WINDSOR, Colo. — Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC kept their hopes for the Players’ Shield and a top-two seed intact with a 2-0 win over Forward Madison FC on Saturday.
The win means that Hailstorm keep pace with Union Omaha and North Carolina FC, both of whom also won on Saturday, in the race for the Players’ Shield. All three teams have a chance at the Players’ Shield on the final day of the season next week.
“I do believe there will be a twist next week,” Hailstorm head coach Éamon Zayed said.
The win over Madison came with Hailstorm’s fourth clean sheet in the last five matches. It was goalkeeper Lalo Delgado’s 13th clean sheet of the season, the most for any keeper in USL League One.
“I’m not going to forget what I seed in week one, that a clean sheet is the standard,” Delgado said.
The match was scoreless through the first half, and Hailstorm brought on Noah Powder and Jackson Dietrich at halftime.
“I knew we needed a win, so Noah and Jackson give us a little more forward play,” Zayed said.
The changes paid off quickly, with Powder scoring the first goal of the match from a direct free kick in the 49th minute. It was his third goal of the season.
“We said in training, whoever scored three in a row would get to take the free kicks, so I got three in a row and immediately sat down,” Powder said.
Hailstorm extended their lead in the 71st minute when Trevor Amann won a penalty and scored it himself, extending his USL League One record with his 23rd goal of the season.
“Scoring is always fun,” Amann said. “To me it doesn’t get boring, I want to extend the record as much as possible.”
Amann has one more chance to extend that record next week when Chattanooga Red Wolves SC come to Future Legends Field. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. Mountain time on October 14.
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The home of Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC, 118-acre Future Legends Complex, will feature 6,500-seat TicketSmarter Stadium, 2,500-seat Future Legends Field, 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.