Ocean City Nor'easters Starting XI: (Front) A. Ridsdale, A. Unzue, A. Mpofu, F. Tweneboa, R. Oldham; (Back) M. Lurie, S. Moeller, A. Morrison, K. Hall, J. Manga, E. Klenofsky (C)(GK)

The Ocean City Nor’easters fell in their season opener, 3-1, to D.C. United U23 in a road tilt played at the Evergreen Sports Complex in Leesburg, Virginia.

“Any time you face a quality opponent, regardless of result, you can learn as a team, a coaching staff and as individual players,” said Ocean City Nor’easters General Manager Kevin Nuss. “That’s what D.C. United U23 is, a quality opponent, so we need to take the positives and learn from the negatives.”

The Nor’easters (0-1-0) raced out to a quick lead when forward John Manga scored just five minutes into the game, when his shot was partially stopped by D.C. United goaltender Casey Beyers, but still found its way into the back of the net for the first goal of the 2015 campaign.

Manga impressed in his Nor’easters debut, “John proved to be the dangerous target forward we were looking for,” described Nuss. “He has strength, pace, tactical intelligence and obviously the ability to put the ball in the back of the net.”

The lead was short lived however as in the 24th minute, D.C. United tied the game on a shot by forward Tunji Osifeso. Shortly before halftime, D.C. United capitalized on another opportunity as midfielder Jamie Lucchini’s shot just cleared the reach of Ocean City’s six-foot six inch goalkeeper Eric Klenofsky, depositing itself into the upper-90 for a 2-1 D.C. United lead.

The Nor’easters had one final golden opportunity to tie the game in the 80th minute when midfielder Pau Delgado Rodriguez found himself alone with the goaltender from ten yards out--only to be stonewalled by a game-saving stop from Beyers.

Shortly after, in stoppage time, D.C. United’s Juan Amaya clinched the game with the decisive third goal on a counterattack that resulted from Ocean City’s desperate attempts to tie the game.

While D.C. United had one game under their belt on the season, Ocean City was noticeably green as the 2015 unit struggled to find cohesion in their first game together. The Nor’easters out-fouled D.C. United, 13-9, and were outshot, 9-6, and were called for offsides four times compared to zero times for D.C. United.

Official Match Information ** PDL **   Ocean City Nor'easters   at   D.C. United U23   1:3   Evergreen Sports Complex Saturday, May 23, 2015 7:30 pm EDT   Weather: Clear   Attendance: 140   Summary: OC: John Manga (Frank Tweneboa) 5 DCU: Babatunji Osifesu (Unassisted) 23 DCU: Jamie Luchini (Unassisted) 43 DCU: Juan Amaya (Unassisted) 90 Cautions: OC: Rickardo Oldham 36 DC Ghils Hermouche 47 OC: John Manga 72 Ejections: Referees: R. Chamberlain, B.Muoers, J.Blignt   Ocean City Nor'easters Pos Jer Name Min G A S F M 21 Oldham, Rickardo 61     1 2 M 2 Tweneboa, Frank 57   1   1 M 14 Unzue, Aitor 90     1   D 11 Lurie, Mitchell 90         D 23 Moeller, Spencer 90         D 4 Morrison, Andre 90         D 12 Mpofu, Ackim 61     1 1 F 10 Hall, Khesanio 54       2 F 9 Manga, John 90 1   1 1 F 8 Ridsdale, Alex 54       3 GK 13 Kolczynski, Brandon 90     1 1 Substitutes M 16 Delgado, Pau 36       1 M 19 Rose, Seiji 29         D 24 Luke, Derek           D 20 Myers, Ryan 29         F 17 Swartz, Harry 33       1 F 3 Vasquenza, Matthew 36     2 1 GK 1 Dobrowolski, Timothy "Tim"           D.C. United U23 Pos Jer Name Min G A S F M 10 Harmouche, Ghils 72     1 2 M 6 Ledder, Matthew 90     1 1 M 21 Luchini, Jamie 90 1   3 1 M 14 Robinson, Nigel 90     1 1 D 26 Albrecht, Cody 90         D 18 Manley, Carter 90         D 12 Redondo, Dario 90       1 D 22 Washington, Tyler Brennan 90       1 F 25 Bonner, Colin Michael 90     1 1 F 9 Osifeso, Babatunji 82 1   1 1 GK 1 Beyers, Casey 61         Substitutes   19 Amaya, Juan 18 1   1   M 8 Golob, Josh           D 16 Kershaw, Christian           F 20 O'Shea, Kennedy 8         GK 0 Niedermeier, Dakota 29         Ocean City Nor'easters Pos Jer Name GKM GA GKW GKL GKT SO Saves SHFC GK 13 Kolczynski, Brandon 90 3   1     4 7 D.C. United U23 Pos Jer Name GKM GA GKW GKL GKT SO Saves SHFC GK 1 Beyers, Casey 61 1 1       4 5 Substitutes GK 0 Niedermeier, Dakota 29 -         2 2   Team Statistics Goals Half1 Half2 Final Ocean City Nor'easters 1 0 1 D.C. United U23 2 1 3 Shots Half1 Half2 Final Ocean City Nor'easters 2 4 6 D.C. United U23 7 2 9 Saves Half1 Half2 Final Ocean City Nor'easters 2 2 4 D.C. United U23 2 4 6 Fouls Half1 Half2 Final Ocean City Nor'easters 7 6 13 D.C. United U23 5 4 9 Offsides Half1 Half2 Final Ocean City Nor'easters 3 1 4 D.C. United U23 0 0 0 Corners Half1 Half2 Final Ocean City Nor'easters 2 0 2 D.C. United U23 3 2 5

“With so many different players coming from so many different programs and playing styles, it can be hard for them to mesh,” said Nuss. “All these guys just met 13 days ago. It doesn’t happen overnight.”

The Nor’easters will have an opportunity to bounce back tomorrow night as they travel to take on the New York Red Bulls U23s at the Red Bull Training Facility in Whippany, New Jersey. Look for info and a full preview of the Nor'easters next match to follow on our website, www.oceancityfc.com.

2015 Individual Match and Season ticket packages are on sale now. For more information, call (609) 432-8271 to speak with a Nor'easters ticket representative, email us at tickets@oceancityfc.com, or visit www.oceancityfc.com/tickets for ticket package information.

Text "DCU23" to (609) 432-8271 to receive an exclusive promo code, for ticket purchases made online via www.oceancityfc.com/tickets.

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