September 11, 2015 Toronto FC II--match preview Rochester Rhinos vs Toronto FC II (from rhinosoccer.com)
Rhinos News Regular Season Champions Host Toronto FC II 09/11/2015 10:20 AM - The Rochester Rhinos host Toronto FC II in their penultimate match of the 2015 USL regular season in Sahlen's Stadium on Saturday, September 12th 2015 with kickoff slated for 7:05PM (EDT). The Rochester Rhinos have already secured the 2015 USL Eastern Conference and Regular Season Championships with three matches remaining on their fixture list. Last Saturday night the Rochester Rhinos kicked off against the Richmond Kickers in City Stadium at 7PM, and the two teams played to a scoreless draw. In a classic away performance the Rhinos did not allow a shot from the Kickers in the first half, and only allowed Richmond to take four shots in the match. Kickers goalkeeper Travis Worra was credited with one save to keep his fifth clean sheet of the season. Rochester goalkeeper Brandon Miller made two saves while setting the USL regular season record for shutouts in a season with 12. At the time the point moved the Rhinos six clear of chasing Louisville City FC in the Eastern Conference table. Meanwhile, City kicked off their match in Red Bull Arena against New York Red Bulls II at 8:35PM last Saturday night. Niall McCabe opened the scoring off of an assist from USL superstar Matt Fondy in the 19th minute to give visiting Louisville City FC an early lead away from home. Seven minutes later the home side leveled the score when Manolo Sanchez finished a rare double assist from Stefano Bonomo and Shawn McLaws as technical intricacy resulted in a well worked goal for Red Bulls II. Fondy turned from provider to scorer in the 40th minute when he took Aodhan Quinn's pass and chipped it over sliding New York Red Bulls II goalkeeper Santiago Castano to give City their second advantage of the evening. Louisville City FC entered halftime poised to take all three points on the road, and cut the Rhinos lead at the top of the table in half. However, in the final twist in the story line to the 2015 USL regular season championship race, a Dan Bedoya free kick from 22 yards out drew Red Bulls II back to level in the 70th minute, and a Bolo Akinyode header off of a Leo Stolz free kick in the 85th minute gave New York Red Bulls a 3:2 victory over Louisville City FC. City's six point deficit with two matches left to play could have allowed the first year club to finish level on points with Rochester, but the first tie breaker in determining a USL regular season champion is head-to-head results. The Rhinos took four out of six points from Louisville City FC during their two regular season meetings giving the Rhinos the tie breaker and the championship. The Eastern Conference Championship and Regular Season Championship are the first for the Rochester Rhinos in the USL era. The Rhinos previously have won a division title when they captured the National Division Championship in 2011. With the regular season trophy on the way to 460 Oak Street the supporters focus may be shifting to the playoffs and championship dreams in October, but Rochester Rhinos USL Hall of Fame Coach Bob Lilley and his players still have unfinished business in the regular season. “It's nice to have secured the regular season championship. It's a wonderful accomplishment for the guys in our locker room.” Lilley said. “We still have three games left in the regular season, and we want to play well in all three games. You want to be playing at your best when the playoffs start, and that is our focus right now.” The Rochester Rhinos opponent on Saturday night will be Toronto FC II. TFCII currently sits in 11th place in the standings, but their inaugural season has not just been about results and their place in the standings. The MLS2 side is being operated to give valuable professional experience to young players on the Toronto FC roster, while also providing an outlet for first team players. When an MLS2 side is in Rochester, patrons in Sahlen's Stadium never know when they will be seeing the opposition put out a side featuring the stars of today or tomorrow. “If you look at their (Toronto FC II's) schedule and results, you'll see that they have either taken points off of, split points, or played really competitive games with every team in our conference.” Lilley said. The Rhinos next match is in Rochester against Toronto FC II on Saturday, September 12th 2015 at 7:05PM in Sahlen's Stadium. Single game tickets to the match are currently on sale and can be purchased by calling (585)454-KICK (5425), online via Ticketmaster, or by visiting the MVP Health Care Box Office at Sahlen's Stadium during business hours. Rochester Rhinos playoff tickets, flex packages and group sales tickets are also currently on sale and can be purchased by calling (585)454-KICK (5425), online via Ticketmaster, or by visiting the MVP Health Care Box Office at Sahlen's Stadium during business hours.
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