UTICA CITY SURMOUNTS LATE STAGE COMEBACK BUT FALL SHORT AT HOME

Utica City FC mounted multiple comeback efforts but ultimately fell 7–6 to the Milwaukee Wave in a thrilling, high-scoring contest that featured momentum swings throughout the night. Milwaukee opened the scoring just 42 seconds into the match when Shawn Azcueta finished a chance off an Andre Hayne assist. UCFC responded quickly, as Juan Alava found the back of the net less than three minutes later, converting a feed from Ricardo Orozco to tie the game at 1–1. The Wave regained control midway through the first quarter behind Oscar Flores, who scored twice — including a power-play goal — to give Milwaukee a 3–1 advantage heading into the break.

Utica came out strong in the second half and dominated stretches of the third quarter. Gordy Gurson cut the deficit early, and Mehrshad Ahmadi followed with a goal of his own off another assist from Geo Alves. Moments later, Alves set up Meny Silva to complete the comeback and give UCFC its first lead of the night at 4–3. Milwaukee answered immediately with goals from Alex Sanchez and Max Ferdinand to swing the momentum back in their favor, then added a shorthanded strike from Alex Steinwascher to make it 6–4 late in the third. Steinwascher struck again early in the fourth quarter to extend the lead to 7–4, but UCFC once again showed resilience, pulling within one on six-attacker goals from Geo Alves and Sergio Pinal in the final minutes. Despite the late push, the Wave held on for the 7–6 victory.

Milwaukee goaltender William Banahene played a crucial role in the win and was named the game’s First Star, turning aside several key chances during UCFC’s third-quarter surge and again in the closing moments when Utica pressed with the extra attacker. His timely saves helped preserve the lead in a match that saw both teams trade momentum and featured some of the most entertaining action of the season.