In front of 5,526 fans at Richmond’s City Stadium, the fourth seeded Chattanooga Red Wolves stunned the top seeded Kickers with a 1-0 upset.
Richmond dominated possession for most of the match and rained 14 shots on Red Wolves keeper Carlos Avilez. Worse for the Red Wolves, forward David Texeira was shown a red card in the 39th minute for a bad tackle.
However, Richmond’s high powered offense, led by Golden Boot winner Emiliano Terzaghi was stymied by Chattanooga’s defense and goalkeeping. Only two Richmond shots were on target after the red card, and while Richmond’s top ranked defense was able to hold off the ten-man Red Wolves, it wasn’t enough to stop an 86th minute goal by Rafa Mentzingen.
Mentzingen’s shot from the top of the box flew over the right side of Richmond keeper Akira Fitzgerald. This was the second week in a row Mentzingen scored the match winner for the Red Wolves.
The Red Wolves become the lowest seed to play in the finals, and will face third seeded Tormenta FC on Saturday for the League One final in Statesboro, GA. Tormenta FC knocked off second seeded Greenville Triumph 1-0.
Match Summary
Goals
Red Wolves SC – Mentzingen, 86′
Location and Attendance
City Stadium, Richmond, VA
5,526 (+1,975 over regular season average)