Puerto Rico 3; Portland 1
1-0 min. 3 Joshua Caleb Norkus (PR)
2-0 min. 15 Alejandro González (PR)
3-0 min. 23 Joshua Caleb Norkus (PR)
3-1 min. 68 Byron Alvarez (Portland)
Bayamón, PR - The Puerto Rico Islanders returned to winning ways by beating the Portland Timbers 3-1 in a Mother's Day USL 1st Division match at Juan Ramon Loubriel Stadium in Bayamón.
The Islanders, who got some key players back from injury, demonstrated all of their technical and offensive capacity in such a way that, less than half an hour in, Puerto Rico sealed the deal against a stunned Timber squad.
Only three minutes passed when the Islanders took the lead on a goal by Joshua Caleb Norkus off a great cross by teammate Mark Oehlman. At just the quarter-hour mark Alejandro González scored the second Islander goal on a spectacular shot from about 25 yards out that surprised Timber goalkeeper Josh Saunders.
The heat kept coming, and in the 23rd minute Norkus made the play of the match. He blazed down the left flank and into the box, went past the Timber defenders, and beat Saunders again with a low shot towards the far post.
Portland reacted courageously in the second half, when the Islanders took the foot off the accelerator. Edwin Miranda hit the crossbar in the 54th minute with a wicked shot. Later, Byron Alvarez finally got a goal for the visitors in the 68th minute with a volley over Islander keeper Dan Kennedy.
The Islanders held on defensively well, and even came close to getting a fourth tally in the 70th minute. Arturo Norambuena escaped on a counter-attack and had a one-on-one with Saunders, but the Timber keeper made a very good save.
Portland kept putting the offensive pressure, but when Puerto Rican defender Marco Vélez cleared a potent, dangerous shot from Troy Ready near the goal line in the 86th minute, it was practically over.
The Islanders leveled their record at 2-2-1 with seven points. Better yet, they have recuperated key players from injury and are ready for their first two clashes on the road. On May 20th, the Islanders face the Charleston Battery at Charleston, SC; and in the 4th of June the Puerto Rico squad travels to Montreal to face the Impact again.
