Livonia, MI (May 15th, 2021) - Our Men had a strong performance last night but were ultimately unable to capitalize on their chances in a 2-1 loss to Michigan Stars U23 (1-0-0, 3 points). By failing to secure any points, LCFC fall to 0-2-2, with 2 points in league play which puts them at 4th place in the East Division.
In the first few minutes of the match, the Stars looked dangerous in the final third. Robert Dameron showed great effort in making a double save to halt a dangerous Stars attack, but just minutes later the Stars were able to finish at the far post to start off the scoring.
LCFC responded well and had multiple chances on net, including a Caleb Dupree shot that rattled the post. With about 10 minutes before halftime, Thomas Dono was able to cap off a dominant few minutes by scoring a brilliant goal in his first appearance of the season. Pressuring the Stars backline, Dono was able to pluck the ball out of the air away from a defender and curl his shot over the goalkeeper’s head from 20 yards out.
Although we looked even stronger in the second half and held the majority of possession, the boys were unable to find another goal while giving up a second goal late in the second half. Both Kyle Breitmeyer and Ivan Panergo had opportunities to tie things up late in the match but were both unlucky to not score.
Head Coach, Gaven King:
“To no fault to the team as a whole, we fought hard for 90+ minutes. We did have a few costly mistakes that we’ll need to clean up going forward in order to get the results we need.
It was great to have some of the younger players starting and coming off the bench getting experience at this level. Seeing how they came out and performed, the future is definitely bright for the club. I’m especially proud of Thomas Dono, who scored a fantastic goal in his first game back with the club.”
Match Notes:
- Robert Dameron did well in goal in his first league match of the season, before being replaced by Zach Shuk in the 2nd half.
- Matt VerSteeg continued his starts streak, by starting in his 4th league match and 6th match overall this season.
- Mitchell Jones, Nyle Ellis, Thomas Dono, and Caleb Dupree all made their first league starts of the season
- Mac Bechard returned from injury to make his first league appearance of the season as a second-half sub
- Calvin Kalemaj gave off the bench in the second half to make his first club appearance
Lineups & Substitutes:
Livonia City:
GK: Robert Dameron
D: Matt VerSteeg, Conor Reaume, Thomas Mackey, Mitchell Jones
M: Nyle Ellis, Andrew Burgeson Thomas Dono, Ivan Panergo, Caleb Dupree
F: Kyle Breitmeyer
Subs: Zach Shuk (GK), Gavin Cameron, Pat Smith, Calvin Kalemaj, Mac Bechard, Garet Hintzman
Scoring Summary: Thomas Dono - 30′
Next Match: We hit the road to face BIH Grand Rapids on 5/22
