The momentum from their Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup victory on Wednesday must have carried over into the weekend as the Ocean City Barons earned an important road victory over the Westchester Flames, 1-0. Team captain and starting center back Joe Banks (Drexel / Sicklerville, NJ) scored the lone goal for the Barons on a diving header in the 25th minute on a free kick from William Swetra (James Madison / Egg Harbor, NJ). Barons goalkeeper John Fogarty (Villanova / Marmora, NJ) got his second career shutout in his second career start.

 

Barons Lineup	School / Hometown
GK - John Fogarty	Villanova / Marmora, NJ
DEF - Jamal Neptune	Hofstra / East Windsor, NJ
DEF - Kevin Curran	Loyola College / Upper Twp, NJ
DEF - Jimmy Davis	LaSalle (’09) / Pittsgrove, NJ
DEF - Joe Banks	Drexel (’07) / Sicklerville, NJ
MID - Neal Melchionni	Lehigh / Marmora, NJ
MID - Leon Brown	Wheeling Jesuit (’04) / Sicklerville, NJ
MID - Rory McCrea	Hofstra / Leeds, England
MID - William Swetra	James Madison / Egg Harbor, NJ
FWD - J.T. Noone	Temple / Harrisburg, PA
FWD - Kyle Miller	Holy Cross / Woodbury, NJ
Substitutes
Ryan Richter	LaSalle / Southampton, PA
Byron Carmichael	Marshall (’03) / Lumberton, NJ
Billy Pinto	Hofstra / Audubon, NJ
Tyler Bellamy	St. Bonaventure / Hammonton, NJ
Dan Korenyi	LaSalle / Cinneminson, NJ
Junior Chapman	LaSalle / Winslow, NJ
Scoring Summary
25th (OCEAN CITY)	Joe Banks (William Swetra)
GAME STATS	OCEAN CITY						WESTCHESTER
Shots	13						14
Saves	4						7
Fouls	12						12
Offsides	3						2
Corners	6						2

The Barons improve to 5-1-1 in league play and remain in second place in the Northeast Division, while Westchester falls to 1-5-2.

NEXT GAME: Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Second Round Real Maryland Monarchs at Ocean City Barons Tuesday, June 16 | 7 p.m. Tickets $10 adults / $4 kids

More Information Follow the Barons on Twitter! Barons on Facebook U.S. Open Cup website U.S. Open Cup bracket

 

 

The Barons are unbeaten (2-0-1) in their last three games against the Flames and lead the all-time series with the New York-based club, 5-2-1.

The next action for the club is Tuesday’s massive U.S. Open Cup game against Real Maryland Monarchs of the USL Second Division. The game at Carey Stadium kicks off at 7 p.m. and the winner of that match will face Major League Soccer’s D.C. United in the Third Round.

Barons assistant coach John Thompson didn’t let the players lose sight of the importance of Saturday’s league game. 

"We didn’t really have a different approach tonight [with Tuesday’s game looming]," said Thompson. "[First place] Long Island is playing well so we can’t afford any losses or draws, so we fought hard tonight." 

The last time these two teams met was in the season opener at Carey Stadium when bad weather forced the game to be abandoned in the 58th minute. It marked the first time since the Barons moved to Ocean City in 2005 that a game was stopped due to weather. The match finished in a 1-1 draw with Ryan Richter (LaSalle / Southampton, PA) scoring the lone goal for Ocean City.

Hard fought was a correct description for Saturday’s game. Fogarty was tested in the opening 20 minutes when Westchester player cut into the box from the right side and fired a shot, forcing him to make a diving save to keep the game scoreless.

Before Banks scored off a Swetra free kick, he had already put the ball into the back of the net, but it didn’t count. He received a ball in the air and headed it over the Flames goalkeeper who came off his line, but Kyle Miller (Holy Cross / Woodbury, NJ) made an attempt to play the ball in an offside position and the goal was waived off.

The captain would finally get his goal in the 25th minute when Swetra struck a free kick from 35 yards out on the left wing. The 6’2 Banks, always a target on set pieces close to goal, faked a move to the outside, cut back inside, found some space and dove to the ground head first to meet the ball low. His diving header moved through traffic and into the back of the net for his second goal of the season.

"It’s always nice to help out," said Banks on his game-winning goal. The goal was the sixth in his six seasons with the Barons, his fourth in the last two years. Last year, the two goals he scored were both game-winners.

The rest of the game, the Barons weren’t able to produce many chances. The best opportunity came when Jamal Neptune (Hofstra / East Windsor, NJ) played a ball out to the wing for Neal Melchionni (Lehigh / Marmora, NJ) who immediately sent in a cross to Kyle Miller who headed the ball right into the arms of the Flames netminder.

Getting the team to avoid looking ahead was certainly an issue heading into Saturday’s contest. "We definitely had to make an effort to get everyone focused on today’s game," said Banks. "But we’re going to get a good training day in on Monday and we’re going to show up ready to play on Tuesday."

After the Barons’ Open Cup game on Tuesday, the club is scheduled to play their sixth of six straight road games the very next day when they take on the New Jersey Rangers at 7 p.m. The Men In Red will return home next weekend when they host the Brooklyn Knights at Carey Stadium on Saturday, June 20 at 7 p.m. Tickets for the Open Cup game are $10 for adults and $4 for kids. For more information on the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup visit www.usopencup.com.