Hartford Athletic Claim Another Point In Pulsating Encounter With Indy Eleven

A brace for Kyle Edwards was part of the Latics' best offensive output this season, but defensive lapses left them settling for a 4-4 draw

Hartford Athletic claimed a third straight draw — and a first road point of the season — as a back-and-forth contest with Indy Eleven resulted in a 4-4 draw. It was only the seventh time in club history that the Latics have scored at least four goals, the 27th time they’ve conceded at least four goals and the first time they’ve managed to earn at least a point while still giving up that many goals.

It was something of an offensive explosion for Hartford, who had only scored five goals in eight USL Championship games before tonight. It also managed to take 18 shots, another league high on the season for a club that had been absolutely stifled in attack by every Championship opponent they had previously faced.

Hartford fell behind early when Ben Ofeimu put the ball in the back of the net following a set piece. The Latics have struggled to effectively defend set pieces this season, and yet again failed to effectively clear the danger after Antony Siaha’s initial save. A goalmouth scramble ensued, and Ofeimu was able to poke the ball over the line in the chaos.

The Latics equalized in the 26th minute, after Deshane Beckford was fouled in the box. The winger won the ball out on the left-hand side, and after driving into the box, cut inside and was fouled from behind leading the referee to point to the spot. Kyle Edwards converted the resulting penalty to level the score.

Edwards bagged a second in the 32nd minute to give Hartford the lead for the first time on the night, with an excellent finish from inside the box. An inch-perfect long ball from Beverly Makangila was headed back across by Mamadou Dieng and Edwards controlled the ball and fired it into the net to put his side ahead.

Jordan Scarlett added a third in the 32nd minute, following a free kick out wide on the right-hand side. The ball was whipped in, headed back across the box and then deflected, with Joe Farrell getting another touch to put it back into the path of Scarlett who headed home for his third of the season in all competitions.

The Latics then gave one back in first half stoppage time. After giving away a free-kick in a dangerous position, Hartford left former Latic Romario Williams unmarked, and he headed home the inswinging ball to reduce the deficit to one.

Indy equalized almost immediately following the break, and this goal was slightly unfortunate for Hartford, with Jack Blake’s strike taking a wicked deflection to leave Siaha stranded as the ball nestled in the top corner.

With the Latics having yet to score four goals on the 2025 season — and having managed it only once in all of 2024 — it might have seemed like at 3-3 their best bet was to hold on for a draw, but they struck back almost immediately. Dieng had the ball out wide, and while it’s possible his effort was intended as a cross, it deceived the Indy keeper and rocketed into the back of the net to give Hartford a 4-3 advantage.

Both Blake’s equalizer and Dieng’s strike to restore Hartford’s lead were recorded in the 46th minute, and it concluded a span of 33 minutes of game time in which the two teams combined for seven goals.

After this point, things calmed down somewhat, and while both teams continued to find opportunities, there were no more goals until second-half stoppage time, when Williams again pegged his former side back. Indy developed the play well down its left-hand side, and when the ball came across the top of the box, Williams was unmarked and able to pick his spot in the bottom corner to secure a point for the hosts.

It was a disappointing end to the game for Hartford, as its lack of defensive focus once again cost them. Still, there were also numerous positives, not least of which was that they demonstrated the ability to generate opportunities and to score goals, all of which has been sorely lacking this season. A valuable road point against a team that is right around the Latics in the standings is another positive. While the season is not quite fully on track, the positive signs over the last few games are beginning to add up.

Hartford will look to channel that as it returns to action on Saturday to take on Westchester SC in the USL Jägermeister Cup.