Michel Poon-Angeron

Portland Hearts of Pine announced the players returning for the 2026 season

November 20, 2025 by Hearts of Pine Staff

Portland, ME, November 20, 2025 — Portland Hearts of Pine announced today the players returning for the 2026 season and those out of contract as of the conclusion of the 2025 season.

Following an inaugural season of success on and off the pitch including 18 sold-out home matches, a playoff run to the semifinals, and numerous Player of the Week and Player of the Month honors, this 2025 roster won Maine’s hearts as the first team in Hearts history.

The club is excited to announce that Head Coach Bobby Murphy, the coaching staff, and the following players will be returning for the 2026 season:

Goalkeepers:

#1 Hunter Morse
#23 Kash Oladapo

Defenders:

#2 Jaden Jones-Riley
#3 Nathan Messer
#66 Kemali Green

Midfielders:

#5 Mikey Lopez
#90 Khalid Hersi
#8 Michel Poon-Angeron
#77 Masashi Wada

Forwards:

#10 Ollie Wright
#14 Titus Washington
#80 Jay Tee Kamara

The following players are currently out of contract:

Defenders:

#7 Sean Vinberg
#19 Shandon Wright
#21 Colby Quiñones
#50 Mo Mohamed
#45 Sega Coulibaly

Midfielders:

#6 Pat Langlois
#17 Mickey Reilly
#47 Nathaniel James

Forwards:

#9 Azaad Liadi (loan expired)
#11 Evan Southern
#12 Jake Keegan
#22 Walter Varela
#99 Noah Kvifte

All roster updates are pending league and federation approval. Additional announcements will be made over the coming months as the team prepares for the 2026 season.

For all Portland Hearts of Pine news and updates, visit heartsofpine.com and on social at @hearts_sc.

Contact
Rebecca Herrigel, Portland Hearts of Pine
rebecca@heartsofpine.com

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Heartbreak in Washington: Hearts Fall in Thriller to Spokane Velocity After Fierce Semifinal Battle

November 10, 2025 by Hearts of Pine Staff

Heartbreak in Washington: Hearts Fall in Thriller to Spokane Velocity After Fierce Semifinal Battle

PORTLAND, Maine — In a physical and fiercely contested USL League One semifinal, Portland Hearts of Pine battled Spokane Velocity FC to a dramatic 2-2 draw, before ultimately falling in penalties 6-5 on Sunday night.

The match showcased Portland’s trademark grit and attacking flair, led by dynamic play from Ollie Wright, Nathan Messer, and Jay Tee Kamara. After Luis Gil’s goal put Spokane ahead in the 45th minute, Portland came back with renewed intensity after the break.

Wright equalized in the 53rd, curling a right-footed strike off the post and in following a Messer cross. Moments later, Masashi Wada nearly put Portland ahead with a powerful shot rattling the crossbar. Hearts goalkeeper Hunter Morse delivered a standout performance yet again, making a string of crucial saves, including a one-on-one stop against Gil.

Both teams traded late blows, and finished in a 1-1 deadlock. In tightly contested overtime, it was the substitutes for each side who found the back of the net.

Portland’s Jay Tee Kamara who came into the match for Nathaniel James in the 73rd minute, scored in the 92nd minute putting the Hearts up 2-1 off of a counter triggered by Wada.

It looked like a Hearts victory was all but certain until Nil Vinyals, who replaced Velocity First Team All-League nominee Luis Gil, sent the match into a penalty shootout with a right footed shot in the 121st minute, with three minutes left to go in the match.

After 120 minutes of play, the sides remained level at 2-2. Despite composed finishes from Jake Keegan, Coulibaly, Liadi, Wada and Messer, Spokane edged the shootout 6–5, with goalkeeper Carlos Merancio proving his Second Team All-League nomination, emerging as the hero after a decisive save.

Morse’s save against Andre Lewis was not enough, with Merancio saving shots from Jay Tee Kamara and Michel Poon-Angeron.

The result marks the end of a strong campaign for Portland, whose second-half surge and cohesive attacking identity have made them one of the league’s most exciting teams.

