STATESBORO, Ga. — For the third time in seven meetings between the two clubs, Northern Colorado Hailstorm’s match at South Georgia Tormenta FC featured an equalizer in stoppage time.
However, for the first time, Hailstorm were on the wrong end of it.
“Disappointed with the result and obviously the timing of the goal makes it feel worse,” Hailstorm head coach Éamon Zayed said.
Tormenta midfielder Pedro Fonseca scrambled home a goal in the 98th minute, relegating Hailstorm to a 1-1 draw and snapping their four-match winning streak.
“We were in the game until the very end, so it’s frustrating to give up a couple points,” Hailstorm midfielder Jackson Dietrich said.
Previously, Hailstorm had scored a pair of stoppage time equalizers to rescue points against Tormenta, with Nortei Nortey securing a 1-1 draw in the 99th minute in 2022 and Marky Hernández rescuing a 2-2 draw in the 93rd minute in 2023.
After a cagey first half that ended scoreless, things kicked off in the second half of the match.
The first major incident came in the 67th minute, when Hailstorm midfielder Haruki Yamazaki received a second yellow card and was sent off, reducing Northern Colorado to 10 men.
“Even when we went down to 10 men, I didn’t think we were going to lose,” Hernández said.
Another major turning point came just 11 minutes later when Hailstorm forward Ethan Hoard was brought down in the box, earning a penalty for the second time in as many matches. It was Hernández who stepped up and converted from the spot, giving Hailstorm a 1-0 lead in the 80th minute.
The lead lasted until the eighth minute of the six announced minutes of stoppage time, when Tormenta’s Preston Kilwein sent a cross into the mixer and Fonseca poked it into the goal to secure a point for the hosts.
“The effort was there, especially after going down to 10 men, and we’ll take that into the next match,” Zayed said.
Hailstorm will now return home for a Sunday match at 4Rivers Equipment Stadium on August 25 against Greenville Triumph SC with a special kickoff time of 4 p.m.
—
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.