / 10
Yellow Cards: 2 / 1
Red Cards: 0 / 0
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
CFC - 15' Mattias Hanchard (Yellow)
CCFC - 37' Robert Montenrgro (Yellow)
CCFC - 39' Carolina Core Bench (Yellow)
CFC - 75' Farid Sar-Sar (Yellow)
