Bethlehem Derby Part 1 was what a Freedom versus Liberty soccer match always promises: high emotion and sometimes, a dramatic finish.

Both occurred last Monday night at BASD Stadium when Hurricane striker Onur Alici scored the only and winning goal with :58 remaining in regulation to hand the Patriots its second loss of the season.

“Naseem (Sith) played a really good ball into Graham (Phillips). Graham ricocheted it off the goalie, and I just saw the ball bouncing, and I hit it the first time,” Alici said. “The kid tried hand-balling it out of the net, but it still went in the goal. I was as happy as I can be, really. It was so fast, I didn’t even know what was happening. I scored. I just ran to my team, celebrated with the team, this was a team effort, really.”

The city rivalry game was long-awaited, especially in this time of late-starting fall sports seasons, but spectators were welcomed, masked, and sitting in pairs six feet apart.

“It’s a derby game. We love this atmosphere. We come in with all our heart. We just came here to win. We’ve been losing a lot of close games, but this one, we came out ahead,” said Alici.

The Hurricanes came in with a strategy that played out as they hoped.

“What we saw from them was a talented playmaker in Sebastian Garces. With a difficult time up top today, I think we defended him quite well, so he dropped back into the midfield, which allowed us to push an additional number forward, which really caused problems on their back line, forced them into mistakes, and we were able to capitalize,” said Liberty coach Ian Larimer. “Clearly, it’s been a difficult season for us in terms of record and result, but it’s a young group, and they’ve proven time and time again that they’re resilient, and tonight was an example of that.”

Earlier in the second half, the Hurricanes appeared to have scored a goal but it was called back.

“After the first goal that they disallowed, I think our team just got really pissed, and we didn’t want to disappoint the fans,” said Liberty keeper Dennis Rukasov. “I don’t know. It all came through. I’m so happy with that result.”

With :58 left to play after Alici’s goal, the Hurricanes’ defense would need to protect the goal as they had all night.

“Jordan (Jupina), he and I take control, we push all the players out, I tell them to drop off, and I think we came through tonight. We honestly did,” Rukasov said. “Taking that W, that was the best feeling I’ve ever felt. As a senior, and this is my first year as starting goalkeeper, it felt amazing. To beat Freedom. A team that is actually 7-1 in the league. It is an unbelievable feeling.”