After trailing for much of their first-round playoff match with the Albuquerque Sol, FC Tucson came alive late Saturday.
Southern Arizona product Edgar Reyna scored the match winner for FC Tucson in the 2-1 win at Kino North Stadium in a Premier Development League postseason game.
Reyna, a defender who played at Nogales High school and Pima College, scored in the 86th minute to punch FC Tucson’s ticket to PDL Western Conference semifinals.
“It’s the best. They call me a ‘Tucson legend,’ ” Reyna said. “To get the game-winning goal — there is just no words to describe it.”
FC Tucson coach Rick Schantz said Reyna has been at FC Tucson from Day 1, getting cut the first year.
“Edgar’s like the folk hero here in Tucson,” Schantz said. “He bleeds Tucson, he’s FC Tucson through and through.”
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Reyna’s goal came just after FC Tucson tied it, after a series of near goals in the second half.
In the 82nd minute, second-half substitute and forward Cylus Sandoval found the equalizer to make it 1-1.
“I knew that we were going to score, that’s what we talked about at halftime,” Schantz said.
“They were really upset and I went in and told them to ‘calm down’ but Albuquerque had a really good game plan.”
In the 76th minute, Sandoval almost headed in a cross — FC Tucson’s best chance to score up to that point.
Sandoval said Schantz just told him “to work hard” when he came in.
“We knew that with all the shots we were taking that one was going to go in,” Sandoval said. “We knew we were going to win this game.”
In the 27th minute, Albuquerque Sol FC won a penalty kick off of a foul by Reyna. However, goalkeeper Thomas Olsen saved the penalty kick from forward Luke Lawrence.
Reyna said at halftime that his teammates came up to him and told him to “forget about it.”
“It’s exciting,” Reyna said. “Everything just fell into place. We were struggling in the beginning but everything fell into place, it was just amazing.”
In the 38th minute, Albuquerque Sol FC midfielder Ricardo Zacarias beat Olsen on the near post to score.
In the 40th minute, FC Tucson almost scored an own goal.
The men in black advanced to the Western Conference semifinals, which could be held in Tucson. The pairings and site were yet to be determined.
“I told them at halftime ‘Guys, I don’t want to be done, my family’s coming back from vacation, I haven’t seen them in a month and I want to have my daughter see another game,” Schantz said.
