Reno 1868 FC avenges lone home loss of season, remains in third place tie
Reno 1868 FC was playing the first match in franchise history when it met Orange County SC for the first time in March. The home side went on to lose 2-0 at Greater Nevada Field.
Much has changed in the five months since. Reno, which hasn’t lost another home game, went to Orange County on Saturday night and rolled 3-1, winning its season-high fifth straight and pulling within five goals of the USL single-season record.
The most explosive offense in the USL has scored 57 times this year, six more than Salt Lake and 39 more than the worst offense in the USL, Harrisburg.
Reno (13-5-6) remained knotted with Swope Park for third place in the Western Conference, although it owns the tiebreaker with the Rangers thanks to a pair of head-to-head wins. Orange County tumbled to 7-8-8 and is now winless in its last eight.
Playing down a man much of the second half after a red card in the 53rd minute, Orange County conceded Reno’s final goal to Chris Wehan in the 67th minute. It was Wehan’s sixth goal on the season, good for third on the team.
Orange County broke up the clean sheet with a stoppage time tally.
Jimmy Ockford put the guests up 1-0 in the 13th minute and the distance grew to 2-0 just minutes later with an own goal. That margin held until half.
The three goals were the most 1868 FC scored since a 3-2 win at Tulsa on August 2, a span of four matches, and they did it without USL leading scorer Dane Kelly. He has 16 goals to his credit this season. Kelly was called up by the Jamaican national team for Saturday’s friendly with Canada, a 2-0 Canadian victory.
He will rejoin the club this week as it plays the second leg of a four-game road trip on Wednesday night at LA Galaxy II (6-13-4). Reno made USL history when it saw Los Angeles the first time, delivering a 9-0 beat down at Greater Nevada Field on July 3.
The 48 conceded goals by Los Angeles this season are the second most in the USL.
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