The Chattanooga Red Wolves were well aware going into Saturday night’s game that the defending champions, North Texas FC, would be a very talented and dangerous side. The Red Wolves were up for the challenge however, as they were able to pull out a draw on the road at Globe Life Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Coach Obleda mentioned after the inaugural home opener that in order to improve in tough games, the Red Wolves had to take advantage of early chances and put them away, and that is exactly what his side did on Saturday.
The Red Wolves opened the scoring just 2 minutes into the game, as Josue Soto played a through ball over the top to Greg Hurst, who was able to bury it on his first attempt. The goal was the 4th of the season for Greg Hurst, which separates him from Jake Keegan of Greenville Triumph as top scorer in the league. The Red Wolves followed the goal by creating dangerous chances immediately, putting pressure on the North Texas defense. The Red Wolves played an excellent first half both offensively and defensively, going into the break with a 1-0 advantage. The defense even managed to catch North Texas attacker’s offsides three times in the first half, while playing a very high line.
North Texas was able to flip the script in the second half, however, grabbing a goal off of an excellent cross to tie the game up 1-1 in the 46th minute. North Texas, a notably possession oriented team, was able to control the ball for the majority of the second half, slowing and dictating the run of play. The Red Wolves struggled to get very much going in the second half offensively, but continued to hold the score even, until the substitute, Beni Redzic of North Texas, scored his second of the night to put North Texas ahead 2-1 with 3 minutes to go in the game. The header goal came in the 87th minute of play, and seemed as if it had won them the game. Three minutes was plenty of time for the Red Wolves to pull off an equalizer, however, as Marky Hernandez scored off of a direct attack in the 88th minute, immediately after the kickoff. From the kickoff, a long ball was sent up field, collected by Hurst, who slipped in Marky Hernandez, the 56th minute substitute, for his first goal of the season to bring the game level again. The equalizer shocked North Texas as it came only seconds after they had taken the lead, and defied the run of play.
Neither team was able to score a game winner in the four minutes of stoppage time that the official added, but this period was not without its drama as well. Gibran Rayo of North Texas was sent off in the third minute of stoppage time after, yet another, late tackle. The Red card was issued after a hard foul, one of many of the match from Rayo. As the final whistle blew, the score remained 2-2, and the Red Wolves were able to salvage a point on the road against a worthy opponent in North Texas FC, who held 63% possession of the game. North Texas Forward, Beni Redzic, only 17 years old, was awarded man of the match after an impressive two goal game in order to put him on the heels of league top scorer, Greg Hurst. Hurst also played yet another fantastic game with a goal and an assist bringing him to 4 goals on the season. Marky Hernandez and team captain Josue Soto also had excellent performances, as Soto had an assist and was the heart of the midfield while Marky picked up a crucial goal.
The unbeaten Chattanooga Red Wolves will be back at home in CHI Memorial Stadium to host Union Omaha on Wednesday at 5:00 PM EST. A great night of soccer and late game drama in Arlington for Chattanooga sets up a showdown against Union Omaha, one of the last remaining three undefeated teams in USL League One including Chattanooga. Make sure to tune in to the USL top three matchup on ESPN+.
_ Jake Major
