After a scoreless first half, a goal and an assist from Liam Jones in the second half lifted the Blues over Wake FC, 2-0.
The first real danger of the day came via Jones in the 18th minute. He sent a free kick from the left half-space into the center of the box where Ekene Okeke launched a header towards goal, but it sailed over the crossbar. Moments later, Johnny Gourley fired a long-range strike on frame that Evan Hart battled off to keep things level.
Franco Ocana nearly found his 4th goal in 3 games in the 34th minute, when he made a nice run to the endline on the left side while warding off defenders. His tight angle shot stung Hart’s palms and popped up for a juicy rebound opportunity, but no Blue was able to pounce on it.
Wake nearly found the breakthrough themselves in the 39th minute, when Brendan Lauder laid the ball off for John Pottle at the top of the box. Pottle took a dribble inside the box and launched one on net that Francois Djiba caught cleanly.
In the first minute of stoppage time, Ocana found himself behind the Wake defense in a 1-on-1 opportunity with the keeper, but Evan Hart stood strong as the match headed scoreless into the break.
A few minutes after play resumed, Gourley rocketed a long-range strike on frame but Hart once again made a solid save to keep things tied. However, 12 minutes later, the Blues finally broke through.
Jones shuttled the ball down the right flank and into the box, before putting his tight angle shot off of the crossbar in the upper right corner and into the net to put Asheville ahead 1-0.
The Blues found their 2nd in the 77th minute, courtesy of Agustin Lopez. Jones won a battle for the ball on the edge of the box on the right side and squared it for Lopez, whose one-touch strike curled into the side netting to double the Asheville lead, as the Blues held on to win 2-0.
Liam Jones was named the Wicked Pie Player of the Match for his efforts on the night, which included a goal and an assist.
The Men return to Greenwood Field on Saturday, June 13th, as part of a doubleheader with the Women. The Women go first against Swarm FC at 3:30 PM, while the Men square off against App FC at 7:00 PM. The Women are also home on Tuesday, June 9th, when they host One Knoxville SC in the Smoky Mountain Series at 6:30 PM. You can buy your tickets here.
