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Nor'easters travel north for midweek battle with Lehigh Valley United

Ocean City has won five of the last six meetings against Lehigh Valley United

Nor'easters travel north for midweek battle with Lehigh Valley United

The Ocean City Nor'easters travel north for the club's second game of the 2021 USL League Two season on Wednesday to take on Lehigh Valley United. The match will be played at Moravian College in Bethlehem, Pa. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.

Bakary Bagayoko scored two goals in his Ocean City Nor'easters debut in a 3-0 win over Real Central New Jersey on May 12. Photo: Shivant Krishnan | BrotherlyGame.com

There will be no live video available so fans who are unable to make the trip can follow live updates on the Nor'easters' Twitter account (@OCNoreasters).

The Nor'easters (1-0-0) are coming off a 3-0 season-opening win over expansion side Real Central New Jersey. Bakary Bagayoko (Cumberland Univ. / The Bronx, NY) scored a pair of goals, including a wonder goal in the 49th minute. Kyle Galloway (Rutgers / Manahawkin, NJ) came off the bench in the second half and added a third goal to put the game away. Goalkeeper Jahmali Waite (UConn / Philadelphia, PA) made three saves to earn the clean sheet in his Ocean City debut.

Lehigh Valley United (1-1-0) comes into Wednesday's match with two very different results under their belt. They began their season last Wednesday on the road with a 5-0 loss to West Chester United. LVU bounced back in a big way in the club's home opener last Saturday when they cruised to a 5-1 win over Reading United AC. Colby Raymond and Perry Kingson (Lehigh University) each scored twice and Benjamin Liscum added another.

United is entering its 11th season as a franchise. United had a really challenging first two years in the league. United won just a single game in 2015 and upped that total to three in 2016. They won four games in 2017, but the club took a step back in 2018 with just one win. In 2019, they took a step forward and won four games (and earned three draws) in one of the toughest divisions in the league.

The club joined USL League Two after five years in the National Premier Soccer League where they won the league championship in 2012 and made the playoffs in four of the five seasons, including two appearances in the national final four.

In 2019, LVU and Ocean City split the season series with the Nor'easters falling to Lehigh Valley for just the second time in club history, 2-0 on the road. The Storm bounced back with a 4-3 home win to improve their all-time record against United to 9-2-0.

After Wednesday's game, the Nor'easters will return to Ocean City for their next game. On Sunday, May 23, the Storm will host West Chester United in the team's home opener at Carey Stadium ("The Beach House"). Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. and tickets are available online right now.

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MORE: Nor'easters assemble elite group of forwards for 2021 season
 

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