“I think we played our best game of the season tonight,” said Di Lorenzo, who finished the night with a goal and one assist. “The Rhinos have a good team and a solid defense, but tonight we played better than them. For me, I thought I played a good game on the left wing. On my goal, I saw the opening and I didn’t miss my chance. It’s a relief for me to finally score a goal.”
“We dictated the tone of the game from beginning to end,” said Impact head coach Nick De Santis. “After our two ties in Virginia Beach, we bounced back with a big performance, which once again shows a lot of character. With this win tonight, we’re going into Rochester in excellent position.”
Montreal Impact goalkeeper Greg Sutton, who started his first game since June 4, 2006, earned his sixth shutout of the season. Sutton missed the last 14 games due to a fractured index finger.
“I was eager to come back and things went well tonight,” said Sutton. “I felt good throughout the game. It helped that I had to make a save early in the match. After a long injury, it’s a great way to come back.”
The Impact continued to improve on its team record for the best start of the season at home, which is currently at 10 games without a loss (7-0-3).
The Impact has now shut out the Raging Rhinos in their last 12 games at home (10-0-2).
With the win, the Impact consolidates its lead in first place in USL D1 standings with 43 points eight ahead of the Vancouver Whitecaps and the Charleston Battery.
With 13,450 fans at the game, the Impact set a new attendance record for the largest regular season crowd, for a third consecutive game, surpassing the previous record of 13 397, set July 11, 2006. This is also the second largest crowd in club history, following the 2004 championship final, where 13,648 were in attendance.
In player moves, the Montreal Impact announced that forward Joel Bailey, who was out of the line-up tonight and who will not travel with the team in Rochester, was suspended for an undetermined period of time.
The Impact and the Rhinos will face each other again this Friday, at the Paetec Park in Rochester (7:35, CJAD 800, Sport Plus XM-172).
THE GOALS
43rd minute – After receiving a pass from midfielder Leonardo Di Lorenzo on the left wing, defender Lars Lyssand beat Rhinos goalkeeper Scott Vallow with a low shot to the far post.
49th minute – On a quick back pass from Mauro Biello at the top of the box, Di Lorenzo avoided a tackle from defender Frank Sanfillippo and took a high shot to the top left corner that caught goalkeeper Scott Vallow flat-footed.
THE HIGHLIGHTS
15th minute – Following a free kick by Leonardo Di Lorenzo outside the box, midfielder Zé Roberto deflected the ball with a header, just wide of the right post.
35th minute – After swerving past Rhinos defender Scott Palguta on the right wing, team captain Mauro Biello took a low, diagonal shot that rolled just wide of the net.
70th minute – On a failed clearing attempt by Nevio Pizzolitto, Rhinos forward Charles Gbeke jumped on the rebound but his point blank shot was saved by Greg Sutton.
MISSING FROM THE LINE-UP
Team – Player (Position) – Reason – Status
MTL - Antonio Ribeiro (M) – red card and accumulation of yellow cards – 2nd of 2-game suspension
MTL - Daniel Antoniuk (F) – concussion – could be back Friday in Rochester
MTL - Gabriel Gervais (D) – groin – could be back Wednesday against Charleston
MTL - Jason DiTullio (D) – knee - season over
NEXT GAMES
Fri. August 11 – Impact @ Rochester – Paetec Park – 7:35 pm
Wed. August 16 – Charleston @ Impact – Claude-Robillard Sports Complex – 7:30 pm
Wed. August 23 – Impact @ Toronto – Centennial Stadium – 7:30 pm
Fri. August 25 - Virginia Beach @ Impact - Claude-Robillard Sports Complex – 7:30 pm
Sun. August 27 - Virginia Beach @ Impact – Sherbrooke University Stadium (in Sherbrooke) – 4 pm
GAME SUMMARY
www.impactmontreal.com/Tracker/Tracker.aspx?GameID=20&language=EN
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Source : Patrick Vallée, Montreal Impact
Info : 514-328-3668 Ext. 27
