Kevin Piedrahita scores the first goalkeeper goal in USL League One history
PAPILLION, Neb. (August 20, 2022) – It was a historic night on many accounts Saturday night as Union Omaha cruised to a 4-1 victory over North Carolina FC.
After obtaining 3rd place status on with a 2-1 win Wednesday night against Charlotte Independence, Omaha was ready to close out its homestand and busy week with a bang. North Carolina came into the night sitting in 10th place, looking to reenter the playoff conversation with its first win in the series against the Owls. The clubs met in June in North Carolina, battling to a 1-1 draw.
But it would’ve been hard to imagine a worse start for the visiting side in what was an absolutely dream for Union Omaha.
Kevin Piedrahita, getting just his third start of the year, made thousands of jaws drop just seconds into the match, letting off a bullet of a punt that bounced just over North Carolina goalkeeper Nicholas Holliday and into the net. It was a shot that lit up the stadium and the Owls’ sideline, who all ran over to celebrate their keeper’s ludicrous score. Not only was the first goal scored by a keeper in League One history, but it also was the fastest goal in club history.
“It’s still kind of surreal,” Union Omaha head coach Jay Mims said. “You don’t typically get to see goalkeepers score … For him to score that, what a special day for him.”
“It motivated all of us right away because that type of goal, to be a part of it, is something special,” Noe Meza said. “It just boosted our confidence.”
The fairytale start continued in the 6th minute, with Corey Hertzog showing off a clinical finish from outside the box slotted straight into the low corner, putting the Owls up double with his first goal for the club in just his second start.
“Corey’s just got a different quality than a lot of people in this league, and his experience shows,” Mims said.
The offensive onslaught just continued in the first ten minutes, with Meza just narrowly missing, hitting low post on a close shot and Conor Doyle’s banger attempt soaring just over the net.
The North Carolina defense would not catch a break after, either. Ryen Jiba, getting possession in Omaha’s box, launched a missile clear up field for Meza, who chested the ball down and sent a perfect floating chip shot over Holliday’s head. It was the third goal in three matches for Meza, who noted Wednesday that he feels like he’s found his form as of recently. The third mark on the scoresheet was a positive sign for the Owls, who are undefeated when scoring three times on the season.
The first yellow card of the match was issued in the 28th minute to Alex Touche.
As if his early wonderstrike wasn’t enough, Piedrahita also held strong on his goalkeeper duties, pawing away a strong header from Jordan Skelton before rushing up and leaping to bat off another close-range strike.
The Owls would get another huge opportunity to add some extra insurance in the 49th minute, when Carolina’s Nelson Flores was issued a red card for a hard foul on Joe Brito and sent off the pitch accordingly.
Omaha received a yellow to follow, with Eddie Gordon earning himself a caution in the 52nd minute. North Carolina matched it with another on Gustavo Fernandes just after.
The scoring wasn’t done just yet. A Brito corner kick found Alex Touche, who headed an assist to Meza, with the rookie heading it home for the Owls’ fourth score of the game. It was the first professional brace for the team’s leading scorer and the first time the Owls have hit the quadruple mark on goals this season.
“The second goal, I think, was just a case of being in the right place at the right time,” Meza said.
Brito continued to apply pressure just past the hour mark, zigzagging past a North Carolina defender and setting up a one-on-one meeting with Holliday in goal, but the keeper was able to bat away the tough shot to stop the bleeding.
The woes just continued for North Carolina FC in the 69th minute, with Britton Fischer earning two yellow cards in succession, one for taking down Yoskar Edu Galvan and the other for booting the ball away in dissent after.
The foul set up Meza’s terrific night to continue with the opportunity for the hat trick, as his free kick rattled the crossbar to almost make it 5-0.
North Carolina prevented the shutout, with Nico Rincon finding Golden Boot contender Garrett McLaughlin for the score in the 90th minute.
Yoskar Edu Galvan was booked in the opening minute of stoppage time, with the whistle sounding on the Owls’ second straight win a minute later. The win signified the 11th straight unbeaten result for Omaha, a new club record.
“We have to keep the same momentum, the same pace, same rhythm. We have to keep it up because we’re in the final part of the regular season now,” Piedrahita said.
The Owls are hitting their stride at the perfect time late in the season, now with the second largest differential in the league, and will head back to the road next Saturday after a solid week cementing their status at 3rd place on the table. With a huge match-up on the docket, Omaha will travel to second-place Richmond Kickers for a marquee showdown between two of the league’s top contenders.
After that, it’s back home for the Owls, who will host Forward Madison on August 31 for Stem Night presented by Olsson, followed by Chattanooga Red Wolves for Cancer Awareness night presented by XCancer.
ADDITIONAL QUOTES
“It was important for me to give Kevin a game with this long week because he deserves it, and he works hard, and he’s really good.” -Jay Mims
“We saw a different team, a different mentality on Wednesday of ‘We’re not going to lose this game.’ We weren’t going to lose that game to Charlotte, and it just was different mentality, and you saw that approach again today.” -Jay Mims
ABOUT UNION OMAHA
Union Omaha, the 2021 USL League One Champion, is the only professional soccer team in the state of Nebraska. USL League One is a United States Soccer Federation-sanctioned professional men’s soccer league that occupies the third tier of the American soccer landscape, below USL Championship (tier two) and Major League Soccer (tier one). Union Omaha plays its home matches at Werner Park in Sarpy County, also home to the Omaha Storm Chasers of Minor League Baseball. The team is led by General Manager Peter Marlette in the front office and by Head Coach Jay Mims on the field.
