On Sunday, visitors Independent FC fell to Ocelot Academy 3-0 in UPSL Division 1 play.

Pre-game

This matchup will be the first between the two sides. The hosts, Ocelot, were the favorites, undefeated the whole season and holding the first-place spot in the SoCal East.

Meanwhile, Independent FC has struggled since their last win in March, with an L-T-T-L-T form before Sunday’s game.

Game Recap

On a sunny afternoon in Bloomington High School, the match between Ocelot Academy (in white) and Independent FC (in blue) kicks off. The hosts start by holding possession more while the visitors play counterattack.

The boys in white struck first in the 6th minute with a rather light-footed volley that hit the left post and in. The goalkeeper appeared to plant his feet and reacted slowly to the ball.

After the early goal, Ocelot remained compact and held the ball while Independent pressured them in the midfield and attempted to transition to a counterattack. However, Ocelot had more possession and control of the Blues’ pressure when they had the ball.

Later, the waves of attack start to favor the hosts, with connecting passes on the right flank and shots from just outside the box. The boys in blue stay back defensively to attempt to block the shots and then turn over for a counter, but the implementation fails constantly.

Defensively, Ocelot is firm in its positioning and strong on stand tackles. They are fast on the 50/50 balls and calm the pressure after the Independent attack. Offensively, the visitors’ counterattacks are improvised when a defender clears the ball for an attack or two to chase it, and then they try to find an open man to continue moving forward.

They went on for the rest of the half until the ref blew his whistle to end the first half. Ocelot led 1-0.

The second half starts, and both teams continue with their same strategy. The hosts only change their attack style to attack the wings, slant in the box, and send a low cross for a man in the middle.

Then, in the 62′, the hosts break through with a goal from the left side. The player receives a through pass, goes one-on-one with the rushing goalkeeper, and chips the ball over him and in.

After the 2-0 lead, the boys in white remain dominant and keep getting chances at goal while the visitors get few chances to break their opponents’ streak.

After the 75′, the game gets choppy with petty fouls from both sides, but both teams are back-and-forth with waves of attacks based on their game strategies.

Finally, with less than five minutes left in the match, Ocelot scored their third goal from the left side. The player beat the defender, crossed it to the open man in the box, and he slotted it in to the left. Shortly after, the referee blew the final whistle to end the match with the hosts winning 3-0.

Post Game

The victory for Ocelot keeps them in first place in the SoCal East and 9 points ahead of second-place Gauchos Intercontinental CYSA. It also extends their winning streak to 8 games. In their next game, they will visit the Gauchos on May 31st.

The goal scorers were Jhonny D Perez, David Navarro and Alexander Sagrero.

Independent FC is now in seventh place with a 2-4-4 record. They return home on June 1st to host 9th-place La Barca.