Hartford City FC

HARTFORD CITY FC RALLY IN DRAMATIC FASHION TO ADVANCE TO CONFERENCE FINAL

Portland, Conn. – Trailing 2-0 in the 67^th minute of the 2024 NPSL North Atlantic Conference Playoff Semifinal and with Hartford City FC down to ten men, even the most resilient of squads would find that situation challenging to overcome.

But the Colts dug in deep on Wednesday night and found a way to grind out a result, getting goals from Larson Richards and Jake Williams inside the final ten minutes of normal time to send the match to extra time. Nate DiLoreto then came up with a heroic save from in the final round of the penalty kick shootout, allowing Andrew Bilbie to step up and slot home the winner to send Hartford City FC back to the Conference Final, advancing past New Jersey United AC 4-3 on penalties after the contest ended 2-2 after 120 minutes.

It was a blustery and humid evening at Oakwood Soccer Park and both teams had to resort to playing more directly due to the high winds, which limited the clear-cut chances over the first half hour of the match. And with both teams entering the postseason with excellent defensive records during the NPSL Regular Season, as Hartford City allowed eight goals in ten matches and New Jersey conceded nine, set pieces and moments of brilliance would be the difference makers on the night.

The visitors were able to build momentum over the final fifteen minutes of the first half by forcing Nate DiLoreto into making four saves during that stretch. From all that persistent pressure, the breakthrough for New Jersey United came right on the stroke of halftime when midfielder Sokol Ymeraj floated a free kick to the back post to be headed in by Eric Sadlocha.

The lead became 2-0 for New Jersey United in the 63^rd minute as Jeremy Klinger’s shot from inside the box struck the arm of HCFC defender Griffin Tomas to win a penalty kick for his team. And the pacy winger would dispatch the ensuing spot kick by powering it past DiLoreto.

The turning point of the match happened over a series of frenetic events in the 66^th minute when Evan Jones was first played through on goal by Parker Vasic. Jones slid his one-on-one effort past NJ United goalie Max Pfaffman, but was cleared off the line by Joseph Pinho. Then, Evan Southern collected the clearance just outside the area and rifled a shot that was destined for goal but struck a NJ United defender and popped straight up in the air to Hartford City’s Michael Gouvin, only to see Pfaffman hang onto his header.

But the Colts vehemently surrounded the referee claiming that Southern’s shot hit the NJ United defender’s arm and not the body. But the result of their protests would amount to the official showing three yellow cards for dissent, one to Jake Williams and two to Vasic, which put Hartford City a man down for the remaining 23 minutes of normal time.

The numerical disadvantage didn’t deter Hartford City as they kept pushing for the first tally by sending in a plethora of crosses and taking shots from distance. Some of which narrowly missed, others were propelled away by Pfaffman, who led the conference in the regular season with six shutouts. But in the final ten minutes, the Colts found another gear and eventually got the breakthrough tally.

Substitute Colin Goodhines was fouled just outside the box in the 81^st minute and allowed the Colts to send all the big targets forward. One of which was Larson Richards, who Jake Williams spotted him making a run to the back post and curled a free kick to that spot, and the veteran defender volleyed it home to pull Hartford City to within a goal.

Two minutes later, another Colts substitute would earn a free kick just outside the area as Michael Suski drove forward and got tripped up at the edge of the box. It was in a similar position where Jake Williams stepped up and delivered a stunning free kick to seal three points in a regular season win against New York. And on Wednesday night, the Colts’ captain delivered the goods once again as his set piece took a deflection on the way through and went in, tying the match at 2-2.

There would be no further goals in normal time, nor any tallies in the 30 minutes of extra time and the match went to penalties to determine who would advance to Saturday’s NPSL North Atlantic Conference Final to take on the top-seed New York Shockers.

Both teams scored their first two attempts, and in round three, New Jersey would jump ahead as Pfaffman saved Eamon Moylan’s spot kick after Maximus Barboto gave the visitors 3-2 advantage moments before. But, they failed to extend their lead when Khaled Daoud crashed his penalty off the crossbar, and Mark Grant tied it right after to send the penalty kick session to sudden death.

Colts’ keeper Nate DiLoreto would have his moment as he tipped Jamie Madrid’s penalty onto the crossbar and it stayed out, giving Andrew Bilbie the chance to deliver the final strike. To which he did, putting his effort past Pfaffman’s dive and ironically enough through the net, to power Hartford City to their second consecutive appearance in a Conference Championship game, and fourth total in organizational history.

Saturday’s North Atlantic Conference final will be held on Saturday, July 13^th at 7pm at Afrim’s Sports Park (969 Watervliet Shaker Road, Albany, NY, 12205), the home of the New York Shockers. Tickets are available now by visiting NewYorkShockers.com and a live stream of the match will be available as well on the New York Shockers YouTube channel.

