WINDSOR, Colo. — Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC started off a crucial week in style with a 5-1 win over Lexington SC.
A brace from Billy King and McCain Clarke’s first professional goal highlighted the most prolific home performance in club history.
“Don’t get me wrong, we’ve just beaten a good team 5-1,” Hailstorm head coach Éamon Zayed said. “They were unbeaten in their last six and have players that would play for anyone in the league.”
The win over Lexington starts a stretch of three matches in eight days for Hailstorm, highlighted by a USL Jägermeister Cup semifinal against Union Omaha on Wednesday,
“We’ve just been concentrating on focusing on the next game, which was tonight. Haven’t even thought about the semifinal until now,” King said.
Hailstorm took the lead early as Ethan Hoard’s header fell to the feet of Bruno Rendon, who fired a shot past Lexington goalkeeper Amal Knight to give Northern Colorado a 1-0 lead in the sixth minute.
Rendon also had a hand in Hailstorm’s second, as his cross deflected off of a Lexington defender to King for a tap in in the 20th minute to give the hosts a 2-0 lead.
Lexington got a goal back late in the first half, but Hailstorm went into the break with a 2-1 advantage.
“We dropped our standards, weren’t good enough late in the first half but we came out in the second half and were much, much better,” Zayed said.
Hailstorm put the game away with a pair of goals in quick succession early in the second half. Lucky Opara tapped in after a goalmouth scramble from a corner in the 57th minute and King scored his second with a screamer from the top of the box in the 62nd minute to make it 4-1.
“I’ll take any goal as it comes, but the second one was a decent finish,” King said. “It’s nice to get a few points at home, it was a massive game for us and it’s going to be a big week.”
The cherry was put on top of the Hailstorm win in the 90th minute when Irvin Parra picked Knight’s pocket and found Clarke for his first professional goal.
“It’s a great feeling,” Clarke said. “Happy for the goal and the win.”
Hailstorm now put their full focus on the USL Jägermeister Cup semifinal against Union Omaha at 7 p.m. Wednesday at 4Rivers Equipment Stadium.—
The home of Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC, 118-acre Future Legends Complex will feature 6,500-seat TicketSocket Park, 2,500-seat 4Rivers Equipment Stadium, multiple baseball diamonds, multi-purpose fields, an indoor sports arena, lodging, and retail; and will host guests for major sports leagues, tournaments, events and more.
More information is available at HailstormFC.com and FutureLegendsComplex.com.