Hearts erase three-goal deficit to earn a point in Spokane
SPOKANE, Wash. — Portland Hearts of Pine turned a difficult first half into one of its most memorable comebacks of the season Saturday night, scoring three unanswered goals after the break to earn a 3-3 draw against Spokane Velocity FC at ONE Spokane Stadium.
The match shifted quickly late in the opening half. Nil Vinyals put Spokane in front in the 38th minute, and Neco Brett doubled the advantage less than a minute later. Andre Lewis added a third in first-half stoppage time, sending Hearts into the locker room facing a 3-0 deficit.
At halftime, the deficit looked daunting. What followed was anything but.
Portland emerged from halftime with a different energy and immediately began pushing the hosts deeper into their own end. Hearts controlled more of the ball, created sustained pressure around the Spokane penalty area and limited the Velocity to just four shots over the final 45 minutes.
The comeback began in the 64th minute. Matteo Kidd delivered a ball into the box and Felipe Rodriguez-Gentile met it in front of goal to pull Hearts within two. Nine minutes later, Aboubacar Camara brought Portland even closer, finishing from the top of the penalty area into the bottom corner to make it 3-2 with plenty of time still on the clock.
From there, Hearts kept coming.
Portland continued to pile on the pressure as the match moved into stoppage time, refusing to let the two-goal burst be the end of the response. Following a late corner, Diogo Barbosa was brought down inside the penalty area, giving Hearts one final opportunity to complete the comeback.
Diego Gonzalez stepped to the spot and buried the penalty deep into stoppage time, leveling the match at 3-3 and completing a three-goal second-half rally.
The final numbers reflected Portland’s response. Hearts finished with 56 percent possession, 15 total shots, seven shots on target and 25 touches inside the Spokane box. After being outshot 10-3 in the opening half, Portland flipped the match after halftime and generated the chances needed to leave Spokane with a point.
The result delivered one of the club’s most dramatic comebacks of the season and another example of a Hearts side unwilling to let a match get away quietly.
Portland now turns its attention to the final stretch of the USL League One season returning home to Fitzpatrick Stadium on Saturday to take on AC Boise.