Memphis, Tenn. – Memphis 901 FC grabbed two goals in the final five minutes of play to notch an electrifying 3-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Rowdies at AutoZone Park on Wednesday night.
The Beale Street Boys downed the No. 2 club in the Eastern Conference in a potential playoff matchup after playing from behind for 36 minutes until Jeremy Kelly found and equalizer and Tampa scored an own goal off of an Aaron Molloy penalty to put Memphis ahead in the final minute of stoppage time.
Memphis avenged the loss that ended their season in the 2022 Eastern Conference Semifinal when Tampa Bay scored a stoppage-time penalty to advance.
The two clubs traded a goal each in the first half with Tampa Bay striking first in the 20th minute as Charlie Dennis snuck behind the Memphis defense for a score.
901 FC answered eight minutes later as Jeremy Kelly found the ball in a counterattack and laid the ball in for Luiz Fernando. Fernando crossed the ball into the mixer and found fellow Brazilian Rodrigo Da Costa for the finish. Da Costa scored his 10th goal of the season and seventh in a Memphis shirt.
The home team equalized when Rashawn Dally found space in the box and delivered a pinpoint cross to Jeremy Kelly for the header inside the six-yard box. Memphis continued to apply pressure until Nighte Pickering drew a foul inside the box for Molloy to take center stage. The penalty kick was initially saved but pressure from Dally forced the Rowdies to put the ball into the back of the net for the own goal.
Memphis moves to 11-7-9 with the victory and rises to No. 5 in the Eastern Conference standings, still fighting for postseason home field advantage with six games remaining in the regular season.
Memphis 901 FC continues their three-match home stand on Saturday, September 9 as they host Monterey Bay FC at AutoZone Park. Kickoff for the interconference match is set for 7 p.m. CT.
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Contact
Joshua Clayton – Communications and Public Relations Coordinator – jclayton@memphis901fc.com
