Soccer News: Left Back Scores Long-Distance Equalizer Deep Into Stoppage Time On Saturday
After scoring his first professional goal in spectacular fashion in a 2-2 draw against the Tampa Bay Rowdies on Saturday night, Indy Eleven defender Kyle Hyland has been named North American Soccer League (NASL) Player of the Week.
With his team down a goal in the eighth and final minute of stoppage time, Hyland fired a long-distance shot from the left side past a helpless Matt Pickens to clinch a dramatic point for the Boys in Blue.
This marks the first time in club history that an Indy Eleven player has earned the NASL Player of the Week honor.
“It’s a big honor to be recognized by the league like this, but for me it’s really a team award because I couldn’t have done what I did without the group’s collective effort in what were pretty difficult conditions,” Hyland said. “We were disappointed not to get the win Saturday, but the fight we showed until the final whistle ended up earning us a well-deserved result.”
Hyland’s goal came in an unusual affair on Saturday night. Indy’s Dylan Mares put the home side up in the 21st minute on a goal that Hyland also helped set up with his pass to Brian Brown inside the penalty area, but just seconds later the match went under a weather delay that lasted just over two hours.
Once the teams reemerged from the locker rooms, the visiting Rowdies would go on to score a pair of goals that put them in a position to take all three points. That was until Hyland’s moment of brilliance clinched a split of the points for Indy.
“Kyle is a player who’s worked tirelessly to earn his spot in the starting lineup in recent weeks,” said Indy Eleven Head Coach Juergen Sommer. “To see him rewarded like this is a testament to the effort he has continuously shown all the way back to last year, and the whole team couldn’t be happier to see him earn the Player of the Week award.”
A native of Bay Village, Ohio, Hyland joined Indy Eleven in 2014 after spending one season with the Columbus Crew of Major League Soccer (MLS). The 24-year-old defender played his college soccer at IUPUI, ironically on the same Michael A. Carroll Stadium pitch that Indy Eleven made its home the year after Hyland left the Jaguars. Hyland became the first IUPUI product to sign a professional soccer contract when he joined the Crew in 2013.
Indy Eleven will try to build on the momentum gained from Saturday’s 2-2 draw when it travels to Lockhart Stadium to take on the Fort Lauderdale Strikers this Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET. The match can be seen live on ESPN3.
