2022 Flower City Union season
| 2022 season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner | Jimmy Paola | ||
| Head coach | Zach Agliata (until May 3)[1] Colton Bly (interim) | ||
| Stadium | Marina Auto Stadium | ||
| NISA | 10th | ||
| NISA Playoffs | Did not qualify | ||
| U.S. Open Cup | Third round | ||
| Independent Cup | Northeast Champions | ||
| Top goalscorer | League: Canas-Jarquin (2) All: Fernandes (5) | ||
| Average home league attendance | 880 | ||
| Biggest win | 1–0 (vs. WMP (A), April 6, USOC) | ||
| Biggest defeat | 1–6 (vs. MBFC (A), April 2, NISA) | ||
|
| |||
The 2022 Flower City Union season was the club's first season of existence, and their first in the National Independent Soccer Association (NISA), the third tier of American soccer. The Union's season began on March 26, 2022, and concluded on October 10, 2022.
The Union finished at the bottom of the NISA table.
Background
The club's history begins in 2017, when the long-time professional soccer club in the Rochester metropolitan area, the Rochester Rhinos announced they were going on a hiatus beginning in 2018. The hiatus left the city without a professional soccer team for the first time since 19985, and left the city's soccer-specific stadium, Marina Auto Stadium, without a main tenant.
In 2020, a ownership group headed by David Weaver, the CEO and founder of Rochester-based Aphex BioCleanse Systems Inc. and a former Kodak optical engineer, submitted an application for a NISA team in Rochester.[2][3] Mark Washo, a former Chief Business Officer with the Rhinos was appointed as Managing Director and Chief Commercial Officer and the group later announced a partnership with St. John Fisher College’s Sport Management Department.[4]
On December 17, 2020, NISA approved the group's expansion application, and the following day, it was revealed that the club's name would be the Flower City Union, a nod to Rochester's nickname as the Flower City.[5][6] On April 14, 2021, the team logo and colors were introduced, the primary color being Lilac purple in honor of Rochester's signature flower.[7]
Club
Team management
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| Owner |  Jimmy Paola
|
| Vice Chairman | Mark Washo
|
| Vice President of Business Operations | Andrew Hoyt
|
| Director of Marketing | Nina Korn
|
| Director of Corporate Partnerships | Casey Catlin
|
| Director of Fan Engagement | Casey Catlin
|
| Digital Coordinators | Ben Conrow Adam Drake
|
| Operations Managers | Logan Adams Ryan Adams
|
| Head coach | Jordan Sullivan
|
| Assistant coach | Nelson Cupello
|
| Goalkeeping coach |  Marcelo Moreira
|
Roster
| No. | Name | Games Played | Games Started | Goals | Yellow | Red | Minutes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Outfield Players | |||||||
| 2 | Benjamin Watson | 9 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 379 |
| 3 | Alex Ainscough | 22 | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1,639 |
| 4 | Andriy Demydiv | 11 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 873 |
| 5 | Nikkyi De Point | 21 | 19 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1,745 |
| 6 | Andrea Pregoni | 9 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 368 |
| 7 | Jay Yun Lee | 22 | 11 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 925 |
| 8 | Jordan Saling | 19 | 16 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1,451 |
| 9 | Arion Sobers-Assue | 17 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 916 |
| 10 | Giancarlo Canas-Jarquin | 23 | 18 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1,438 |
| 11 | Jose Sierra | 8 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 408 |
| 12 | Colin Muller | 21 | 17 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1,528 |
| 14 | Quinton Carey | 13 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 456 |
| 15 | Robert Williamson | 7 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 558 |
| 17 | Hunter Kassel | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 |
| 19 | Suniel Veerakone | 22 | 21 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1,896 |
| 20 | Dylan Evande | 5 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 378 |
| 21 | Ozlo Riley | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 69 |
| 22 | Mitchell Brickman | 15 | 15 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 1,346 |
| 23 | Lukas Fernandez | 19 | 17 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1,494 |
| 24 | Marcus Micheletti | 18 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1,065 |
| 25 | Grant Michaels | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 353 |
| 42 | Andre Deas | 22 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1,534 |
| 71 | Noah Cavanaugh | 7 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 412 |
| 77 | Michael Cunningham | 4 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 242 |
| 82 | Ryan Curtis | 9 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 418 |
| 88 | Auston Kranick | 23 | 20 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1,766 |
| 2024 Goalkeepers | |||||||
| No. | Name | Games Played | GA | GA | Minutes | ||
| 0 | Missing Info | ||||||
| 1 | Missing Info | ||||||
- Stats include US Open Cup and NISA regular season matches. They do not include NISA Independent Cup stats.