The winner of Saturday’s match will represent the North Atlantic Conference in the East Region Tournament, which commences on Wednesday, July 17^th in a Semifinal matchup against the winner of Saturday’s Keystone West Conference Final between West Chester United SC and Electric City Shock SC.

July 13 at 1:22 pm

HARTFORD CITY START THEIR CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT TITLE DEFENSE ON WEDNESDAY

Hartford, Conn. – Hartford City FC get their postseason campaign started on Wednesday, July 10^th by hosting New Jersey United AC in the North Atlantic Conference Tournament Semifinal. That match will take place at Trinity Health Stadium, with kickoff scheduled for 7pm.

MATCH INFORMATION

Fans looking to purchase tickets for Wednesday’s match can in person at Trinity Health Stadium (250 Huyshope Ave, Hartford, CT, 06106) when gates open approximately one hour before kickoff, or online by searching Hartford City FC on Soccerstub.com. Tickets cost $10 for Adults and all children under 12 get in for free.

The match will be live streamed via Hartford City FC’s Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/HartfordCityFC) with JJ Duke handling Play-by-Play duties. Highlights on the match will be available on the teams’ social media channels in the days following.

2024 POSTSEASON FORMAT

After finishing the Regular Season in second place with a 7-2-1 record (22 points), Hartford City FC earned the right to host the lone Conference Tournament Semifinal match as the North Atlantic Conference using a three-team, single-elimination tournament to crown its champion. New Jersey concluded their first regular season in the NPSL with a 6-4-0 record (18 points) and a comfortable 9 points ahead of fourth-placed Syracuse FC. But they will have to hit the road twice if they want to win the conference title, as the winner of Wednesday’s match will play New York Shockers on Saturday, July 13^th at Afrim’s Sports Park. The winner of Saturday’s Conference Final will advance to the East Regional Semifinals and more information about that stage of the postseason is now available on NPSL.com

LAST TIME OUT

The Colts wrapped up their Regular Season slate with a 3-0 victory over Syracuse FC up in Camden, NY on Saturday, July 6^th. HCFC raced out to a 2-0 lead inside of 15 minutes, with both goals coming from Evan Southern. His first tally came less than three minutes into the match when Nate Becher played him through with a lovely through ball before Southern raced around the Syracuse defense in the 12^th minute to double the lead. Both teams had to deal with hot and humid conditions for a mid-afternoon kickoff in central New York and during the second half, there was a lightning delay that stopped the match for over a half hour. But Hartford City picked up their third goal of the afternoon with fifteen minutes to go as Evan Jones headed home Michael Suski’s cross. Nate DiLoreto made his seventh start of the season in goal and registered his fifth clean sheet, and fourth in a row.

With a potential heavy schedule on the horizon, Head Coach Louis Beddouri was able to rotate his squad and get some minutes from some fresh faces. Suski and Michael Gouvin earned their first starts, while Eli Bastiaansen and Cristian Sayers got their first minutes of the season and there was a return from Devan Jessop, who came off the bench for the first time since the season opener.

 POSTSEASON RECORDS

 Hartford City FC are making their sixth appearance in the NPSL playoffs and have an all-time postseason record of 5-5. The Colts were North Atlantic Conference Champions in 2021 & 2023, with both triumphs coming against Kingston Stockade, before dropping out at the East Region Semifinals stage in both years. HCFC also reached a conference championship match, then playing in the Atlantic White Conference, in the clubs’ debut season in 2017. HCFC bowed out in the Conference Semifinals stage twice, once in 2018 to the Brooklyn Italians and the other in 2022 at home to the Shockers.

NOTHING GIVEN AWAY LIGHTLY

A common theme that ties Hartford City and New Jersey United together is that these are two of the top defensive teams in the entire NPSL. Both teams have registered six clean sheets during the regular season, with New Jersey’s Max Pfaffman in net for all six for his club while HCFC’s Nate DiLoreto has posted five and Jamie Fite kept one. Hartford City also hasn’t allowed a goal in 471 minutes of game time, with their last concession coming in the 69^th minute of a 2-0 loss to Syracuse FC back on June 1^st. The Colts enter the postseason tied for eighth in the NPSL in fewest goals allowed with eight and have tied a club record for both Goals Allowed (8) and Goals Allowed Per game (0.80), both marks previously happening in the 2022 season.

THE EVAN’S ARE ON FIRE

On the attacking side of things, Hartford City have scored 20 goals over the ten regular season games in 2024, a slight improvement on the 19 that the teams scored in 2023. And there has been great balance in the side this year with ten different players finding the back of the net. But the two Evan’s on the roster, Evan Jones and Evan Southern, have been the standouts this season. A year removed from being named as part of the East Region Best XI, Evan Southern posted four goals in the regular season, two of which coming in the regular season finale at Syracuse, while Evan Jones has notched a team best six goals in 2024. And he will enter the postseason with goals in three straight matches with single tallies at Kingston on June 22^nd and Syracuse last weekend, as well as his two-goal output at home vs. Valeo FC on June 29^th, after scoring the winners vs. Kingston and at New Jersey earlier this year.