GOALS

POR – Ollie Wright 53’, Jay Tee Kamara 92’ (Masashi Wada)

SPK – Luis Gil 45’, Nil Vinyals 120’+1 (Mark Hernández)

DISCIPLINE

YC – Kemali Green (POR 60’), Ollie Wright (POR 70’), Camron Miller (SPK 90’+1), Andre Lewis (SPK 90’+1), Jay Tee Kamara (POR 90’+6) Mark Hernández (SPK 120’+4)

RC – NONE

LINEUPS

POR – Hunter Morse, Nathan Messer, Kemali Green, Séga Coulibaly, Mo Mohamed (Shandon Wright 120’), Michel Poon-Angeron, Pat Langlois (C) (Mikey Lopez 59’) (Jake Keegan 106’), Natty James (Jay Tee Kamara 73’), Masashi Wada, Ollie Wright (Sean Vinberg 114’), Titus Washington (Azaad Liadi 59’)

Unused substitutes: Kash Oladapo

SPK – Carlos Merancio, Camron Miller, David Garcia, Derek Waldeck, Lucky Opara (Mark Hernández 106’), Luis Gil (C) (Nil Vinyals 79’), Bryce Meredith (Jack Denton 79’), Andre Lewis, Neco Brett (Anuar Peláez 64’), Shavon John-Brown (Jalen Crisler 106’), Pierre Reedy (Javier Martin Gil 71’)

Unused substitutes: Ryan Bilichuk, Rocky Wells

The match showcased Portland’s trademark grit and attacking flair, led by dynamic play from Ollie Wright, Nathan Messer, and Jay Tee Kamara. After a Spokane goal from Luis Gil put Spokane ahead in the 45th minute, Portland responded with intensity after the break. Wright equalized in the 53rd, curling a right-footed strike off the post and in following a Messer cross. Moments later, Masashi Wada nearly put Portland ahead with a powerful shot rattling the crossbar.

Hearts goalkeeper Hunter Morse delivered a standout performance yet again, making a string of crucial saves, including a spectacular one-on-one stop against Gil.

Both teams traded late blows, and finished in a 1-1 deadlock. It was both team’s substitutes who found the back of the net in a tightly contested overtime. Portland’s Jay Tee Kamara who came into the match for Nathaniel James in the 73rd minute, scored in the 92nd minute putting the Hearts up 2-1 off of a counter triggered by Wada.

It looked like a Hearts victory was certain until Nil Vinyals, who replaced Velocity First Team All-League nominee Luis Gil, sent the match into a penalty shootout with a right footed shot in the 121st minute, with a minute left to go in the match.

After 120 minutes of play, the sides remained level at 2-2. Despite composed finishes from Keegan, Coulibaly, Liadi, Wada and Messer, Spokane edged the shootout 6–5, with goalkeeper Carlos Merancio proving his Second Team All-League nomination, emerging as the hero after a decisive save.

Morse’s save against Andre Lewis was not enough, with Merancio saving shots by Kamara and Michel Poon-Angeron.

The result marks the end of a strong campaign for Portland, whose second-half surge and cohesive attacking identity have made them one of the league’s most exciting teams.

GOALS

POR – Ollie Wright 53’, Jay Tee Kamara 92’ (Masashi Wada)

SPK – Luis Gil 45’, Nil Vinyals 120’+1 (Mark Hernández)

DISCIPLINE

YC – Kemali Green (POR 60’), Ollie Wright (POR 70’), Camron Miller (SPK 90’+1), Andre Lewis (SPK 90’+1), Jay Tee Kamara (POR 90’+6) Mark Hernández (SPK 120’+4)

RC – NONE

LINEUPS

POR – Hunter Morse, Nathan Messer, Kemali Green, Sega Coulibaly, Mo Mohamed (Shandon Wright 120’), Michel Poon-Angeron, Pat Langlois (C) (Mikey Lopez 59’) (Jake Keegan 106’), Natty James (Jay Tee Kamara 73’), Masashi Wada, Ollie Wright (Sean Vinberg 114’), Titus Washington (Azaad Liadi 59’)

Unused substitutes: Kash Oladapo

Unused substitutes: Ryan Bilichuk, Rocky Wells

Michel Poon-Angeron Named to Team of the Week

October 14, 2025 by Hearts of Pine Staff

PORTLAND, Maine – Hearts of Pine midfielder Michel Poon-Angeron has been named to the USL League One Team of the Week for Week 32, the league announced today.