Non-competitive
| September 7 | Flower City Union | 0–6 | Syracuse Pulse | Rochester, NY |
| 8:30 p.m. EDT | Report | Stadium: Marina Auto Stadium |
Competitions
NISA
Season Recap
The season began with Zach Agliata at the helm. After a string of poor result, he was replaced by Colton Bly, who was given the interim tag.
Standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | PPG | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California United Strikers FC | 21 | 14 | 4 | 3 | 35 | 12 | +23 | 46 | 2.19 | Qualification for the semi-finals |
| 2 | Chattanooga FC | 24 | 14 | 7 | 3 | 44 | 21 | +23 | 49 | 2.04 | |
| 3 | Michigan Stars FC | 23 | 10 | 8 | 5 | 27 | 15 | +12 | 38 | 1.65 | Qualification for the play-offs |
| 4 | Albion San Diego | 20 | 9 | 5 | 6 | 28 | 23 | +5 | 32 | 1.60 | |
| 5 | Maryland Bobcats FC | 23 | 8 | 6 | 9 | 32 | 28 | +4 | 30 | 1.30 | |
| 6 | Syracuse Pulse | 22 | 7 | 4 | 11 | 26 | 32 | −6 | 25 | 1.14 | |
| 7 | Los Angeles Force | 20 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 14 | 31 | −17 | 14 | 0.70 | |
| 8 | Flower City Union | 23 | 2 | 3 | 18 | 13 | 57 | −44 | 9 | 0.39 |
Source: nisasoccer.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal differential; 3) goals scored; 4) head-to-head
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal differential; 3) goals scored; 4) head-to-head
Results summary
| Overall | Home | Away | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
| 21 | 2 | 3 | 16 | 13 | 54 | −41 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 6 | 23 | −17 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 7 | 31 | −24 |
Last updated: September 2, 2022.
Source: Flower City Union
Match results
| March 26 1 | Flower City Union | 0–1 | Syracuse Pulse | Rochester, NY |
| 12:00 p.m. EDT | Saling  55'Brickman 71' |
Report | Jackson  48'DaSilva  58'MacDonald 75' |
Stadium: Rochester Community Sports Complex Attendance: 880[10] |
| April 2 2 | Maryland Bobcats | 6–1 | Flower City Union | Boyds, MD |
| 4:00 p.m. EDT | Amo 13' Espinal 29'Solomon 56', 63'Amo 72'Brickman 90+2' (o.g.) |
Report | Veerakone 17' Canas-Jarquin 58' |
Stadium: Maryland SoccerPlex Attendance: UNK Referee: Gary Gutierrez, Max Smith, Scarlet Agrawal, Steven Foster |
| April 9 3 | Flower City Union | 0–3 | Michigan Stars | Rochester, NY |
| 12:00 p.m. EDT | Brickman 60' |
Report | Firmino 32' Mujan 37'Constant 40'Firmino 54'Brickman 60'Zhongo 79' |
Stadium: Rochester Community Sports Complex Attendance: UNK |
| April 23 4 | Flower City Union | 0–1 | Maryland Bobcats | Rochester, NY |
| 3:00 p.m. EDT | Williamson 14' Kranick 57'Demydiv 78' |
Report | Mason 9' Majano 19'Clegg 22'Espinal 29'Alvarado 73'González 90' |
Stadium: Rochester Community Sports Complex Attendance: 477 |
| April 30 5 | Chattanooga FC | 0–1 | Flower City Union | Chattanooga, TN |
| 7:30 p.m. EDT | Gray 57' Robertson 66'Stripling 76' |
Report | Deas 32' Fernandes 85' |
Stadium: Finley Stadium Attendance: 3,260[11] |
| May 4 6 | Flower City Union | 1–2 | California United Strikers | Batavia, NY |
| 7:30 p.m. EDT | Canas-Jarquin 32' Lee 78' |
Report | Nuño 36' Kadono 61'Treinen 62' |
Stadium: Vandetta Stadium Attendance: 243 |
| Note: Match played at Vandetta Stadium, Batavia instead of the club's normal stadium, Marina Auto Stadium, Rochester, due to venue conflicts.[12] | ||||
| May 8 7 | Syracuse Pulse | 3–1 | Flower City Union | Syracuse, NY |
