The Chattanooga Red Wolves wrapped up their 2023 season Saturday night, and Ropapa Mensah finished with a highlight he won’t soon forget.
The 6-foot-1 forward tied teammate Chevone Marsh for the Red Wolves’ single-season club record with 12 goals, with Mensah set up on the left flank after a steal and dish from Jonathan Filipe in the 64th minute of Saturday’s 3-1 road loss to the Northern Colorado Hailstorm.
Marsh and Mensah were just one of three teammate duos in USL League One to each have a dozen or more goals this season. They accounted for more than 50% of Chattanooga’s goals as the Red Wolves totaled 47.
Northern Colorado (19-6-8, 65 points) came into the match as the league’s best defense with 37 goals allowed. Mensah’s score denied keeper Edward Delgado from breaking the league’s single-season record for shutouts, leaving him stuck at 13 clean sheets.
The Hailstorm built a 2-0 lead as Mark Hernandez scored in the 23rd minute and Bruno Manuel Rendon Cardoso added a goal in the 41st before the Red Wolves broke through. In stoppage time, Irvin Parra completed the scoring for Northern Colorado, which is among the six teams moving on to the USL League One playoffs, having finished third in the standings after the 31-week regular season.