Vermont Green to Host USL 2 Final After Defeating Dothan in Penalties
After a dramatic 120 minutes of scoreless soccer, the Green prevailed in penalty kicks, earning themselves the right to host Saturday’s national championship.
In front of what was well-over 3,000 fans packed into Virtue Field, Vermont Green FC defeated Southern Conference champions Dothan United Sunday night to secure their spot in the national final.
The game featured playoff soccer at its finest. There were plenty of chances at both ends all night long, but both goalkeepers excelled, keeping the game scoreless.
At the end of the ninety minutes, the teams were still tied at zero, and Virtue Field geared up for extra time. From that point on, Vermont was clearly the better team. The Green attacked a strong Dothan backline relentlessly, piling on the pressure and forcing 25 year-old Dothan goalkeeper Yago Darub to make some big saves.
The best chance of probably the entire game for either side came late in extra time. Vermont’s Owen O’Malley took a touch inside the box and had his shot blocked, with the rebound finding its way over to the penalty spot, where Maximillian Kissel was waiting to pounce. Kissel fired a one time strike on goal, only to be denied by a fantastic leaping save from Darub, who heroically kept his side in the game.
An extra thirty minutes was not enough for either side to find a goal, so the game headed into an all-decisive penalty kick shootout with a spot in the national final on the line.
Vermont’s leading scorer Zachary Zengue stepped up to take the first penalty of the shootout and unexpectedly rifled his attempt over the bar. But moments later, Niklas Herceg came to the rescue for the Boys in Green, denying Dothan’s Lawrence Goddard with a dive to his left.
Alex Hall, Julien Le Bourdoulous, and Maximillian Kissel converted the next three kicks from the spot for the Green. Following Kissel’s shot, Dothan substitute Joshua Salas approached the spot with a chance to equalize. Instead, Herceg stepped up big once again for the Green, making a huge one handed stop to give his side the edge.
With a chance to finish it off, Owen O’Malley calmly rolled the ball into the back of the net, sending Vermont to the national championship. After yet another moment of late heroics for the Green, the Creighton alumni deservedly earned himself the title of “Mr. Vermont” from a very excited Vermont play by play announcer Brian McLaughlin.
“I just went up there, put my head down, and passed it in the net,” said O’Malley in a postgame interview with WCAX TV Channel 3. “I do it for the fans, you know, I just love these guys so much.”
Now, after Sunday night’s dramatic win, the Green have been given the opportunity to host the USL 2 national final this upcoming Saturday at Virtue Field. It is an incredible feat for the club, who are playing in their first ever final.
Vermont Green will welcome Ballard FC to Burlington for Saturday night’s clash. Coming all the way from across the country, Ballard are one of the most successful clubs in the league’s recent history. The Seattle, Washington based club were 2023 USL 2 champions and have now won the Western Conference for three years in a row.
The national championship is set to kickoff at 7:00 PM Saturday night at Virtue Field, where all of Vermont will assemble in an effort to support their Boys in Green.
The Blazing Musket will be making the trip up to Burlington and will have coverage for the match.