| 7:00 p.m. EDT | Jackson 7' Kafari 32'Satrustegui 61'MacDonald 71' |
Report | Ainscough 18' Fernandes 30'Kranick 42'Watson 64' |
Stadium: Lazer Stadium |
| May 14 8 | Flower City Union | 2–1 | Maryland Bobcats | Rochester, NY |
| 3:00 p.m. EDT | Sobers-Assue 32' Brickman 68'Canas-Jarquin 78'Ortega 89'Demydiv 90+1'Kranick 90+3' |
Report | Boone 49' Gonzalez 82' |
Stadium: Rochester Community Sports Complex Attendance: 717 |
| May 21 9 | Flower City Union | 1–5 | Chattanooga FC | Rochester, NY |
| 6:00 p.m. EDT | Veerakone 39' Sobers-Assue 74'Ortega 85' |
Report | Naglestad 12', 34', 37', 86' (pen.) Cerro 14' |
Stadium: Rochester Community Sports Complex |
| May 28 10 | California United Strikers FC | 1–0 | Flower City Union | Irvine, CA |
| 10:00 p.m. EDT | Thierjung 62' Kadono 75' |
Report | Veerakone 9' Deas 23' |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium |
| June 1 11 | Bay Cities FC | 3–1 | Flower City Union | Redwood City, CA |
| 10:00 p.m. EDT | Paoli 9' Romero 38' (pen.)Penner 54' 69' |
Report | Fernandes 45+2' 59' Sierra 78' |
Stadium: Cañada College Soccer Field |
| June 4 12 | Flower City Union | 2–1 | Valley United | Rochester, NY |
| 7:00 p.m. EDT | Sobers-Assue 41' (pen.) Fernandes 72' |
Gil 61' |
Stadium: Rochester Community Sports Complex | |
| Note: Result null and void after Valley United was expelled by the league. | ||||
| June 11 13 | Michigan Stars | 3–0 | Flower City Union | Romeo, MI |
| 7:00 p.m. EDT | Mkuruva 14' Juncaj 22', 47'Marić 66' |
Report | Stadium: Romeo Stadium |
| June 15 14 | Flower City Union | 0–3 | LA Force | Rochester, NY |
| 7:30 p.m. EDT | De Point 82' |
Report | Rivas Jr. 7' 21' McLaughlin 17' 90'Goñi 59' |
Stadium: Rochester Community Sports Complex |
| June 18 15 | Flower City Union | 2–2 | Albion San Diego | Rochester, NY |
| 7:00 p.m. EDT | Lee 16' Ainscough 34'Saling 49'Fernandes 90+1' |
Report | Diakhate 15' Pelaez 41'Hanson 69'Malango 87'Bazaes 90+6' |
Stadium: Rochester Community Sports Complex |
| July 3 16 | Michigan Stars | 0–0 | Flower City Union | Romeo, MI |
| 7:00 p.m. EDT | McCloud 30' |
Report | Lee 71' Deas 77' |
Stadium: Romeo Stadium |
| July 8 17 | Syracuse Pulse | 4–0 | Flower City Union | Syracuse, NY |
| 7:00 p.m. EDT | Fokam 8'  77'Mckinley 35'Kafari 43'Louis 49, 66'Kwak 59' Waldrep 86' |
Report | Brickman 36' Muller 48' |
Stadium: Lazer Stadium |
| July 16 18 | Flower City Union | 0–5 | Chattanooga FC | Rochester, NY |
| EDT | Watson 34' Kranick 55'Sobers-Assue 66' |
Report | Naglestad 17' (pen.), 33' Hernandez 35'Gray 84'Green 90+1' |
Stadium: Marina Auto Stadium |
| August 13 19 | Maryland Bobcats | 5–0 | Flower City Union | Boyds, MD |
| 7:00 p.m. EDT | Wivell 7' Espinal 54, 77'Boone 57, 58'Boone 71' |
Report | Deas 50' Pregoni 90' |
Stadium: Maryland SoccerPlex |
| August 20 20 | Flower City Union | 0–2 | Syracuse Pulse | Rochester, NY |
| 6:00 p.m. EDT | Pregoni 56' |
Report | Kwak 10' Louis 17'DaSilva 23'Jackson 71' |
Stadium: Rochester Community Sports Complex |
| August 27 21 | Albion San Diego | 2–1 | Flower City Union | San Diego, CA |
| 9:00 p.m. EDT | Gabarra 40' Diakhate 43'Haupt 59'Mitchell 83' |
Report | Williamson 67' Evande 85' |
Stadium: Canyon Crest Stadium |
| August 29 22 | LA Force | 2–2 | Flower City Union | Wilmington, CA |
| 10:00 p.m. EDT | Amo 32' Guerrero 30' 40'Quintanilla 70'Tor 82' |
