ST. PETERSBURG (DA) — Eloy Room saved a penalty in the final moments of extra time and stopped 2 more in the shootout Friday to send Miami FC into the Eastern Conference semifinals of the USL Championship playoffs.
The Curaçao goalkeeper sealed Miami’s 5-4 shootout victory over the Tampa Bay Rowdies after the teams finished extra time tied 1-1 at Al Lang Stadium.
Room kept Miami alive by denying MD Myers from the penalty spot in the third minute of stoppage time after 120 minutes. Tampa Bay had been awarded the late opportunity after Daltyn Knutson fouled Myers inside the area.
In the shootout, Room stopped Pedro Dolabella before delivering the decisive save against Charlie Ostrem. Riyon Tori had converted Miami’s sixth attempt to put the visitors ahead 5-4, leaving Ostrem needing to score to extend the contest.
Matías Romero opened the scoring for Miami in the 34th minute with an assist from Bachir Ndiaye. Myers equalized in the 44th after Sebastian Cruz’s shot struck the post.
Neither side scored again through the second half or extra time, setting up the penalty drama before a crowd of 5,448.
Fellow Curaçao international Jürgen Locadia was absent from Tampa Bay’s matchday squad for a fourth consecutive match since the club announced his return from international duty. He also missed the games against Indy Eleven on Oct. 10, Detroit City FC on Oct. 17 and Sporting JAX on Oct. 24.
The Rowdies’ pregame availability report for the Miami match listed no players as unavailable.
The Curaçao Football Federation (FFK) also announced Friday that Locadia would be unavailable for the November CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinals against Panama, without providing a reason.
Deporte Awe has contacted the Rowdies on numerous occasions seeking clarification about Locadia’s status but has received no response.