Friday, June 1, 2012
HARRISBURG, Pa. -- Tricky conditions soon turned treacherous in Friday’s 1-1 draw between the Harrisburg City Islanders and Richmond Kickers at Skyline Sports Complex. Play was suspended for 30 minutes in the 84th minute when flashes of lightning became all too conspicuous for referee John McCloskey to ignore. An hour later and the game was called due to the continuing bad weather.
After a scoreless and slippery first half that saw Richmond goalkeeper Ronnie Pascale called into action with a strong pair of saves just before the break, the Kickers opened up the scoring from a free kick in the 68th. Stanley Nyazamba, who scored on a penalty kick in Richmond’s previous game against D.C. United, curved a cross into the far post from the right side of the penalty area. Shane Johnson dashed in and skied for the header, which sped by Harrisburg’s Nick Noble to put the Kickers up 1-0. The goal was the first of the Kickers rookie's career.
The City Islanders equalized 11 minutes later, when second-half substitute Garret Pettis scored seconds after entering the game, heading a long pass from Jason Pelletier past Pascale. The ball trickled by Pascale’s outstretched hands, catching a bit of his keeper’s gloves before creeping over the line, giving the City Islanders Academy product his first professional goal.
Five minutes later, the rains came. Richmond moves to 2-2-5, while Harrisburg goes to 3-1-4. The Kickers have a quick turnaround as they head north to play the Rochester Rhinos on Saturday night at Sahlen's Stadium at 7:05 p.m. ET. Next up for the City Islanders is a contest with Major League Soccer's New York Red Bulls, who make the trip to Skyline Sports Complex for the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Fourth Round on Tuesday. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.