USSF D-II: Vancouver grabs late point vs. St. Louis

Posted Jul 9, 2010 by Nick Murray

Updated Jul 9, 2010 at 12:19 PM

AC St. Louis earns a second draw against Vancouver in three weeks, while league-leading Austin travels to face a hot Rochester team tonight in the USSF Division II.

ST. LOUIS 1, VANCOUVER 1: Randy Edwini-Bonsu salvaged a point for the Whitecaps in the 87th minute, keeping the Saints from their third win of the season and extending Vancouver’s undefeated streak to eight games as it maintained its lead atop the NASL Conference.

St. Louis had taken the lead in the 72rd minute, Mark Bloom scoring his first goal of the season after a defensive lapse from the Whitecaps at a corner left him and two Saints’ teammates open.

A bright spot for the Whitecaps, though, was the debut of Tampa’s Blake Wagner. Formerly with FC Dallas, Wagner has struggled with injuries since joining Vancouver, but made an impressive debut that culminated with an assist on Edwini-Bonsu’s goal as he sprung the forward with an angled ball over the St. Louis defense.

For more on the game, here’s Marc Weber of The Province’s game report.

TONIGHT’S GAMES

AUSTIN (9-2-4) AT ROCHESTER (7-3-4): The top two teams in the USL Conference meet with the Rhinos on a six-game undefeated streak, including three straight victories at Marina Auto Stadium.

Rochester earned a 2-1 victory against Montreal last Saturday to move within six point of Austin at the top of the standings. The Rhinos recent run has come through a strong all-around effort. While Anthony Hamilton leads the team with four goals, seven members of the Rhino squad have multiple goals.

Austin has continued to play consistently, its only defeat in June coming to Vancouver, but it will want to get at least a point against the Rhinos to maintain its breathing space at the top of the standings. Maxwell Griffin was named the league’s Player of the Month on Thursday, but the Aztex could use a return to form of Jamie Watson, who hasn’t scored in their last six games.

BALTIMORE (4-7-3) AT PUERTO RICO (4-6-2): The Eagles stole victory at Minnesota last weekend, an 86th-minute goal by Tsuyoshi Yoshitake giving Crystal Palace Baltimore victory in a game where they were outshot 10-4 and conceded six corners and 19 fouls.

The Islanders will hope the same fate as befell the Stars doesn’t find them. After earning a 1-1 draw against Austin last week, the Islanders need wins in order to get into playoff contention. They should be able to draw confidence from the first meeting of the teams in April when Josh Hansen scored twice in a 3-1 victory. Puerto Rico faces a busy month ahead, though, with seven league games on the schedule including a second game on Sunday against Carolina.