This is Poon-Angeron’s third league honor this season, having previously been named to the Team of the Week for weeks 15 and 26.

Poon-Angeron played 70 minutes in Portland’s match against league leaders One Knoxville SC, and had the assist on Jake Keegan’s 61st-minute goal. He also completed 88% of his passes in Knoxville’s half of the field, won three duels, and made seven recoveries.

UP NEXT: Portland Hearts of Pine, currently in sixth place in the USL League One standings, will close out their inaugural season with three matches in eight days, starting on October 28 when Westchester SC comes to Fitzpatrick Stadium. Westchester, in 14th place in the standings, has already been eliminated from playoff contention, but boasts the league’s top goalscorer in JC Obregón and is coming off a 2-0 win over fourth-place FC Naples.

USL League One Team of the Week – Week 32

GK – Rashid Nuhu (Union Omaha)

D – Jake Crull (Forward Madison FC)

D – Brandon Fricke (Greenville Triumph SC)

D – Charlie Ostrem (Union Omaha)

M – Teddy Baker (Texoma FC)

M – Jon Bakero (Charlotte Independence)

M – Joel Johnson (Westchester SC)

M – Kempes Tekiela (One Knoxville SC)

F – Christian Chaney (Charlotte Independence – also Player of the Week)

F – Babacar Diene (One KNoxville SC)

F – Luis Gil (Spokane Velocity FC)

Coach – Matt Glaeser (Forward Madison FC)

Bench – Javier Garcia (Texoma FC), Jon Jordan (Texoma FC), Samuel Owusu (Union Omaha), Abel Caputo (One Knoxville SC), Michel Poon-Angeron (Portland Hearts of Pine), Derek Gebhard (Forward Madison FC), Juan Carlos Obregón, Jr. (Westchester SC)

Hearts Hold Naples Scoreless in Huge Win

September 21, 2025 by Hearts of Pine Staff

PORTLAND, Maine – When the dust settles on Portland Hearts of Pine’s inaugural season, the 21st night of September may turn out to be one Hearts fans remember for a long, long time.

A 39th-minute penalty by leading goalscorer Ollie Wright proved to be the difference between Portland Hearts of Pine (9-10-4) and FC Naples (11-8-6) on Sunday night, with the 1-0 win moving Portland back into fifth place in the standings, but crucially, positioning them just four points behind fourth-place Naples with two games in hand.

And with the top four teams hosting first-round playoff games, tonight’s win may prove to be the difference between staying at Fort Fitzy and making a trip to Portland International Jetport on the first weekend in November.

Portland almost took the lead after just five minutes, but Nathan Messer’s inswinging free kick hit the far post and rebounded back into play. Sean Vinberg then attempted a bicycle kick, but his shot was unable to threaten goalkeeper Lalo Delgado.

Delgado faced a more serious test in the 36th minute when Titus Washington headed the ball goalward; Delgado leaped backwards and tipped the ball over the crossbar, keeping it out of the back of the net.

Just one minute later, Naples defender Jake Dengler handled the ball in the penalty area while sliding to block a Michel Poon-Angeron shot. Dengler threw the ball away in disgust, earning a yellow card for his efforts, and referee Edson Carvajal pointed to the spot. With the setting sun in his eyes, Wright sent his penalty low, left, and into the open side of the goal as Delgado had guessed wrong, bringing the record crowd of 5,862 to its feet.

Dengler’s night to forget continued in the 80th minute when he grabbed Masashi Wada’s jersey while trying to prevent Wada from launching a counterattack. Carvajal showed Dengler his second yellow card of the night, and just like that Naples were not just down a goal; they were also down to 10 men. The shorthanded visitors were unable to trouble Morse from there, and Hearts took home the 1-0 win.

