July 22, 2009
The Richmond Kickers walked into Wilmington on Wednesday in a game that could be a huge deterrent as both squads fight for first place in the USL Second Division. The theme of the evening was defense and both teams struggled to get behind the opposing defensive wall. Shots on goal in the first half were hard to come by with Richmond striking twice on net and Wilmington only once. 
The scored remained 0-0 at halftime as the home crowed remained spirited.
The match seemed to speed up a little bit as second period began and both teams appeared hungry for the go ahead goal.
It came in favor of the Hammerheads.
After a beautiful pass by Mark Briggs, midfielder Jamie Franks struck a rocket shot to the back right corner of the goal giving him his first goal of the season and Wilmington a key 1-0 lead.
Franks accredited the goal to a great pass and good coaching.
“We talked about getting behind their backs at halftime. Briggs just sent me a beautiful ball and I sent it home.”
The Hammerheads didn’t stop there. In the 67th minute forward Phil Hufstader crushed a perfect cross into the back of the net giving Wilmington a 2-0 safety net.
Hufsteder put his gymnastic skills on display once again as he pulled out the classic back flip celebration for the fans.
“Those are the easy goals,” said Hufsteder. “The pass went right to my feet and I tapped it in.”
Richmond appeared to get a little kick in their step as they threatened the Hammerheads with a few close calls. In the 71st minute the Richmond attack found a seam in Wilmington’s defensive formation scoring off of a well placed cross.
The Hammerheads did not let the spark of Richmond slow them down. In the 75th minute Kenny Bundy found Andriy Budneyy on a pass across the middle. Budneyy placed it in the goal to give the Hammerheads a healthy 3-1 lead.
It was clear that the Hammerheads had been winded by the humidity as they put ounce of energy into the final minutes.
Richmond gave the team and fans another scare as they scored in the 87th minute limiting Wilmington’s lead to only one.
The Hammerheads were able to remain strong and prevail, winning 3-2.
“That game was just so important for us” said Hufstader. “If we can keep up that play for Harrisburg then that will put us in a pretty good spot come playoffs…going into playoffs with that momentum is key, if we do that then we will bring on the national championship.”
The Hammerheads whom are now in a three way tie for first place with 29 points will now travel to Harrisburg on Saturday.
