Acting head coach Jimmy Weekley has helped push the Chattanooga Red Wolves SC to a historic moment.
With a 1-nil road victory over No. 1 seed Richmond Kickers in the USL League One playoff semifinals Saturday night, the No. 4-seeded Red Wolves advanced to play for their first league championship in the club's fourth year.
For the second playoff weekend in a row, Chattanooga forward Rafael Mentzingen provided a heroic late game moment, scoring the game-winning goal in the 85th minute.
Taking control of the ball deep in their own territory, the Red Wolves moved the ball upfield with Jimmie Villalobos sending a pass down the right sideline to Mentzingen, who cut into the top right side of the box. From there Mentzingen fired a shot with his left foot into the top left corner of the goal and was swarmed instantly by his teammates.
Chattanooga landed its biggest win in club history despite receiving a red card to David Texeira in the 39th minute of a game that had 10 minutes of second-half stoppage time. The Red Wolves also survived against the regular season champions, who held a 14-6 shot advantage. Chattanooga's defense stepped up to the challenge with five blocked shots, 23 tackles and 22 clearances and keeper Carlos Avilez recorded four saves.
No. 3 South Georgia Tormenta FC also took down a higher seed in No. 2 Greenville Triumph with a 1-0 road semifinal victory Saturday night.
The USL League One championship match between Chattanooga and host Tormenta will be held Sunday, November 6 at 7:30 p.m. inStatesboro, Ga. Tormenta won two of the teams' three matches in the season, including a 2-0 win at home to end the regular season.
Contact Patrick MacCoon at pmaccoon@timesfreepress.com.