Read on for a full recap, photos, stats and more.
Chattanooga FC showed resilience and bravery coming off just three days' rest from the club's U.S. Open Cup Round of 32 match with MLS side Atlanta United, but ultimately fell 1-0 to league leaders Crown Legacy FC in Matthews, North Carolina on Saturday night.
Interim Head Coach Richard Dixon made three changes to the team that started in that Open Cup clash with Atlanta United. Nathan Koehler, Luke Husakiwsky and Anthony Garcia came into the starting XI for Mattias Hanchard, Isaiah Jones and Alex McGrath.
CFC put in a strong first-half performance, which resulted in the half's best chances. The Boys in Blue got to Crown's goalline on multiple occasions and created high-quality opportunities from cut-back passes.
Garcia found Alex Krehl in the 35th minute, but the striker's effort flew just over the crossbar. Daniel Mangarov had the best chance of the opening half when Damien Barker John found him with another cut-back pass, but Crown keeper Quinn Syrett made a close-range, reflex save to send the sides into a stalemate at the half.
The turning point of the match came in the 72nd minute when Chattanooga FC left-back Anton Sorenson was given his second yellow card of the evening for a challenge inside Crown's penalty area, and therefore Sorenson was sent off by referee Amin Hadzic. Forward Hugo Mbongue converted the resulting spot-kick, which ultimately proved to be the winner.
The Boys in Blue can take a lot of credit for the performance following a three-match week which began with a dominant victory at home over Orlando City B.
Chattanooga FC will have a much-needed break before returning to Finley Stadium when the Scenic City hosts Southeast Division rivals Huntsville City FC on May 2 at 7:00 p.m. ET. Tickets are on sale now.
Box Score
Crown Legacy FC (6-0-1, 20 pts.) - Chattanooga FC (3-3-1, 10 pts.)
Sportsplex at Matthews | Matthews, N.C.
Final score:
CLFC: 1
CFC: 0
Scoring summary:
73': Hugo Mbongue - CLFC
Stats (CLFC / CFC):
Possession: 62% / 38%
Shots: 14 / 10
Shots on goal: 1 / 1
Blocked shots: 7 / 4
Total passes: 488 / 305
Passing accuracy percentage: 85.7 / 74.1
Corners: 6 / 6
Total crosses: 6 / 5
Offsides: 5 / 3
Goalkeeper saves: 1 / 0
Clearances: 9 / 7
Fouls: 13 / 16
Discipline:
51’ - CLFC, Baye Coulibaly (Caution)
62' - CFC, Anthony Sorenson (Caution)
72' - CFC, Anthony Sorenson (Second caution and dismissal)
84' - CFC, Steeve Louis Jean (Caution)
86' - CLFC, Magic Smalls (Caution)
Lineups:
Crown Legacy starters: Quinn Syrett, Ashton Kamdem, Andrew Johnson, Jack Neeley, Will Cleary, Aron John, Baye Coulibaly (Daniel Longo 77'), Adrian Mendoza (Andrej Subotic 61'), Nimfasha Berchimas (Magic Smalls 86'), Emmanuel Uchegbu (Nathan Richmond 61'), Hugo Mbongue (C)
Substitutes not used: Jahiem Wickham, Jamie Smith, Assane Ouedraogo, Erik Peña, Brian Romero
Head Coach: Kevin Sawcheck
Chattanooga starters: Eldin Jakupović, Anthony Sorenson, Farid Sar-Sar (C), Nathan Koehler, Yves Tcheuyap, Tate Robertson (Isaiah Jones 65'), Luke Husakiwsky (Colin Thomas 88'), Daniel Mangarov, Anthony Garcia (Keegan Ancelin 65'), Alex Krehl (Steeve Louis Jean 77'), Damien Barker John
Substitutes not used: Griffin Huff, Mattias Hanchard, Ameziane Sid Mohand, Darwin Ortiz
Head Coach: Richard Dixon