GOALS

POR – Ollie Wright (PK 39’)

NAP – NONE

DISCIPLINE

YC – HC Bobby Murphy (POR 8’), Jake Dengler (NAP 37’), Nathan Messer (POR 44’), Ollie Wright (POR 68’), Dengler (NAP 80’), Chris Heckenberg (NAP 85’), Hunter Morse (POR 90+3’)

RC – Dengler (NAP 80’)

LINEUPS

POR – Hunter Morse, Nathan Messer, Sean Vinberg, Kemali Green, Mo Mohamed, Mikey Lopez, Michel Poon-Angeron (Pat Langlois 69’), Masashi Wada (Evan Southern 89’), Walter Varela (Mickey Reilly 90’), Ollie Wright (Jay Tee Kamara 75’), Titus Washington

Unused substitutes – Kash Oladapo, Shandon Wright, Natty James

NAP – Lalo Delgado ©, Brecc Evans, Julian Cisneros, Max Glasser, Jake Dengler, Marc Torellas, Chris Heckenberg (Gustavo Fernandes 90’), Kevin O’Connor (Luke Prpa 64’), Jaden Onen (Dominick Bachstein 72’), Karsen Henderlong, Andres Ferrin

Unused substitutes – Joel Serrano, Thomas Ritondale, Tyler Pasnik, Ian Cerro

Wada Hat Trick Powers Hearts to Huge Road Win

September 17, 2025 by Hearts of Pine Staff

PORTLAND, Maine – In the midst of a torrential Virginia downpour, Masashi Wada shone brightly for Portland Hearts of Pine (8-4-10) on Wednesday night, scoring the second hat trick in the team’s brief history and powering Hearts to their highest-scoring night in team history, as Portland beat Richmond Kickers (6-13-5) 5-2 at City Stadium.

Hearts struck first when, in the 12th minute, Wada sent a cross into last week’s hero Kemali Green, who headed the ball downward. Chandler O’Dwyer attempted to clear it, but his clearance only went as far as Walter Varela, who unleashed a shot with his left foot. Varela’s shot hit O’Dwyer and rebounded back to him, and he chested the ball down onto his right foot before lacing the ball past Jamie Sneddon and into the far side of the Kickers goal.

Richmond equalized in the 21st minute through Darwin Espinal, though the home side’s joy was short-lived. In the 27th minute, O’Dwyer was called for a high boot when he struck Varela in the head in the Richmond penalty area. Ollie Wright blasted the penalty home from the spot, giving Portland the lead back at 2-1.

Hearts stretched their lead to 3-1 in the 52nd minute when Wada capped off an end-to-end counter attack that started with Michel Poon-Angeron deep in Portland territory. Poon-Angeron found Titus Washington making a run down the field, and when Washington used the outside of his right boot to square the ball across the edge of the Richmond penalty area, Varela, drawing Richmond defenders around him, let the ball roll past him into Wada’s path. Wada took one touch and then, while sliding on the wet grass, buried the ball in the back of the net to give the visitors a two-goal advantage.

In the 68th minute, less than a minute after coming on as a sub, right back Mo Mohamed stood O’Dwyer up along the end line, then lofted a cross towards the far post. Evan Southern, who had come on as a substitute less than a minute prior, headed it back across the goal where Wada tapped it in for his second goal.

The impact sub theme continued in the 76th minute when Hayden Anderson, who had come on for Espinal in the 73rd minute, curled a shot in from long range to cut Portland’s lead to 4-2.

Wada then completed his hat trick in the 84th minute after Simon Fitch brought Southern down in the penalty area. Wada saw his penalty saved by Sneddon, but he knocked the rebound home for his third, and Portland’s fifth, goal of the night.

UP NEXT: With the win, Hearts moved into fifth place in the standings, seven points out of fourth and a potential home playoff game. Portland has two games in hand over the side currently in fourth—FC Naples, who travel to Maine to face Hearts at 5:00 p.m. this coming Sunday, September 21.

