Mt. Vernon, N.Y., May 29, 2025--Off a second straight home draw, Westchester SC (1-3-4) will host vs Hartford Athletic this Saturday at The Stadium at Memorial Field in a Jägermeister Cup matchup with Hartford Athletic at 4 pm. This is the fourth of six straight home matches for WSC in May and June. Their next road match will not be until June 18 against Forward Madison SC.
WSC, Richmond Battle to Second Straight Draw: Scoring, drama and chippy play were all on hand Sunday as WSC and Richmond Kickers battled to a 2-2 draw, the second time this season the clubs have engaged in a high scoring tie. Westchester Soccer Club came out strong, opening the scoring with an early strike from Prince Saydee. After a swift run down the right sideline, Saydee unleashed a precise low shot into the bottom right corner to put WSC ahead. The hosts continued to apply pressure, and in the 29th minute, captain JC Obregon doubled the lead by finishing off a perfectly placed lob from Dean Guezen. Richmond responded quickly, narrowing the gap in the 32nd minute when Darwin Espinal capitalized on a loose ball in the box to make it 2–1 before halftime. The Kickers came out sharp in the second half, and just two minutes in, Matt Bolduc brought the match level with a clinical one-touch finish off a pass from Beckett Howell. From there, the intensity only grew as both sides battled through a physical and emotionally charged contest, marked by high tension and moments of chippy play.
The tie followed the two club’s 4-4 draw at Richmond in April, and the 12 goals scored in aggregate in the two matches are the most combined for two USL League One sides this season.
Trying the Cup Again: This will be the second Jägermeister Cup matchup following a 4-1 loss at home to Rhode Island FC on April 27. WSC is 0-2-0 against USL Championship sides thus far, also having lost 3-1 loss at Detroit City FC in the third round of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup. Their next Jägermeister Cup matchup will be at Pittsburgh on July 26.
Gold Cup Call; Twenty-three players from the USL Championship and League One were named last Monday to the preliminary rosters for the 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup. Included among the group are WSC’S Juan Carlos Obregón, Jr., for Honduras and Noah Powder for Trinidad and Tobago. The final rosters for the tournament must be named by June 4 ahead of the competition’s opening game on Saturday, June 14 between Mexico and the Dominican Republic. Portland was the only other USL League One club with multiple players named.
Stopping the Slide: WSC enters Saturday looking to stop an eight match overall winless slide, but have recorded draws in their past two USL League One matchups. They have not posted a match win since their victory over NY Pancyprian Freedoms 3-2 on April 2 in the US Open Cup, and have not won a USL League One match since their 3-1 win at Texoma FC on March 29. WSC has actually grabbed the lead in the first half of their last four matches, leading 1-0 at Spokane, 2-0 at home against Charlotte, 1-0 vs. Forward Madison and 2-0 vs. Richmond.
Solving The Second Half: WSC’s USL play has literally been a tale of two halves. In matches where they have either outscored or matched goals with their opponent in the second half, the club is undefeated (1-0-2). In matches where the opponents have dominated the second half, WSC is winless, including allowing three unanswered goals to Charlotte and a pair in the loss at Spokane.
If it’s a WSC Match, JC is on the Board: Forward Juan Carlos Obregón, Jr. (New York, NY) has been the scoring leader for WSC, not just in their USL matches but in their US Open Cup matches as well. Obregon’s eight overall goals easily tops the team in all games played. The 2024 USL League One All-League First Team forward scored his eighth goal Sunday, and he now has five USL League One tallies two more than teammate Connor McGlynn. Obregón leads the club in assists with two as well.
Hammer Time Arrives; Goalkeeper Andrew Hammersley (Garden City, NY) was inserted into the lineup by Head Coach Dave Carton prior to the May 10th match vs. Charlotte and has taken the starting spot for the past three matches. The Sacred Heart University product has recorded 14 saves in his first three matches, eight in USL League One and the best three match stretch for a keeper in WSC’s inaugural season.
Homegrown Scorers: In USL play, New York area natives Obregón (New York, NY) McGlynn (Middle Village, NY) , Samory Powder and Noah Powder (Edison, NJ) have accounted for 11 of the club’s 13 goals thus far, giving the back of the net a decided NY area edge so far. WSC’s current roster features eight players who can call the greater New York area home. In addition, defender Kemar “Taxi” Lawrence has logged time in his career as a popular member of the New York Red Bulls. Defender Noah Powder and his brother Samory Powder have also logged time in the Red Bulls development system.
Brotherly Success, The Powder’s Pour it On: The Powder brothers, Samory and Noah (Edison, NJ), are just the fifth pair of brothers to suit up as teammates in a League One match, and the first pair of brothers to be named to the USL League One Team of the Week as teammates in the same week. Midfielder Noah Powder was named Player of the Week presented by Konami eFootball with three goal contributions in a 4-4 draw against the Richmond Kickers on April 19 . Noah Powder's assist on Samory Powder's goal in the 53rd minute marked the second time in league history a pair of brothers have connected for a joint goal participation (Arturo/David Rodriguez (NTX), 2019). Then we have Samory Powder, the first-year professional registered a beauty of a first professional goal off an assist from his older brother, Noah at Richmond, and followed that up with his second goal, the club’s only tally, at Spokane.
Other Early Honors:
Week Four; Defender Tobi Adewole (Cheverly, Md.) Jonathan Bolanos, Conor McGlynn and Juan Carlos Obregón, Jr. to the USL Bench..
Week Ten; Conor McGlynn and Juan Carlos Obregón, Jr. named to the USL Bench.
Week Eleven: Andrew Hammersley named to USL Bench.
League Leaders: Juan Carlos Obregón’s 29 shots in early action lead all USL League One players and his five goals in league play tie him for third overall, while Noah Powder and Jonathan Bolanos 15 chances created ranks fifth in the league so far.
On The Team Side: WSC enters the weekend tied for 4th in scoring in USL League One with 14 goals, tied for 4th in passing accuracy (80%) and 5th in conversion rate (18 %) and shots at 99.
Dutch Influence: In addition to the New York locals dotting the roster, WSC is drawing strength from…The Netherlands. The club has a trio of Dutch players as the season starts rolling, including forward Koen Blommestijn (Amstelveen, Netherlands), midfielders Daniel Bouman (Blaricum, Netherlands) and Dean Guezen (Amsterdam, Netherlands).
WSC’s inaugural season partners in addition to Northwell Health and SCORE PT include; Leros Transportation Group - luxury transportation partner, Healthfirst - insurance partner, Manhattanville University - premier education partner, Pepsi Bottling Company of New York - beverage partner, RXR - luxury living/real estate partner, MSG Networks - broadcast partner, Breezemont Day Camp - summer day camp partner, Seatgeek - ticketing partner, and Benjamin's Steak House - steak house partner.
On The Air: All of WSC’s USL League One matchups will be seen locally on MSG Networks, with Sam Goldfarb calling the action for most home matches.
Up Next: WSC returns to USL League One play on June 7 against One Knoxville SC in their first home regular season night match of the season.
