Needing a win to keep their playoff hopes alive, Roots overcame two deficits on the road on Saturday night in Oklahoma, eventually defeating FC Tulsa by a final score of 4-2.
Tulsa opened up the scoring just moments after the initial whistle, when a run up the left side and a cross to the top of the Oakland box led to a shot from Logan Dorsey which took a deflection off a body, nullifying Kendall McIntosh’s save attempt as the ball found the back of the net to make it 0-1 in the third minute.
But Oakland equalized in the 21st minute after a great headed through ball from midfield from Peter Wilson gave Wolfgang Prentice room to run in the final third, weaving his way into the box before tucking a low shot into the bottom left to bring the match level at 1-1.
Like a mirror of the first half, however, Tulsa regained the lead four minutes into the second frame when a string of precision passing in Roots’ defensive third led to a wide open first touch shot from Dorsey which beat McIntosh to the left side once again, this time without the aid of a deflection to bring the score to 1-2 in the 49th minute.
And the reflection continued moments later in the 60th when Wolfgang Prentice leveled the match again, earning his brace when two clinical passes, first a through ball up the left side from David Garcia, and then a perfect low cross through traffic into the box from Bertin Jacquesson found Prentice wide open near the 12-yard dot and making no mistake with the finish to make it 2-2.
But the mirror was shattered in the 83rd minute when Oakland took their first lead of the night late in the game when a rocket from near the top of the box taken by Julian Bravo was initially saved, but the rebound came straight to the feet of Roots’ all-time scoring leader Peter Wilson who rifled the second chance opportunity into the back of the net to give Oakland a crucial 3-2 lead with regulation dwindling.
And it was deja vu just moments later in the 87th when another rebound, this time from an initial shot by Wilson, found Bertin Jacquesson with pace into the box, banging it home to extend their lead to the eventual final score of 4-2.
Roots will play one more game in 2026, next Saturday, October 24th on the road versus NorCal rivals Sacramento Republic FC at 7 PM PT in what, depending on results around the league, could turn out to be the most important match of the entire season.
