By Simon Fudge/whitecapsfc.com
Carolina RailHawks became the latest club to earn a spot in the USSF D-2 Pro League playoffs following a pivotal weekend of league action.
With two weeks left in the regular season, the league's playoff picture became much clearer, as three clubs in Crystal Palace Baltimore, Miami FC, and FC Tampa Bay were eliminated from postseason contention over the weekend. At the other end of the standings, the race for the NASL and USL Conference titles looks to heading to the wire.
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for USSF D-2 playoff standings
The action started on Wednesday, with NSC Minnesota Stars make it two wins on the trot after a
1-0 victory
at home to Carolina. Devin Del Do's first-half winner gave the Stars an important win in a match that was delayed for 90 minutes because of lightning and had the RailHawks pair of Amir Lowery and Devon McKenney sent off.
On Thursday, Tampa Bay salvaged a
1-1 home draw
with USL Conference rivals Austin Aztex in a match the Rowdies needed to win to keep their playoff hopes alive. Maxwell Griffin gave Austin the lead at George M. Steinbrenner Field before Aaron King struck in time added on at the end of the game for a share of the spoils.
Friday saw Miami FC keep their faint hopes of making the playoffs alive another 48 hours after a surprising
2-1 victory
at USSF D-2 high-flyers Rochester Rhinos. Despite falling behind early to an Anthony Hamilton goal, the Blues claimed all three points in Upstate New York with first-half strikes from Danilo Martins and Abe Thompson.
There were four matches on Saturday, with Carolina securing their postseason berth, as well as turning the NASL Conference title race into a contest, following a
4-2 victory
at strugglers Palace Baltimore. Gregory Richardson, Marques Davidson, a Kupono Low penalty, and Tom Heinemann gave the RailHawks victory in Maryland. Former Vancouver Whitecaps FC centre back Shaun Pejic and Alan Sanchez found the scoresheet for Baltimore. Carolina's win pulled them to within three points of NASL Conference leaders Whitecaps FC after Vancouver fell 1-0 at Minnesota. Del Do's second-half strike gave the Stars a third-straight win, with Many Lagos' squad wrapping up their regular season home schedule in fine fashion with two straight victories.
In Fenton, Missouri, Athletic Club of St. Louis kept their faint hopes of making the playoffs alive with a surprising and dramatic
2-1 home win
over Austin. Brad Stisser gave St. Louis a second-half lead before Aztex striker Eddie Johnson looked to have claimed a point with a very late equalizer. However, in the third minute of time added on, Luis Gil gave the home side a crucial victory. Meanwhile, in the Caribbean, Portland Timbers took their unbeaten run to eight matches with a
1-0 victory
at Puerto Rico Islanders. Recent signing Kalif Alhassan struck the winner for the Oregon outfit.
Finally, on Sunday, Montreal Impact took a big step to securing a playoff spot by eliminating Tampa Bay's hopes with a
3-0 home win
. Impact striker Ali Gerba took his goal tally to nine goals from 11 appearances with a brace after former 'Caps midfielder Tony Donatelli struck Montreal's winner from the penalty spot early in the first half at Stade Saputo. The Impact have only lost once in their last five league games following a poor run of results.
Click here to view NASL.com's look at the USSF D-2 playoff race.