Dayton Dutch Lions FC lost the opening match of the 2022 USL2 season on Saturday evening in front of a home crowd at DOC Stadium. The Dutch Lions put together some stretches of good soccer, but could not find the back of the net. A pair of goals by George Herbert helped lead South Bend a 5-0 victory.
The Dutch Lions created some scoring chances in the early going, but failed to finish. Notably, Joe Kouaido rolled a tantalizing cross across the face of goal, but Rashid Seidu-Aroza’s sliding attempt to knock the ball into the net came up just short.
South Bend opened the scoring 26 minutes into the first half. The opportunity was created when Jonathan Mora received the ball on an overlapping run down the left flank. South Bend carried the ball all the way to the endline before a cross found George Herbert unmarked in the middle of the box. Herbert rocketed the ball into the upper 90 to give the visitors the lead.
Herbert tallied his second goal of the game shortly after the halftime intermission.
It appeared as if the Dutch Lions were going to cut into the deficit, when Noel Roman created some space for himself inside the box in the 80th minute. Roman’s left-footed shot rifled just over the crossbar.
Shortly after Roman’s attempt breathed life into a Dutch Lions comeback, a thunderstorm rolled in and doused those hopes.
When play resumed after a lengthy suspension due to the weather hazard, the Dutch Lions opened up in an attempt to find the equalizing goals. South Bend took advantage and hammered three goals before full time.