TULSA – In what was a heavyweight battle between the top two teams in Group 8, FC Tulsa was unable to pull off the upset over Birmingham Legion FC, falling 8-4 and 9-2 to drop to a tie for second in the group with Forward Madison FC. Tuesday's loss to Birmingham means that the final match against Forward Madison is crucial for Tulsa to advance to the knockout stage.
In Game 1, Kaylor Hodges showed why he is considered one of the best players in the tournament, leaping out to a quick 3-0 lead just 45 seconds in. FC Tulsa swung right back, however, scoring three straight goals of its own in the next 45 seconds to equalize. The game went back and forth before Birmingham took the lead once more. Tulsa cut the lead to 6-4 with just 1:30 remaining but couldn’t surmount the three-goal deficit again as Birmingham took Game 1.
Heading into Game 2, it was all-out-attack for FC Tulsa. It looked potent, creating some good chances early, and taking the lead 1-0. Hodges and Birmingham began to play on the counter and took advantage of the attacking mentality from Tulsa as the match went on, taking the lead 4-2 and never looking back, securing the sweep.
With just one match remaining in group play, Tulsa sits on three points, equal with Forward Madison, who will serve as Tulsa's final foe while Memphis seeks to nab points off of Birmingham. Tulsa’s match against Madison airs on Friday at 4 p.m. CT on ESPN3.
TULSA – In what was a heavyweight battle between the top two teams in Group 8, FC Tulsa was unable to pull off the upset over Birmingham Legion FC, falling 8-4 and 9-2 to drop to a tie for second in the group with Forward Madison FC. Tuesday’s loss to Birmingham means that the final match against Forward Madison is crucial for Tulsa to advance to the knockout stage.
In Game 1, Kaylor Hodges showed why he is considered one of the best players in the tournament, leaping out to a quick 3-0 lead just 45 seconds in. FC Tulsa swung right back, however, scoring three straight goals of its own in the next 45 seconds to equalize. The game went back and forth before Birmingham took the lead once more. Tulsa cut the lead to 6-4 with just 1:30 remaining but couldn’t surmount the three-goal deficit again as Birmingham took Game 1.
Heading into Game 2, it was all-out-attack for FC Tulsa. It looked potent, creating some good chances early, and taking the lead 1-0. Hodges and Birmingham began to play on the counter and took advantage of the attacking mentality from Tulsa as the match went on, taking the lead 4-2 and never looking back, securing the sweep.
With just one match remaining in group play, Tulsa sits on three points, equal with Forward Madison, who will serve as Tulsa’s final foe while Memphis seeks to nab points off of Birmingham. Tulsa’s match against Madison airs on Friday at 4 p.m. CT on ESPN3.
