In a back and forth match featuring five second half goals, Orange County SC secured 6th place in the Western Conference in a 3-2 victory over Hartford Athletic at Championship Stadium in Irvine, CA on Saturday, October 26. Two goals for defender Ryan Doghman and a match winner from substitute Thomas Amang in his return from injury was enough for the three points in the regular season finale.
The best chance for either side in the first half came courtesy of midfielder Chris Hegardt in the 28th minute. Captain Markus Nakkim played a ball to forward Ethan Zubak, who laid off a pass for Hegardt. Hegardt took one touch and fired a shot destined for the bottom left corner, but it was kept out by Hartford goalkeeper Renan Ribeiro.
Hartford began the second half on the front foot and appeared to take the lead in the 52nd minute. Forward Mamadou Dieng fired a shot on target that Shutler kept out, but a rebound from Marcus Epps was slotted home. However the offside flag was up and the goal was taken off the board.
The County Boys took full advantage not even a minute later, when Hegardt played Doghman in on the left side of the box. Doghman’s left-footed effort back across goal beat Ribeiro and put OCSC in the lead 1-0.
The lead however was short lived, as defender Thomas Vancaeyezeele played a ball over the top for forward Marcus Epps in behind the County defense. Epps buried a shot into the bottom left corner, the first goal that Colin Shuter conceded in three matches, and Hartford drew level in the 54th minute.
As soon as they gave up the lead, they took it right back in the 58th minute again through the left boot of Doghman. After Hartford attempted to clear the ball out of the box, substitute Ashish Chattha battled to keep the ball in a dangerous position. Doghman picked it up, took one touch and unleashed a rocket off his left boot into the bottom right corner, restoring the lead at 2-1.
After defending for a longer spell, Hartford again drew level in the 83rd minute. A series of deflections had the ball end up near the six-yard box where substitute Kyle Edwards hit an overhead kick over Shutler to tie the match at 2.
For the second time in the match, the Black and Orange conceded a goal and bounced back within five minutes. Midfielder Cameron Dunbar and substitute Thomas Amang played a give and go on the counterattack into the box. Amang collected at the top of the box and fired into the bottom right corner, to take the lead 3-2. The County Boys held on to the lead and ended the night with three points.
Next week, the 6-seeded Orange County SC plays their opening match of the 2024 USL Championship Playoffs, presented by Terminix, on the road against 3-seeded Memphis 901 FC on Saturday at 11:00 AM PDT. Watch party details will be released in the coming days, so stay locked into our social media pages for more information. #OurCountyOurTime
MILESTONES AND FACTS:
Defender Ryan Doghman scored his first and second goals of the season tonight.
Forward Thomas Amang scored his sixth goal of the season, good for second most on the team.
Midfielder Chris Hegardt provided his second assist of the season, assisting Ryan Doghman’s first goal of the night.
Midfielder Cameron Dunbar tallied his fourth assist of the season, moving him into a tie for the team lead (Seth Casiple, 4).
| TEAM | FIRST HALF | SECOND HALF | FULL TIME |
| HFD | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| OCSC | 0 | 3 | 3 |
SCORING SUMMARY:
54’ Ryan Doghman (1st) (Assist Chris Hegardt, 2nd)
56’ Marcus Epps
58’ Ryan Doghman (2nd of the game. 2nd)
83’ Kyle Williams
86’ Thomas Amang (6th) (Assist Cameron Dunbar, 4th)
DISCIPLINE SUMMARY:
ORANGE COUNTY SC
40’ Chris Hegardt
74’ Ashton Miles
HARTFORD ATHLETIC
10’ Thomas Vancaeyezeele
17’ Michee Ngalina
73’ Marcus Epps
ORANGE COUNTY SC LINEUP:
Colin Shutler (GK); Owen Lambe, Markus Nakkim (C), Dillon Powers (Ashton Miles 46’), Ryan Doghman; Seth Casiple, Kevin Partida (Ashish Chattha 26’), Chris Hegardt (Thomas Amang 77’), Bryce Jamison (Benjamin Barjolo 77’); Ethan Zubak (Pedro Guimaraes 34’), Cameron Dunbar
Unused subs: Juan Santana (GK), Andrew Fox, Charlie Asensio, Ben Norris
Interim Head Coach: Danny Stone
Possession: 42% | Shots: 16 | Shots On Goal: 5 | Corners: 2 | Fouls: 8 | Offsides: 0 |
HARTFORD ATHLETIC LINEUP:
Renan Ribeiro (GK) (Greg Monroe 63’); Jordan Scarlett, Emmanuel Samadia (Kyle Edwards 63’), Younes Boudadi (Tyler Freeman 85’), Tristan Hodge, Thomas Vancaeyezeele, Marlon Hairston, Anderson Asiedu (Pele Ousmanov 12’), Marcus Epps, Michee Ngalina, Mamadou Dieng
Unused subs: Michael DeShields, Beverly Makangila, Daniel Barrera,
Head Coach: Aaron Wheeler
Possession: 58% | Shots: 12 | Shots On Goal: 4 | Corners: 2 | Fouls: 14 | Offsides: 2 |
Orange County SC vs Hartford Athletic
2024 USL Championship | Matchday 34
Date: October 26, 2024
Venue: Championship Stadium
Weather: @USL, if Ryan doesn’t win GOTW…