RICHMOND, Va. — (Wednesday, September 23, 2020) — The Richmond Kickers (5-2-2) picked up their fifth win of the season, defeating Fort Lauderdale CF (3-5-2) 2-1 at City Stadium Wednesday night. Ricky Lopez-Espin gave the visitors an early lead after five minutes. Emiliano Terzaghi scored his eighth and ninth goals of the season to give Richmond all three points at home.

Fort Lauderdale pulled ahead after just five minutes. Brian Rosales floated the ball into the Richmond box. Ian Fray finally controlled the ball on the endline. He found enough space for a slight chip to Lopez-Espin, who redirected into the goal for the opener.

Richmond earned a penalty just three minutes later. Ryley Kraft had the subtle touch ahead for Terzaghi to go on a run towards goal. Right as he got into the Fort Lauderdale box, Fray came in with the challenge from behind, forcing the referee to point to the spot. The Argentine stepped up for the ensuing penalty kick, putting his shot just to the right of the goal.

A quick-thinking play nearly gave the Kickers an equalizer in the 17th minute. Ian Antley saw that Terzaghi was in a good spot just beyond the Fort Lauderdale defense as he went for the fast throw in. Terzaghi then played the ball across the face of goal as David Diosa came in at the back post, putting his shot just wide of the frame.

The Kickers found the breakthrough in the 26th minute. In a play almost similar to the play in the 17th minute, Ian Antley took a quick throw-in to find Terzaghi. Instead of looking for a pass, he arched in a shot that stunned the Fort Lauderdale defense for the equalizer.

Ryley Kraft connected with Terzaghi in the 54th minute for his brace. Mutaya Mwape found space up the left wing, going for a shot to the near post and forcing Dylan Castanheira to push the ball wide for a corner kick. Kraft came over for the corner kick, serving in a ball that found the head of Terzaghi. He made no mistake to find the back of the net.

Akira Fitzgerald came up with a massive goalline save in the 72nd minute. Sami Guediri stood over a free kick opportunity about 20 yards from goal. He put his shot on target looking at the near post, upper 90. Ftizgerald made sure to get his hands in the way to punch the ball away.

The Kickers play their second match in three days this Saturday, this time on the road as they head out west to take on Union Omaha in the first-ever meeting between the two clubs. Kickoff for this match is set for 8:00 p.m. ET and it will air live on WTVR CBS 6.3 and streaming on ESPN+.

Stay up to date with the latest news from the Kickers at RichmondKickers.com and on the official team app.