ABOUT OUR OPPONENT

 Sometimes you don’t know how things will turn out in your first season in the NPSL, as often enough they can used as a season to learn about yourself and the league. But New Jersey United AC have played steady soccer all season long this year and are one of five first-year NPSL clubs to qualify for the 2024 postseason. While NJ United won all six of their matches against the teams that didn’t qualify for the playoffs, they went winless in four combined matches against Hartford City and New York and were outscored 9-1 in those contests. But they will enter the postseason in great form by winning three of their last four matches of the regular season, including last weekend’s 3-0 victory at Valeo FC with Diego Navas scoring twice to increase his season total to six goals, which ties Evan Jones’ for second highest in the conference, while Jamie Madrid chipped in with a late tally. Also keep an eye out for Navas’ striker partner Khaled Daoud, as he’s found the back of the net three times this season.

July 8 at 7:29 pm

COLTS CONCLUDE REGULAR SEASON ACTION ON SATURDAY AT SYRACUSE FC

Hartford, Conn. – After securing a top-two finish in the NPSL North Atlantic Conference standings last weekend, Hartford City FC (6-2-1, 19 points) conclude their 2024 Regular Season schedule on Saturday as they travel up to Central New York to take on Syracuse FC (3-6-0, 9 points).

MATCH INFORMATION

Saturday’s match will take place at the Stadium Field at Camden High School (55 Oswego St, Camden, NY, 13316) and is scheduled to kick off at 2pm.

While there is no confirmed information just yet in regards to Saturday’s match being streamed, Syracuse FC have streamed some of their home matches this season via the Camden High School Hudl page (https://fan.hudl.com/usa/ny/camden/organization/17261/camden-high-school) so fans are encouraged to check out that website and to keep an eye on the Hartford City FC social media channels closer to match day for updates.

PLAYOFF PICTURE

With Hartford City FC and the New York Shockers winning last weekend, they both have secured the top two spots in the three-team North Atlantic Conference tournament. HCFC trails New York by three points heading into this weekend’s action but the Colts have the head-to-head tiebreaker on the Shockers. If Hartford City wants to secure the top seed in the tournament, they will need to beat Syracuse AND have New York lose to Kingston Stockade on Saturday evening. A tie or loss from Hartford City or a tie or win for New York will see Hartford City earn the two-seed and host the three-seed, New Jersey United AC, in the North Atlantic Conference Semifinal Round.

LAST TIME OUT

The winning ways kept rolling for Hartford City last Saturday with an emphatic 4-0 victory over Valeo FC at Trinity Health Stadium. It was the highest scoring output in a match this season for the Colts, and also extended the clubs’ shutout streak to four straight matches. Hartford City struck early and often as Eamon Moylan rose to head home Parker Vasic’s corner kick in the tenth minute and then the lead doubled when Matteo Azambuja scored a highlight reel goal six minutes later by dropping his defender after a sequence of stepovers before rocketing a shot home from close distance. Then Evan Jones scored twice later in the first half, once in the 29^th minute after running onto Alonzo Clarke’s through-ball and sliding past the goalie, and then dispatching a penalty kick in the 37^th minute to round off the scoring for the night. Jones now stands second in the conference with five goals, trailing New York’s Filippo Bellu who stands on nine goals for the season.

MERCH IS HERE!!!

Fans have been asking about it, and now it has arrived! Brand new Hartford City FC merchandise is now available by visiting the Shop tab on HartfordCity.com or directly at https://mooressports.chipply.com/hartfordcityteamstore/store.aspx?eid=318552. In that store, fans can shop brand new HCFC x Hummel Hoodies, sweatshirts and jackets, as well as hats and the new 2024 season jerseys, including a brand-new Gold away Jersey. Make sure to get your orders in today!

ABOUT OUR OPPONENT

Since Syracuse FC defeated Hartford City 2-0 back on June 1^st at Oakwood Soccer Park, the two teams have gone on their separate paths. While Hartford City have rattled off four straight wins since that game, Syracuse have lost their last four matches and have been outscored 10-1 in those matches. Last week was the most challenging result of this tough stretch as Kingston Stockade traveled up to Camden High School and beat Syracuse 4-0, and the team hasn’t scored since taking a 1-0 lead on a Cerixey Lindsay 19^th minute goal against New York back on June 8^th before falling 4-1 in that match.

While Syracuse FC won’t qualify for the postseason, this season has been a successful one for the club with the most wins (3) and points (9) they’ve had in an NPSL season since their 2018 campaign, which was when the team played in the East Conference of the Midwest Region. And Owen Cheney is currently tied for fourth in the conference in goals with three, while Riley Williams is right behind him with two.

July 8 at 7:27 pm