September 4, 2016 USL Toronto FC II--Toronto FC II vs Charlotte Independence game review (from uslsoccer.com)

Charlotte Forges Ahead, Tops TFCII
09/04/2016, 6:00pm EDT
By CHARLIE CORR - charlie.corr@uslsoccer.com

Independence grab fourth win in five games, move into third in East

VAUGHAN, Ontario – Even without some of its main scoring options, the Charlotte Independence continued 
to forge ahead in the Eastern Conference standings with a season-high five tallies. Patrick Slogic 
and Alex Martinez each scored in the opening half. David Estrada notched a cheeky chip goal in the 
second half, while Aly Hassan and Norberto Ochoa scored their first of the campaign in the closing 
minutes to post a convincing 5-1 victory against Toronto FC II on Sunday at the Ontario Soccer Centre. 
Charlotte moved from sixth to third in the East standings with the victory. Slogic opened the scoring 
with a fourth-minute rebound and Martinez showed some tenacity in creating his own chance in the 
39th minute. Estrada added to the lead in the 53rd minute as Charlotte posted its fourth win 
in five games. Brian James halted the Independence’s momentum with a strike of his own in the 58th minute, 
but a half hour later Hassan helped the Independence regain a three-goal cushion. Charlotte moves 
to 13-7-6 (45 points) overall and 5-3-5 on the road. Toronto dropped its fifth consecutive match, 
falling to 6-17-5 (27 points) overall and 3-7-3 at home.

Scoring:
 4’ – CLT – Patrick Slogic
 39’ – CLT – Alex Martinez
 53’ – CLT – David Estrada (Yann Ekra)
 58’ – TOR – Brian James
 88’ – CLT – Aly Hassan (Lewis Hilton)
 90’ – CLT – Norberto Ochoa (Aly Hassan)

Three Things That Mattered:

•1. It didn’t take long for Charlotte to grab an advantage during a fourth-minute corner kick 
opportunity by Jorge Herrera from the left side. Herrera’s right-footed ball was actually bound 
for the net and TFCII goalkeeper Clint Irwin had to make the save. He tried to bat the ball away, 
but he didn’t get much behind it as the rebound was up for grabs at the near left post for 
the Independence. Patrick Slogic rushed in for the header. During that play, Slogic’s knee 
connected with Irwin and play was stopped to check his right eye, but the Toronto FC goalkeeper 
continued to play in his second consecutive TFCII appearance. Slogic netted his third goal 
of the season. Alex Martinez then pushed the lead to two with a hard-fought effort, carving 
his way through Toronto’s defense and finishing in the 39th minute to take a 2-0 lead into halftime.

•2. The craftiest score of the night went to David Estrada with a left-footed chip over Irwin 
to take a 3-0 lead in the 53rd minute. Yann Ekra played a nice through ball to lead Estrada 
on the run and from 20 yards out and Irwin off of his line to try and limit the angles, Estrada 
lofted it well into the back of the net for his fourth tally of the season. Aly Hassan also 
had a chip of his own in the closing minutes, finishing a Lewis Hilton through ball for the 
club's fourth goal. Hassan would add an assist on Norberto Ochoa's stoppage-time tally 
to complete the rout.

•3. Toronto tried to put aside a lackluster first half aside, and TFCII looked a bit better 
during the final 45. The Reds finally found the score sheet with a strong individual effort 
from Brian James. On the dribble from the left side, James worked the ball up-field and then 
fired a long-distance shot from about 25 yards into the upper left corner to cut Charlotte’s 
lead to 3-1 in the 58th minute. James, who leads TFCII with 27 appearances this season, 
notched his second goal of the campaign.

USLSoccer.com Man of the Match:
 TBD

Upcoming Games:
Toronto FC II vs. Orlando City B – Sept. 11, 7:30 p.m. ET, Ontario Soccer Centre
Charlotte Independence vs. Pittsburgh Riverhounds – Sept. 10, 7 p.m. ET, Ramblewood Soccer Complex

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