Eight minutes into the second half in a 0-0 game, STLFC forward Russell Cicerone danced his way around two Indy Eleven defenders to present himself with an open corner of the net to shoot at. His shot from a few yards out went over the crossbar.

From there, what he wanted was redemption.

He got it in the 77th minute when a ball in the box bounced around a few times until it came to him standing off to the side, and this time, he pounced and fired it in just before Indy’s goalkeeper got to it to give STLFC a 2-1 win in their Saturday season opener at the Soccer Park.

“It was definitely a load off my back,” Cicerone said.

And a good start to the season for STLFC, which started its season with a win for the first time in five tries. It no doubt helped that this was the first time STLFC has opened the season at home, where they have now gone unbeaten in their past 11 games.

“You want to start with three points,” coach Anthony Pulis said. “We’re nowhere near the finished product. From a performance standpoint, it’s probably nowhere near what we expect and what we want, but to get three points at home is a great way to start. ... I thought the result was probably better than the performance.”