GOALS

POR – Walter Varela 12’, Ollie Wright PK 27’, Masashi Wada 52’ (Titus Washington), Wada 68’ (Evan Southern), Wada 84’

RIC – Darwin Espinal 21’ (Beckett Howell), Hayden Anderson 76’ (Maximiliano Schenfeld)

DISCIPLINE

YC – Darwin Espinal (RIC 4’), Mikey Lopez (POR 20’), Klaidi Cela (RIC 58’), Simon Fitch (RIC 84’), Shandon Wright (POR 88’)

RC – NONE

LINEUPS

POR – Hunter Morse, Nathan Messer, Sean Vinberg, Kemali Green, Mo Mohamed (Shandon Wright 87’), Michel Poon-Angeron (Pat Langlois 74’), Mikey Lopez ©, Masashi Wada, Ollie Wright (Noah Kvifte 67’), Titus Washington (Evan Southern 67’), Walter Varela (Jay Tee Kamara 67’)

Unused substitutes – Kash Oladapo, Jake Keegan

RIC – Jamie Sneddon, Griffin Garnett, Marcelo Lage, Klaidi Cela (Adrian Billhardt 62’), Chandler O’Dwyer, Beckett Howell (Maximiliano Schenfeld 72’), Darwin Espinal (Hayden Anderson 72’), Nils Seufert (Ryan Baer 72’), Simon Fitch ©, Josh Kirkland (Landon Johnson 72’), Emiliano Terzaghi

Unused substitutes – Pablo Jara, Guilherme França, Rivendi Pierre-Louis, James Vaughan

Five Hearts Players Named to the Team of the Week

September 2, 2025 by Hearts of Pine Staff

PORTLAND, Maine – Five Portland Hearts of Pine players have been named to the USL League One Team of the Week for Week 26, the league announced today.

The quintet is headlined by Ollie Wright, who was named Player of the Week earlier today. Wright is joined by Sean Vinberg, Michel Poon-Angeron, Masashi Wada, and Jay Tee Kamara.

This is Wright’s sixth league honor this season, and second time being named Player of the Week after previously earning that honor in Week 15. He was also named to the Team of the Week in weeks 12, 16, 19, and 25.

It is the third Team of the Week honor for Wada, who was named to the TOTW in weeks 9 and 19; the second for Poon-Angeron and Kamara, who earned TOTW honors in weeks 15 and 17/18 respectively; and first for Vinberg.

During Portland’s 4-2 win over Charlotte Independence on Saturday, Wright scored one goal and assisted Wada and Kamara on their goals. Kamara added his own assist when, in the 69th minute, he set Vinberg up for the defender’s first strike since he scored the lone goal in Central Valley Fuego FC’s 1-0 win over Spokane Velocity last October. Poon-Angeron made six tackles and two interceptions, and made the key pass that put Kamara in position to assist on Vinberg’s goal.

NEXT UP: With the three points from Saturday’s match, Portland moved past, among others, Greenville Triumph SC in the USL League One standings. The two sides meet in South Carolina at 7:00 p.m. ET on Wednesday night, with the match streaming live on ESPN+.

USL LEAGUE ONE TEAM OF THE WEEK – WEEK 26

GK – Austin Pack, South Georgia Tormenta FC

D – Dani Fernández, One Knoxville SC

D – Sean Vinberg, Portland Hearts of Pine

D – Makel Rasheed, South Georgia Tormenta FC

D – Damià Viader, Forward Madison FC

M – Ollie Wright, Portland Hearts of Pine (Player of the Week)

M – Kevin O’Connor, FC Naples

M – Michel Poon-Angeron, Portland Hearts of Pine

F – Karsen Henderlong, FC Naples

F – Lucca Dourado, Forward Madison FC

F – Niall Reid-Stephen, South Georgia Tormenta FC

Coach – Ian Fuller, One Knoxville SC

Bench – Carlos Avilez (AV Alta FC), Jackson Kasanzu (South Georgia Tormenta FC), Steven Ramos (AV Alta FC), Masashi Wada (Portland Hearts of Pine), Gio Calixtro (One Knoxville SC), Jay Tee Kamara (Portland Hearts of Pine), Juan Carlos Obregón, Jr. (Westchester SC)

Hearts Put Four Past Charlotte in Rampant Win

August 30, 2025 by Hearts of Pine Staff

PORTLAND, Maine – Just as everyone predicted coming into the evening, Portland Hearts of Pine (6-4-9, seventh place) ran rampant against Charlotte Independence (8-7-7, fifth place) at Fitzpatrick Stadium on Saturday night, winning 4-2 behind goals from Masashi Wada, Jay Tee Kamara, Ollie Wright, and… Sean Vinberg?

