Photo Credit: Matt Schlotzhauer

Battling for fifth place and a more secure playoff position, Bethlehem Steel tied Indy Eleven at Lucas Oil Stadium Saturday night, 1-1.

Bethlehem’s final road game of the regular season started as a bit of back and forth but quickly gave way to a more dominant Steel side. Hoping to take Indy Eleven’s place in the eastern standings, Bethlehem generated more opportunities and controlled the pace with youthful energy.

The first real chance of the game came from Faris in the 16’, but his shot was foiled by Fon Williams, as was the follow up shot from Brenden Aaronson. Faris gave the Steel the go-ahead goal after Mitchell went down with a hamstring issue. Looking aggressive for the majority of the game, Bethlehem kept a higher back line and was able to break down counter attacks.

The second half shifted more towards the Indy Eleven when Bethlehem seemed to take their foot off the gas. With less intensity, the Steel were more defensive as the Eleven pressed for an equalizer and took more control of the game. Indy’s Eugene Starikov equalized in the 61st minute off of a long ball from Seth Moses when Steel keeper Tomas Romero was caught off of his line and unable to stop a surprise chip-in. After the goal though, the Steel regained some control and started generating more chances to try to get all three points.

Indy Eleven remains in fifth place with 49 points and Bethlehem Steel remain in sixth place with 47 points. Both teams remain in playoff contention, but have not clinched a spot.

The Steel will return to Bethlehem for their last regular season game against the Tampa Bay Rowdies on October 14th.

Three Points

Series Ends in a Tie: This is the third and final match-up between the Steel and Indy Eleven in the regular season. The series was tied 1-1 with the road team winning, respectively. Now, it’s 1-1-1.

Tomas Romero: Without goalkeepers Jake McGuire and John McCarthy, 17-year-old Romero appeared in his first match of the season. He’s the 35th player to appear for the Steel and while he did give up a goal, he stood strong in his first performance.

Young Guns: Bethlehem’s starting lineup had an average age of 20.66 years. The Steel controlled the majority of the game at a fast pace that’s attributed to youth. Against an older Indy Eleven, the youngsters were able to outpace and control the ball for most of the game.

Scoring

BST – Faris 39’

IND – Starikov 61’

Discipline

IND – 58’ Seth Moses (Yellow Card)

BST – 74’ Fontana (Yellow Card)

BST – 87′ Chambers (Yellow Card)

Lineups

Bethlehem Steel FC

Tomas Romero; Matt Mahoney; Josh Yaro; Ben Ofeimu; Matthew Real; Anthony Fontana; James Chambers ©; Michee Ngalina (Omar Holness 90′); Brenden Aaronson (Drew Skundrich 67’); Santi Moar; Faris (Chris Nanco 75’)

Unused substitutes: Kris Shakes, Prosper Chiluya, Brandon Aurbrey, Aidan Apodaca.

Indy Eleven

Owain Fon Williams; Reiner Ferreira; Ayoze; Carlyle Mitchell (Bradford Rusin 41’); Karl Ouimette; Dylarn Mares; Nico Matern; Matt Watson ©; Eugene Starikov (Ben Speas 70’); Seth Moses (Jack McInerney 61’); Elliot Collier

Unused substitutes: Ben Lundgaard, Brad Ring, Juan Guerra, Soony Saad.