Report | Curtis 19' 87' Lee 26'Williamson 51' |
Stadium: Casey Field |
| September 7 23 | Flower City Union | — | Bay Cities FC | Rochester, NY |
| 8:30 p.m. EDT | Stadium: Rochester Community Sports Complex | |||
| Note: Match canceled after Bay Cities FC withdrew from the league. | ||||
| September 24 24 | Chattanooga FC | 1-0 | Flower City Union | Chattanooga, TN |
| 7:30 p.m. EDT | Naglestad 35' (pen.) Robertson 45'Stratton 70'Cerro 76' |
Report | Canas-Jarsuin 25' Brickman 43'Evande 52' 55' |
Stadium: Finley Stadium Attendance: 3,437 |
| October 10 25 | Flower City Union | 0-2 | Michigan Stars | Rochester, NY |
| 3:00 p.m. EDT | Micheletti 24' Deas 29'Brickman 53'Pregoni 90' |
Report | Zhongo 24' (pen.) Bowie 37'Schmelev 74'Maric 80'Gvozdic 87' |
Stadium: Rochester Community Sports Complex |
U.S. Open Cup
| April 6 Second round | Western Mass Pioneers (USL2)  | 0–1 (a.e.t.) |  Flower City Union (NISA) | Ludlow, MA |
| 4:30 p.m. EDT | Gutiérrez 23' Matera 81'Freitas 114' |
Report | Veerakone 81' Fernandes 94'Micheletti 110' |
Stadium: Lusitano Stadium Attendance: 363 Referee: Jeremy Scheer |
| April 19 Third round | Flower City Union (NISA) | 0–3 |  D.C. United (MLS) | Rochester, NY |
| 7:30 p.m. EDT | Ortega 85' |
Report | Kamara 73', 86' (pen.) Robertha 81' |
Stadium: Marina Auto Stadium Attendance: 556 Referee: Luis Arroyo |
NISA Independent Cup
| June 25 First round | Flower City Union (NISA) | 2–0 AET |  NJ Alliance (NISAN) | Rochester, NY |
| Veerakone 101', 114' Canas-Jarquin Muller |
Report | Stadium: Mariana Auto Stadium |
References
- ^ "Agliata Resigns, Bly as Interim". flowercityunion.com. May 2, 2022. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
- ^ Lewis, Michael (November 11, 2020). "MORE NISA EXPANSION?: Sources: Rochester group submits application to join league". www.frontrowsoccer.com. Retrieved April 16, 2021.
- ^ "#118 - From Kodak Layoff - To Creating 50 New Millionaires - David Weaver". www.audacy.com. Retrieved April 16, 2021.
- ^ "Rochester group bringing pro soccer back to the Flower City". Rochester First. November 25, 2020. Retrieved April 16, 2021.
- ^ "NISA Rochester is now Flower City Union". Protagonist Soccer. December 18, 2020. Retrieved April 30, 2022.
- ^ "They're In: NISA approves Rochester's application". frontrowsoccer.com. December 17, 2020. Retrieved April 29, 2022.
- ^ "New logo revealed for Rochester's next pro soccer team". WROC-TV. Nexstar Media. April 15, 2021. Retrieved April 29, 2022.
- ^ "Front Office". Flower City Union. Retrieved April 29, 2022.
- ^ "Technical Staff | Coaches". Flower City Union. Retrieved April 30, 2022.
- ^ @FlowerCityUnion (March 29, 2022). "🏟 Attendance of our first ever match. Unbelievable. Y'all rock, even in the cold! 🥶 Hopefully warmer weather lies ahead! 😎" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Henderson, Jed (April 30, 2022). "Match Recap: Chattanooga FC vs Flower City Union". chattanoogafc.com. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
- ^ Flower City Union [@FlowerCityUnion] (April 27, 2022). "🚨 MATCH UPDATE! Due to venue conflicts our next home match will be played at 📍Vandetta Stadium in Batavia, NY. Tickets will be General Admission for $10. Come out & watch us take on Cal United Strikers FC on May 4th at 7:30PM! 🎟 Tickets available on our website!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.