Indy In Position To Win Spring Season Title

Photo credit: Indy Eleven/Trevor Ruszkowski​

Indy Eleven used a furious attack to score four goals and put themselves in position to win the NASL Spring Season, pending the result of tomorrow’s match between FC Edmonton and the Fort Lauderdale Strikers. Indy defeated visiting Carolina, 4-1, on Saturday night, powered by Eamon Zayed's hat trick.

Needing goals, Indy (4W-6D-0L, 18 points) came out flying, forcing several saves by Carolina goalkeeper Akira Fitzgerald inside the game’s first 10 minutes, once on a point blank shot from Omar Gordon

The Eleven broke through minutes later when Nemanja Vukovic’s cross from the left was headed past Fitzgerald by Zayed, his fourth goal of the year.

Carolina’s Nazmi Albadawi evened the score in the 29th minute, taking a shot that beat Jon Busch low to the near post after Albadawi could not find a suitable passing option.

Another Vukovic cross led to a goal just before the end of the first half when Justin Braun slipped his marker to side foot a shot past Fitzgerald. The Eleven made it 3-1 in the 65th minute when Zayed nodded a cross from Gordon past Fitzgerald, who had been under intense pressure the entire second half.

Zayed completed the hat trick - and capped Indy’s incredible performance - when he slipped the RailHawks (4-2-4, 14) defense at the far post and tapped in a cross from substitute Duke Lacroix in the 86th minute. It moved the Irish-born Libyan forward into the league lead on goals with six. Indy amassed 26 total shots with 12 of them on target.

Indy, which finished the season unbeaten, needed to score four goals and win the game by three or more goals to finish above the Cosmos in the Spring Season Standings, on the third tiebreaker - head-to-head result. Indy defeated the Cosmos, 2-1, earlier in the season by scoring two goals in the waning moments of the game.

For more details on the match, visit indyeleven.com and carolinarailhawks.com.