Orlando

Orlando City Ferociously Defends Home Turf Against NY Red Bulls

Published

9 years ago

April 9, 2017

ORLANDO, Fla. (FNN SPORTS) – The Orlando City Lions (OCSC, 2-1-0) were forced to hit the ground running against the New York Red Bulls (RBNY, 2-2-1) at Orlando City Stadium Sunday. The first five minutes were riddled with ambitious steals on both ends of the field, and one close call for Orlando with forward Cyle Larin’s steal in the fifth minute as he kicked it to midfielder Scott Sutter. New York blocked the attempt and the ball ended up going out of bounds.

Another close one in the first half: In the 10th minute, OCSC goalie Joe Bendik dove to block a goal attempt but missed, but defender Jonathan Spector was able to kick the ball out of bounds before it could make it inside the goal.

The Lions lost midfielder Antonio Nocerino in the 17th minute due to an ankle injury and substituted midfielder Servando Carrasco in his place.

Orlando City scored its first goal in the 34th minute by Carrasco, with the assist by forward Will Johnson, causing the crowd of 25,527 fans to roar and thunder with cheer.

The most dramatic close call of the first half came in the 44th minute when Bendik missed another RBNY attempted goal and the ball went in, which would have tied New York with Orlando at 1-1–but the play was called offsides. With offensive possession at 45.5% and passing accuracy at 63.9%, Orlando held the lead with a 1-0 score at the half. The Red Bulls were 28 of 63 (44.4%) in dueling for the ball in the first half.

The second half was equally contentious. Cristian Higuita was issued a yellow card in the 62nd minute. In the 66th minute, New York midfielder Derrick Etienne, Jr. fouled and despite the whistle blow, he took the ball and continued the drive towards goal, ultimately knocking the ball out of bounds. Additionally, RBNY defender Aurelien Collin was issued a yellow card in the 76th minute. Within his first two minutes on the field, OCSC midfielder Luis Gil, who came on in place of forward Matias Perez Garcia, was issued a yellow card in the 86th minute.

Even in the three minutes added to the second half, OCSC midfielder Donny Toia sustained a yellow card penalty while helping his team hang on to that one point lead for dear life.

“…So many positive statements to make about effort level, intensity level, commitment of the players to defend. Real, real signs of togetherness and just a fortitude that says, ‘We won’t be broken at home’,” Orlando City head coach Jason Kreis explained during the post-game press conference. “And so I’m really pleased with that, but the negative is that we’ve got to continue to be better with the ball.”

Carrasco, while pleased with the outcome of the game and honored to be the one to score the Lions’ only goal, made an ironic confession when asked if he expected to score at all against RBNY. “Absolutely not. It’s kind of a collector’s item, for sure. I think the last time I scored was in 2013. I had about 20 people remind me of that, so I thought that was pretty funny.” He added, “We all have certain responsibilities on set pieces. Will [Johnson] played a fantastic ball, and I was just lucky to be at the right place.”

The Lions face their next opponents, LA Galaxy, on Saturday April 15, 2017 at 3 p.m. with a 3-1-0 record, including a flawless home game record.

________________________

Mellissa Thomas is the Florida National News Editor. When she’s not covering events for FNN News, the award-winning indie screenwriter works on her next novel and helps her clients bring their book ideas to fruition. | mellissa.thomas@floridanationalnews.com

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Golf

Russell Henley Wins Red Cardigan at 2025 Arnold Palmer Invitational

Published

1 year ago

March 9, 2025

Mike Brodsky

Russell Henley wins the 2025 Arnold Palmer Invitational (Photo credit: Mike Brodsky, Florida National News)

ORLANDO, Fla. (FNN Sports) – Russell Henley wins his first red cardigan at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, today, along with $4 million of the $20 million prize pool. The red cardigan was first awarded in 2017, in memory of Arnold Palmer who passed the year before. This is Henley’s fifth win on the PGA Tour.

