Spokane plays to 1-1 draw with South Georgia Tormenta FC

The Spokane Velocity missed on an opportunity to climb in the USL League One standings, but the club didn’t lose any ground.

Spokane gained a point and solidified itself at third in the USL1 table, playing to a 1-1 draw with South Georgia Tormenta FC on Saturday evening in rainy conditions at ONE Spokane Stadium.

With three matches left to play, the Velocity (13-6-8) are two points behind second-place Chattanooga, which lost to Forward Madison FC earlier Saturday. The Velocity have already clinched a playoff spot, but a win over seventh-place Tormenta (11-11-6) would have put Spokane into a tie for second in the standings.

Star Spokane striker Luis Gil converted on a penalty kick in the 52nd minute, slipping a shot into the bottom-right corner of the net to tie the score after South Georgia forward Niall Reid-Stephen had scored an impressive goal in the 39th minute on a free kick from just outside the penalty area.

Both sides had a couple of close shots during the final stretch of the second half, but both benefited from strong defensive and goalkeeping efforts.

South Georgia controlled possession for 53% of the match, but Spokane had 14 shots (six on target) compared to seven shots (one on target) for the visitors.