Kevin Johnston

IndyStar correspondent

With the North American Soccer League spring season title a seemingly distant reach, the Indy Eleven came out and did the unthinkable, winning the spring title – in all likelihood – by downing the Carolina RailHawks 4-1.

Unless the Fort Lauderdale Strikers win on the road Sunday by six or more goals, the Eleven will be spring champions.

Needing to score at least four goals while winning by at least three to surpass the New York Cosmos in tiebreakers, Indy did just that in front of 9,341 screaming fans at Carroll Stadium. The NASL spring winner gets an automatic berth into the playoffs, regardless of fall performance.

“Whether we go through a rough patch or not in a game, this group continues to push on,” Indy coach Tim Hankinson said. “It’s a special quality – a team that believes.”

Forward Eamon Zayed opened the scoring for Indy in the 16th minute thanks to a perfectly timed diving header on a long cross by left fullback Nemanja Vukovic.

The lead, however, was short-lived. Carolina midfielder Nazmi Albadawi answered in the 29th minute with a low shot into the side netting past Eleven goalkeeper Jon Busch to make it 1-1.

But lingering in Indy’s mind all night was the matter at hand: the need for goals, and lots of them.

Another excellently served ball by Vukovic that forward Justin Braun slotted home in first-half stoppage time gave the Eleven a 2-1 lead. Then in the 65th minute, Zayed’s second goal from an Omar Gordon assist put Indy up 3-1 and on the brink of the spring title.

Zayed, who earned the nickname “Mr. Hat Trick” while playing in Iran, lived up to the moniker in the 85th minute when he got on the end of a Duke Lacroix pass to give the Eleven the 4-1 lead it needed. The score held up, and Indy fans stormed the field by the hundreds in celebration.

“It was a whole team effort, 11 man of the matches,” Zayed said. “I hope NASL puts the whole team as Team of the Week.”

On the roster side of things, Indy announced Saturday it had landed Guinean international Souleymane Youla to bolster its forward corps. The 34-year-old striker has played on some big-name clubs in his career: Anderlecht, Besiktas and Lille.

The Eleven play the Chicago Fire at Toyota Park on Wednesday in the fourth round of the U.S. Open Cup, before heading home June 26 for a marquee friendly with recently crowned Liga MX clausura champions C.F. Pachuca.

Indy then opens its NASL fall campaign on July 2 while making some history in the process. Puerto Rico FC, an expansion franchise, will play its inaugural match when it hosts the Eleven at Juan Ramon Loubriel Stadium in Bayamon.