Russell Henley is greeted by his family on the 18th green after winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational (Photo credit: Mike Brodsky, Florida National News)

Henley finished at 11 under par for the four day tournament, carding a 70 today. Collin Morikawa finished in second place at 10 under par. API defending champion, Scottie Scheffler, finished today at 4 under par, tied for 11th place.

Scottie Scheffler tees off at the Arnold Palmer Invitational (Photo Credit: Mike Brodsky, Florida National News)

This coming week, the top golfers head to TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra, for The Players Championship. The winner will walk away with $4.5 million of the $25 million up for grabs. This is the PGA Tour’s largest regular season purse. Stay tuned to www.FloridaNationalNews.com for more.

NFL

UCF Hall of Fame Inductee Shaquem Griffin Launches Search For Greatness Combine With Joey Grant and GMTM

Published

1 year ago

October 30, 2024

Mike Brodsky

UCF Hall of Fame Inductee Shaquem Griffin Launches Search For Greatness Combine With Joey Grant and GMTM

Former UCF football players Shaquem Griffin and Joey Grant have partnered with GMTM to launch their Search for Greatness Combine at UCF on Saturday, November 9th. They’re giving local athletes a chance to showcase their talents and explore new sports opportunities. Griffin will be inducted into the UCF Hall of Fame on Saturday, November 2nd, during halftime of the Arizona vs. UCF football game. He is remembered for his tenacity, setting an NFL Combine record with the fastest 40-yard dash by a linebacker, and playing four seasons in the NFL, overcoming the challenge of only having one hand. He is now training to make the USA Paralympic Track and Field Team and hopes to compete in the 2028 Olympics. Joey Grant, the co-founder and CEO of GMTM, is a former UCF team captain, playing mostly Center for the Knights from 2011-2015.

Participation at the upcoming combine is free and invite-only, targeting athletes over the age of 18. To be considered, athletes must submit a highlight video via GMTM’s platform, showcasing their athleticism. GMTM will evaluate submissions and invite the most promising athletes to participate in the combine. The goal for this year’s event is to get 1,000 athletes to submit videos and be part of the combine process. Athletes chosen will receive personalized invites with further instructions, including event time slots and details. The athletes will be evaluated for their key athletic traits, to identify opportunities for them across multiple Olympic sports or professional sports programs. To learn more, or to apply for the combine, visit: https://gmtm.com/articles/the-search-for-greatness-at-ucf-with-shaquem-griffin-what-you-need-to-know.

Florida National News spoke with Shaquem and Joey about the combine, college football in the era of NIL and the transfer portal, and Griffin’s hall of fame induction. You can watch the full interview here:

Shaquem Griffin and Joey Grant interview

Stay tuned to www.FloridaNationalNews.com and www.FloridaSportsChannel.com for more.

Florida

Scottie Scheffler Wins Second Red Cardigan at 2024 Arnold Palmer Invitational

Published

2 years ago

March 10, 2024

Mike Brodsky

Photo credit: Mike Brodsky, Florida National News

ORLANDO, Fla. (FNN Sports) – Scottie Scheffler wins his second red cardigan at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, today, along with $4 million of the $20 million prize pool. The red cardigan was first awarded in 2017, in memory of Arnold Palmer who passed the year before. Scheffler first won the API in 2022.

Scottie Scheffler wins the Arnold Palmer Invitational. (Photo credit: Mike Brodsky, Florida National News)

The number one ranked golfer in the world, Scheffler finished at 15 under par for the four day tournament, carding a 66 today. Wyndham Clark finished in second place at 10 under par. API defending champion, Kurt Kitayama, did not make the cut, this weekend, finishing 7 over par after the first two rounds on Thursday and Friday.

This coming week, the top golfers head to TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra, for the 50th anniversary of The Players Championship. The winner will walk away with $4.5 million of the $25 million up for grabs. This is the PGA Tour’s largest regular season purse. Stay tuned to www.FloridaNationalNews.com for more.