Vlora FC (Burnsville, MN – MASL/UPSL) 3-5 FC Milwaukee Torrent (Wauwatosa, WI – NPSL)
Bob Pates Stadium at Burnsville High School, Burnsville, MN. Thursday at 7pm.
This didn’t feel like an 8 goal game, but Vlora’s window closed fast as their go-ahead goal in the 49th minute became a tie game in the 57th minute and then a man down for 20 minutes.
FC Milwaukee Torrent travelled to Burnsville having not conceded a point in league play and put their foot on the throttle and the ball in the net twice through Javier Steinwascher in the space of 3 minutes, as a right wing attack was finished off and then an errant pass in the area by a defender was picked off.
However, the hosts ralllied, Nacho Gonzalez finishing off a neat spell of Vlora possession to make it 2-1 in the 26th minute and Hurtado sliding in at the far post to finish off a move sparked when Easton Hoch beat his defender on the left. That left it at 2-2 in the 29th minute and that was the half time score.
With the stiff wind at their back, Vlora pressed on in the opening minutes of the second half and went ahead in the 49th minute when Miguel Leon scrambled in a ball served from the left wing. The lead would only last five minutes as a Vlora defender slid recklessly in, and a penalty kick was awarded. Javier Steinwascher took a monumental run up and then slid the kick under Austin Gunkel and relatively down the middle for his hat trick and another tie.
Another five minutes passed with Vlora on the attack but Torrent countered clinically and took the lead in the 62nd minute through Gabe Voung. When they look back on this game, the hosts will probably need to analyse a two minute spell where a shout for a Vlora penalty kick went unheeded and Torrent went straight up the other end and were cut down by Rodolfo Batisti for a red card denial of a goalscoring opportunity in the 71st minute.
From that point, while Vlora did not look undermanned, the visitors were more than happy to play on the counter and the game’s final goal came in the 73rd minute, a calmly executed coup de grace by Voung.
FC Milwaukee Torrent move onto the Region II semifinals of the Amateur Cup, to face RWB Adria in Wisconsin.