When it’s your night, it’s your night.

Wada opened the scoring in the 28th minute when Wright played a perfect ball to him at the edge of the penalty area, leaving the Yokohama native a clean look at the goal. Wada needed just one touch to bury the ball in the top left corner of the net, effortlessly scoring his third goal of the season and bringing the sold out crowd of 5,710 to its feet.

Six minutes later Kemali Green was called for a handball in the penalty area when he lowered his head to head a corner clear, only for the ball to miss his head and graze his arm instead. Charlotte defender Nick Spielman stepped up to take the penalty, and sent it low and left past Hunter Morse.

Kamara came on for Walter Varela in the 63rd minute, and wasted no time making his presence felt. In the 69th minute he received a pass from Michel Poon-Angeron just inside the Charlotte half, turned, then split a pair of defenders with a through ball that left Vinberg – filling in at right back in place of an injured Colby Quiñones – one-on-one with Charlotte goalkeeper Matt Levy. Vinberg, nominally a center back for Hearts, coolly slotted the ball home in the far corner of the goal before being mobbed by his teammates.

In the 78th minute, captain Mikey Lopez stripped the ball from Anthony Sorenson, then fed Wright charging upfield. Wright skipped past both Clay Dimick and Spielman, then played Kamara through on goal. Kamara took one touch to control the ball, then rolled it past Levy into the goal.

Less than 10 minutes later Portland increased its lead to 4-1 on the back of an absolutely blistering counterattack. Left back Nathan Messer, deep in Portland’s penalty area, launched the ball towards Evan Southern on the halfway line. The ball took one bounce, then Southern headed it in the direction of Wright, streaking down the left wing.

The lethal Londoner, who on Tuesday was named to USL League One’s Team of the Week for the previous round, blew past Charlotte defender Pele Ousmanou, took two touches, and then sent the ball past a sprawling Levy into the bottom far corner of the net. The goal, Portland’s third in 18 minutes, was Wright’s team-leading seventh of the season and fifth in league play, and combined with his assists on Wada’s and Kamara’s scores almost certainly guarantees him Team of the Week honors for a sixth time.

In the fifth minute of stoppage time, Juan David Moreno added a second goal for Charlotte with a curling effort from long range.

The four goals were the most Portland had scored in a match since a 4-2 win over USL Championship side Detroit City FC in the Jägermeister Cup on May 31, and saw Hearts leap from 10th to seventh in the standings.

NEXT UP: With the three points from tonight’s match, Portland moved past, among others, Greenville Triumph SC in the USL League One standings. The two sides meet in South Carolina at 7:00 p.m. ET on Wednesday night, with the match streaming live on ESPN+.

GOALS

POR – Masashi Wada 28’ (Ollie Wright), Sean Vinberg 69’ (Jay Tee Kamara), Kamara 78’ (Wright), Wright 87’ (Evan Southern)

CLT – Nick Spielman 36’ PK, Juan David Moreno (90’+5)

DISCIPLINE

YC – Omar Ciss (CLT 54’), Mikey Lopez (POR 81’), Michel Poon-Angeron (POR 83’)

RC – NONE

LINEUPS

PORTLAND – Hunter Morse, Nathan Messer, Kemali Green, Séga Coulibaly, Sean Vinberg, Mikey Lopez (C), Michel Poon-Angeron (Pat Langlois 84’), Masashi Wada (Natty James 88’), Ollie Wright (Mickey Reilly 88’), Walter Varela (Jay Tee Kamara 63’), Noah Kvifte (Evan Southern 84’)

Unused substitutes – Kash Oladapo, Shandon Wright

CHARLOTTE – Matt Levy, Fabrice Ngah, Nick Spielman, Javen Romero, Anthony Sorenson (Pele Ousmanou 86’), Clay Dimick (C), Omar Ciss (Christopher Jaime 74’), Bachir Ndiaye, Jon Bakero (Rafael Jauregui 74’), Tumi Moshobane (Juan David Moreno 74), Souaibou Marou (Christian Chaney 67’)

Unused substitutes – Amal Knight, Paolo Alcocer

Hearts Held to Scoreless Draw by Richmond

August 9, 2025 by Hearts of Pine Staff

PORTLAND, Maine – Portland Hearts of Pine (4-4-9) controlled the ball for 70 percent of the match and near doubled Richmond Kickers (4-9-5) in shots, 12-7, but ultimately came away frustrated, held to a scoreless draw in front of 5,796 fans at Fitzpatrick Stadium on Saturday night.

