Written by Sean Limon

After a tough competitive match, the Maryland Bobcats fell to Chattanooga FC on Saturday night with the final score being 1-2. The match started off very evenly with both teams feeling each other out. The Bobcats had the better chances in the first half, but with a number of fouls and stoppages, the Bobcats couldn’t find a way to get one past Chattanooga’s keeper Jean Antoine. 

The second half however saw the Bobcats go up 1-0 in the 57th minute after a short taken corner kick by Darwin Espinal was passed back to him , and he looked to cross the ball into the box at a better angle. Having crossed the ball with such pace, Chattanooga’s keeper Antoine came to make a play on the cross. However the in-swinging nature of the cross and the wind having an effect on the ball proved too difficult for the keeper, and the ball found its way into the net from the cross. That brings Darwin Espinal goal total to 4 goals this season in NISA. 

The Bobcats then looked to play more possession based for the next 10 minutes but after not clearing the ball out of the Bobcats box effectively, Chattanooga winger Kevin Mwape played in striker Markus Naglestad who one time finished just outside the 6 yard box. The Bobcats did well to keep top goal scorer in NISA Naglestad quiet throughout the game, but in true strikers fashion all he needed was one chance and he leveled the score 1-1 bringing his goal total in NISA to 6 goals after playing in 8 games. 

From the restart it was all Chattanooga who were pushing to find the lead goal. After just 3 minutes from tying the game, Chattanooga would find that lead goal. After a few blocked shots in the Bobcats box, the ball was then played to winger Kevin Mwape who was in acres of space and unmarked, finessed a left footed effort past Bobcats keeper Alex Sutton. Head coach Alex Kao won’t be happy with his side giving up 2 goals in a matter of 3 minutes and from there, Chattanooga saw out the game defensively. 

There were plenty of positives and negatives to take from this game. The Bobcats now have a full week to rest and recover and coach Kao will be sure to train the team effectively this week to make sure the defensive mistakes will be addressed ahead of the game on Saturday against Savannah Clovers. 

As of today, 6/5 the Bobcats still sit in second place in NISA and will look for a win against Savannah before going on a long road trip. The Savannah Clovers matchup will kickoff at 7:00pm EDT on June 10th, 2023. Tickets can be bought at 

Match Details:

Maryland Bobcats FC: Sutton (GK); Villatoro (72’), Mansour, Forka, Burnett; Possian, Wivell (72’), Richard (84’); Espinal, Likulia (68’), Thom (45’)

Substitutions: Thomson (GK), Solomon (68’), Conteh (72’), Sotarello (84’), Gonzalez (72’), Shiels, Akinkoye, Madad (45’)

Bookings: Villatoro (23’), Burnett (48’)

Goals: Espinal (56’)

Chattanooga FC: Antoine (GK); Bowers, Perez, Dixon, Prepelita; Stripling, Alvarenga, Garcia Sosa (90’), Mwape; Louis (90’), Naglestad (90’)

Substitutions: So (90’), Rodriguez, Lopez Jr.  (90’), Rodrigues, Capozucchi, Burke

Bookings: Prepelita (64’), Antoine (69’), Louis (74’)

Goals: Naglestad (63’), Mwape (69’)