Recap by Olivia Currier

On Friday night, the Ocean City Nor’easters hosted West Chester United at Carey Stadium ("The Beach House") and suffered their first loss of the season, 1-0.

Despite an exceptional performance by Nor’easters goalkeeper Nathanael Sallah (Nebraska-Omaha / Hamburg Germany), the only goal was scored by West Chester’s Yassine Elkahloun with only five minutes left to play.

With the loss, the Nor’easters are no longer the only team in USL League Two with a perfect record, dropping to 8-1-0. It was also the first time Ocean City had been held without a goal in 15 games (dating back to last season). It was also the first time the Storm had suffered a shutout loss since June 15, 2019 (a 2-0 loss at Reading United AC) and the first time they had been shutout at home since June 20, 2018 (a 2-0 loss vs. Reading United AC).

Despite the loss, the Nor'easters are still in prime position to win a third straight Mid-Atlantic Division championship. Ocean City will clinch if they win just one of their remaining three games or if Reading United loses or ties any of their four remaining games. Reading hosts Real Central New Jersey on Saturday night.

Both teams came out with high energy, with the Nor’easters hoping to win the Mid-Atlantic Division title with a win and West Chester United battling for second place, which would earn them a trip to the USL-2 postseason. West Chester, with a record of 4-3-2 going into the match, was in close contention with Reading United (4-3-1) and Real Central New Jersey (4-5-0) for the No. 2 spot.

In the 29th minute, Nolan Spicer (Notre Dame / Bay Village, OH) received a yellow card for a handball violation in the box and as a result, West Chester’s Josh Pulla was awarded a penalty kick. In a remarkable play, Sallah dove to his right and saved Pulla’s shot. As the team and Nor’easter fans celebrated the save, the referee flag went up to declare that Sallah had left the line early. Pulla was awarded another penalty shot. Despite the heightened pressure, the second shot was also saved by Sallah, who this time dove to his left.

Sallah’s standout performance continued in the 61st minute when West Chester’s Vincent Petrera received a long stretch pass and streaked toward the net on a breakaway. Despite two Nor’easters defensemen closing in behind him, Petrera was able to get a shot off without interference. Sallah made yet another key save, allowing the ball to deflect off his knee and out of danger.

In the 85th minute, Agustin Resch (Seton Hall / Arata, Argentina) blocked a cross-shot on goal and knocked it to the side. West Chester recovered the ball and passed to Yassine Elkahloun in front of the net. Elkahloun spun around a fired a far-side goal, marking the first time Ocean City has trailed this season.

The Nor’easters desperately tried to even the score in the remaining minutes with several close chances and shots on net, but the match ultimately came to a 1-0 close.

The Nor’easters return to action on Wednesday, July 3 on the road against Philadelphia Lone Star FC (3-5-1) at Widener University. It is the last road game of the regular season and the Storm will enter the contest riding a club record 25-game road unbeaten streak. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.

Ocean City’s next home game will be on Sunday, July 7 against long-time rival Reading United AC at Carey Stadium in Ocean City, N.J. “America’s Greatest Family Resort.”

Single-game tickets for Nor'easters home games can be purchased for $10 each. The easiest way to purchase tickets is to buy them online through the Nor'easters website (OceanCityFC.com). Tickets can also be purchased at the Carey Stadium gate either with cash or with a smartphone.