If the Oakland Roots were finally going to defeat the defending USL Championship Orange County SC, it had to be a dramatic victory.
“Tonight wasn’t the prettiest, but tonight we won and got three points,” said Roots head coach Juan Guerra after the game.
After Óttar Magnús Karlsson put Oakland ahead in the 9th minute, Orange County responded with an Erick Torres penalty kick to tie the match going into the break.
In the 65th minute, OC’s Albi Skendi found himself unmarked in the box on a corner kick and powered his header home for the 2-1 advantage.
As the game entered extra time, the Roots’ Juan Azocar was able to find space out wide and hit a curling shot that found the far post and tied the game.
Orange County fouled the Roots outside the box with time almost expiring, allowing Karlsson to size up a free-kick. He blasted his shot over the wall and just inside the near post to grab Oakland their most improbable three points of the season.
It was Oakland’s first-ever victory over their SoCal division rivals in seven attempts.
The victory also had a special meaning for the Roots players to honor Alejandro Díaz, the father of winger Memo Díaz. Alejandro tragically died last week in an auto accident in Texas.
It means a lot. It’s been a hard week. We’re heartbroken,” said Guerra. “The emotions tonight… we’re happy we got three points, but we are heartbroken. I’ve been hurting these past three days. I’m happy we’re able to win tonight. I’m sure Memo was able to watch it.”
Next up for Oakland is a short trip down the coast to Monterey to take on Bay Union FC at their new stadium on Saturday.