After a defensive first 45 minutes, the match slowly came alive in the second half. In the 69th minute, Richmond’s Ryan Baer launched a shot goalward from long range. A crowd of bodies in front of the Portland goal prevented Hunter Morse from seeing the ball until the last minute, but the Hearts goalkeeper rose to the occasion—literally—and made an outstanding reflex save to parry the ball over the crossbar.

The save was one of three Morse made on the night, as the goalkeeper turned in a performance that would have made Boston Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman—watching on from the sideline seats—proud.

As the clock ticked closer to 90 minutes, Portland strung together the two best chances of the game, only to come up agonizingly short each time.

In the 88th minute, the Ollie Wright-to-Nathan Messer combination that has troubled opponents all season long almost paid dividends again, as Wright fed Messer in the penalty area with a perfectly weighted ball. Left back Messer, who already has three goals this season, sent his one-time shot past Kickers goalkeeper Pablo Jara, only to see the ball ricochet off the underside of the crossbar and back into play.

In the third minute of stoppage time, Jay Tee Kamara played a through ball to Michel Poon-Angeron in the penalty area, and Poon-Angeron drove a low shot towards the near post. Poon-Angeron’s attempt was wide of the mark however, and the referee blew his whistle shortly thereafter to bring an end to the encounter.

Coach Bobby Murphy had this to say about the match, “I don’t fault the players’ efforts. I thought we played hard. I think they came in with a clear plan of not playing and making things difficult for us. There’s times where you can get lulled into that. And I thought first half, we did a little bit of playing at their pace. Second half, we got the tempo and probably deserved a goal. But, you know, at the end of the day, goals change games. I think we’re probably a little frustrated, but we’ll take a look at it and move forward to next week.”

GOALS

POR – NONE

RIC – NONE

DISCIPLINE

YC – Vinberg (POR 68’), Baer (RIC 77’), Kirkland (RIC 80’)

RC – NONE

LINEUPS

PORTLAND – Hunter Morse, Nathan Messer, Sega Coulibaly (Sean Vinberg 62’), Kemali Green, Colby Quinones (Walter Varela 83’), Mikey Lopez ©, Michel Poon-Angeron, Patrick Langois (Evan Southern 62’), Ollie Wright, Noah Kvifte (Jake Keegan 74’), Jay Tee Kamara

Unused substitutes – Kash Oladapo, Mo Mohamed, Shandon Wright

RICHMOND – Pablo Jara, Dakota Barnathan ©, Hayden Anderson (Chandler O’Dwyer 55’), Simon Fitch, Maximiliano Schenfeld, Landon Johnson (Beckett Howell 83’), Josh Kirkland, Nils Seufert (Ryan Baer 65’), Klaidi Cela, Darwin Espinal (Adrian Billhardt 65’), Marcelo Lage

Unused substitutes – RIvendi Melvin Pierre-Louis, James Sneddon, Griffin Garnett

Hearts Defeat Halifax in Club’s First International Friendly

August 6, 2025 by Hearts of Pine Staff

PORTLAND, Maine – On a night that started festive and ended feisty, Portland Hearts of Pine defeated nine-man Halifax Wanderers 2-1 on Wednesday night, courtesy of a first-half goal by Mickey Reilly and a stoppage-time stunner by Ollie Wright.

The match was Portland’s first-ever international friendly, and saw the Boys of Maine take on their neighbors (neighbours?) to the north, Canadian Premier League side Halifax. The evening got underway in suitably celebratory fashion, with local Acadian musician Robert Sylvain performing both countries’ national anthems before Governor Janet Mills joined the teams on the field for the coin toss, flanked by school children holding both nations’ flags.

Lewiston native Khalid Hersi and new signings Séga Coulibaly and Noah Kvifte earned their first starts of the season, and Hearts came out on the front foot, eager to make an impact in front of the sold-out crowd of 5,645.

