Greenville goalkeeper Dallas Jaye earned his league-leading eleventh clean sheet of the season as Triumph SC and Toronto FC II played to a 0-0 draw Friday evening at BMO Training Ground.
The two sides combined for 23 shots in what proved to be a defensive contest, with TFC II hitting the target just once and Greenville managing three shots on frame. Jaye had very little to do between the sticks, but made his lone save when called upon in the sixth minute of the match, denying TFC II forward Ayo Akinola.
Max Hemmings had an opportunity to open the scoring just before halftime when he found himself free just outside the six yard box on a set piece. The right back rose and connected well with Carlos Gomez’s out-swinging service from the corner, but his header was right at goalkeeper Eric Klenofsky and the two sides went into the break deadlocked at zero.
After a back-and-forth second half that saw most of the action take place in the middle third of the field, Gomez created an opportunity for himself in the dying moments of the match. Receiving a cross from Dominic Boland, Gomez turned inside the 18-yard box and fired a shot on frame, but Klenofsky was equal to it at the near post. The 86th minute save helped Klenofsky earn his first clean sheet of the season.
Following the draw, Greenville and Toronto remain in fifth and seventh places respectively. The Triumph are just one point out of the playoff places and hold a game in hand on fourth place Chattanooga Red Wolves SC, but could lose out on fifth place to Forward Madison FC by the end of Week 22. The Flamingos host the Richmond Kickers Saturday night at Breese Stevens Field with a chance to leapfrog Greenville and get themselves level on points with Chattanooga.
The draw extends Greenville’s unbeaten run to five matches, while leaving TFC II winless in its lsat six. Next up for the Triumph is a crucial roadtrip to Madison on August 28th. Toronto will head to North Texas SC on September 1 looking to make up a seven-point gap between themselves and the fourth playoff spot.
