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The Tampa Bay Rowdies were defeated by the Montreal Impact by a score of 4-1 on Wednesday night in their second group match at the Disney Pro Soccer Classic.

The MLS side went up early in the first half, as Impact’s midfielder Felipe scored off a cross from midfielder Andrea Pisanu. Forward Marco Di Vaio capitalized on a penalty kick in the 17th minute making it 2-0 for Montreal. The Rowdies would cut the lead in half in the 38th minute after defender Takuya Yamada  scored off a penalty kick. Di Vaio and substitute Sanna Nyassi scored in the 42nd and 66th minute respectively, making it 4-1 as the Rowdies dropped their second match of the tournament.

The Rowdies went down 1-0 early in the first half, when Felipe drilled home a cross from Pisanu in the 2nd minute. The Rowdies looked to equalize with a chance in the 6th minute, as trialist Jemal Johnson curled in a dangerous cross from the left flank, but midfielder Evans Frimpong was unable to get a touch on it.

Montreal’s forward Di Vaio made it 2-0 in the 17th minute, after Fontein was called for a foul in the box. The Italian forward stepped up and drilled the penalty kick into the top left corner of the net.

Tampa Bay cut the lead to one, when Yamada scored off a penalty kick in the 38th minute. The defender slotted the ball into the bottom right of the net making the partial score 2-1.

Di Vaio made it 3-1 in the 42nd minute, scoring his second goal of the night off a low cross by Pisanu.  The midfielder made a great run down the right flank, placing the ball at the edge of the 6-yard box for Di Vaio to finish.

Rowdies forward Johnson has a great chance to score the second goal of the night for the Rowdies, but his strike from the right flank was sent out for a corner by Impact’s goalkeeper Evan Bush.

Montreal had the first chance in the second half, as substitute Nyassi forced Fontein to make a great save from close range. Nyassi went on to score the final goal of Montreal’s 4-1 victory in the 66th minute. His goal came off a pass from newcomer forward Andres Romero, leaving Nyassi one-on-one with Fontein.

The Rowdies looked to cut the lead in the last 20 minutes of play, with Frimpong and substitute George Tor creating chances on Montreal’s goal. Tor made several runs trying to catch the Impact’s defense off guard, but he was unable to score the Rowdies second goal of the night. 

Starting XI
Tampa Bay:
GK Andrew Fontein; D Takuya Yamada, D Daniel Scott, D Jay Needham, D Raphael Cox; M Evans Frimpong, M Stuart Campbell, M Luke Mulholland, M Keith Savage; F Devin Del Do, F Jemal Johnson

Montreal:
GK Evan Bush; D Jeb Brovsky, D Alessandro Nesta, D Hassoun Camara, D Maxim Tissot; M Collen Warner, M Andrea Pisanu, M Felipe, M Calum Mallace, M Justin Mapp; F Marco Di Vaio

Up Next
Tampa Bay will play their last group match in the 2013 Disney Pro Soccer Classic against Sporting Kansas City on Saturday, February 16 at 8:00 p.m. For more information on tickets, click here.

The reigning NASL Soccer Bowl Champions will start the 2013 NASL Spring Season by hosting the Carolina RailHawks in its 2013 home opener on Saturday, April 6 at Al Lang Stadium. For information on 2013 season ticketscontact the front office at 813-287-1539 or tickets@rowdiessoccer.com. Single-game tickets will go on sale at a later date.