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Carmichael gets first hat trick for Ocean City Barons in 5-1 rout of Newark Ironbound Express
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OCEAN CITY - It was two days after the Barons' valiant effort against D.C. United of Major League Soccer, and Ocean City coach Neil Holloway rested some of his top players Thursday in the first half of their game against the Newark Ironbound Express.
The first half was scoreless and mostly uneventful, but with Barons stars such as forward Byron Carmichael and midfielder Leon Brown playing in the second half, the contest turned into an Ocean City scoring onslaught.
The Barons won the United Soccer Leagues Premier Development League game 5-1, with Carmichael getting his first career PDL hat trick. The other goals were by Neal Melchionni on a corner kick off the far post, and by former St. Augustine Prep standout Junior Chapman.
Carmichael's three goals came in 35 minutes of playing time.
The win puts Ocean City in third place in the PDL Eastern Conference Northeast Division with a 7-3-1 mark. The top three teams in the division make the playoffs.
The Ironbound Express, who lost to the Barons 7-1 on May 31 in Newark, fell to 6-8-1.
This was the Barons' first game since their 2-0 loss in Maryland to pro team D.C. United in the third round of the U.S. Open Cup.
On Thursday, Melchionni, a former Ocean City High School star, scored the first goal in the 52nd minute. Three minutes later, Carmichael entered the game. He scored in front of the net about 15 seconds later, after a pass from Ryan Richter.
Carmichael is the Barons' all-time leading scorer with 47 goals. He has six goals in the PDL this season.
"We have four games in seven or eight days and I was a little tired after playing hard for 70 minutes against D.C. United," Carmichael said. "Kyle Miller was playing up front and he's a real good goal scorer. I can't remember the last time I scored three goals. Usually when I score two goals, they take me out. This was big for us. The D.C. United game (it was 0-0 for 74 minutes) was a good experience for us. It was a good confidence booster."
Melchionni's goal came just seconds after a bizarre play in which Newark goalie Chris Dugan misplayed a long Barons kick that went over his head and bounced behind him and then over the goal and out of play.
Following the goals by Melchionni and Carmichael, the Ironbound Express fought back in the 72nd minute with midfielder Victor Kutynski's goal on a penalty kick to make it 2-1.
But Carmichael's second goal came three minutes later from 10 yards out, after O.C. goalie Jordan Bar's long kick. Carmichael added his third goal two minutes later, and Chapman scored his first PDL goal from the left side to make it 5-1 in the 83rd minute.
"We took advantage of our strong roster by resting some of our players," Holloway said. "Playing an MLS team took a lot out of us, but we showed what we can do against them. I've seen the films of the D.C. United game twice and it put a smile on my face."
Notes: The Barons host the unbeaten Ottawa Fury (8-0-3) at 3 p.m. Saturday, the Fourth of July, at Carey Stadium. Ottawa beat the Barons 2-0 on June 5. ... Thursday's game was played at the Tennessee Avenue Soccer Complex because the Carey field was recently resodded.
E-mail Guy Gargan:
Newark 0 1-1
Ocean City 0 5-5
Goals-Kutynski N. Carmichael (3), Melchionni, Chapman OC.
Goalies-Steele (3), Dugan (2) N. Bar (8) OC.
Records-Ocean City 9-4-1 (7-3-1 PDL). Newark 6-8-1.
VIDEO: Highlights from Ocean City Barons vs. D.C. United
Posted in Sports, Breaking_news, Soccer on Friday, July 3, 2009 12:05 am Updated: 11:26 am.
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