PEORIA, Ill. – The dreams of lifting a championship trophy for Peoria City Soccer came one game short of being realized.
The Carp fell in Saturday night’s USL2 National Championship to Seacoast United Phantoms of New Hampshire, 3-2 in extra time, in front of around 3,000 fans at Shea Stadium.
Justin Wilson opened the scoring for Peoria City in the first half, with the Carp taking a 1-0 halftime lead. Three goals followed with the match being all squared at two goals apiece after 90 minutes.
Seacoast United’s Bilal Hersi scored the cup-winning goal for the Phantoms in the 95th minute.
The win gives Seacoast its first championship, while Peoria City ends its dream season in the title game in only its third season.
Peoria City coach Mike Paye says while the loss was disappointing, he was proud of his team who kept fighting.
“We’re resilient, we have winners,” Paye said. “These kids like to win. They’re disappointed tonight, it’s okay. We expect better next time, so we can just build off of this. This is the start of something great.”
Paye says the future is bright for Peoria City, and says the crowd was “phenomenal.”
Peoria City captain Charlie Dickerson, who also plays soccer for Bradley, says he “loved every minute” of leading the team this season.
“The lads made it so, so easy,” Dickerson said. “The lads that we had here this year were incredible. If I could have the same group of lads to work with next year, I could have my dreams.”
Dickerson intensely watched the postgame ceremony with Seacoast United lifting the trophy, and says he’s hopeful to partake in a similar celebration in his soccer career.
Seacoast United Phantoms players lift the USL2 trophy after defeating Peoria City in the National Championship at Shea Stadium. (T.J. Carson/1470 & 100.3 WMBD)
Seacoast United head coach Alex Ryan praised Peoria for putting on a top-notch final after the match.
“If you look at the setup, the stadium, the field, it’s worthy of a final,” Ryan said. “For me, I think this is why you want to play USL2, and I think it’s a testament to Peoria and what they’ve created. This is top-end, it’s a professional environment.”
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