Portland opened the scoring in the 18th minute when Reilly forced a turnover outside the penalty area, collected the loose ball, and drove a low shot into the bottom far corner of the goal.

Hearts took the advantage into the break, but Halifax knotted the match up at a goal apiece in the 57th minute when Jefferson Alphonse sprung Tavio Ciccarelli with a beautiful long ball down the middle of the field. Alphonse collected the ball in stride, then rocketed a powerful shot past Kash Oladapo and into the back of the net.

Two minutes later Bobby Murphy rung the changes for Portland, taking advantage of the friendly’s unlimited substitutions to bring Mikey Lopez, Kemali Green, Patrick Langlois, Michel Poon-Angeron, Ollie Wright, Titus Washington, and Jay Tee Kamara all on at the same time.

As the sun set over Fort Fitzy both sides dialed up the intensity in search of a matchwinner, and all notions of the match being a “friendly” began to go out the window.

In the 78th minute, Halifax’s Jérémy Gagnon-Laparé was shown his second yellow card of the match after elbowing Titus Washington in the face, earning the Wanderers player a red card and an early trip to the locker room.

Two minutes into stoppage time, a Hearts corner caromed around the Halifax penalty area before falling at the feet of Wright, who put his laces through the ball and blasted it past Wanderers goalkeeper Aiden Rushenas. That turned out to be Rushenas’ last game action of the night: as the crowd roared in unbridled delight at the late goal, a melee broke out in the penalty area; the shot-stopper waded into the fray and shoved referee Andrew Porada, earning him a straight red card.

Minutes later Porada blew his whistle for full-time, bringing an end to a spirited friendly that saw the home team come out on top, and whet the home fans’ appetites for potential future matchups in the burgeoning international rivalry.

Khalid Hersi had this to say on playing in front of other Mainers, friends, and family: “The support just knowing that the majority of these people are from Maine. I mean, it’s amazing, to be honest, knowing that I’m representing Maine, I’m playing for Maine, so having people out there and supporting us and watching was is best.”

And Coach Bobby Murphy on the “friendly” getting heated: “I understand their guys being disappointed, losing at the end, being down a man, and playing hard. And, you know, that’s just the way it is. I would be disappointed if everybody and the crowd were disappointed. The guys came out and just went through the motions. You know, I mean, that’s what I told them in the locker room, they had a responsibility to themselves, to change my mind, and two, that people paid good, hard-earned money to come watch them tonight, and they owe them a performance, so go out and put in a shift.”

GOALS

POR – Reilly 18’ (unassisted), O. Wright 90+2’ (unassisted)

HFX – Ciccarelli 57’ (Alphonse)

DISCIPLINE

YC – Kvifte (POR 21’), Gagnon-Laparé (HFX 26’), Alphonse (HFX 38’), S. Wright (POR 45+1’), Gagnon-Laparé (HFX 78’), Rushenas (HFX 88’), Oladapo (POR 90+4’)

RC – Gagnon-Laparé (HFX 78’), Rushenas (HFX 90+2’)

LINEUPS

PORTLAND – Kash Oladapo, Mo Mohamed (Mikey Lopez 59’), Shandon Wright (Kemali Green 59’), Séga Coulibaly © (Sean Vinberg 46’), Nathan Messer (Colby Quiñones 46’), Khalid Hersi (Patrick Langlois 59’), Mickey Reilly (Michel Poon-Angeron 59’), Natty James (Walter Varela 46’), Jake Keegan (Ollie Wright 59’), Noah Kvifte (Titus Washington 59’), Evan Southern (Jay Tee Kamara 59’)

Unused substitutes – Trialist

HALIFAX – Aiden Rushenas, Luka Robichaud-Allah (Mohamed Tolba 59’, Adam Allain 90+2’), Jefferson Alphonse (Ben Thompson 73’), Julian Dunn © (Luka Juricic 46’), Jabu Deng, Jérémy Gagnon-Laparé, Alessandro Biello, Joven Mann (Ben Marsh 69’), Camilo Vasconcelos, David Mavakala, Tavio Ciccarelli

Unused substitutes – NONE

Michel Poon-Angeron

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