SYMMES TOWNSHIP, OHIO (June 14th, 2025) – After a hard fought 90 minutes, the Kings Hammer FC Cincinnati men fell just short to Fort Wayne FC thanks in part to a late goal.
Entering the game off of a victory against rivals Columbus, spirits were high in the KHFC Cincinnati camp as they welcomed division leader Fort Wayne to town. And those high spirits were on full display early on as KHFC would earn a corner less than a minute into the game, although nothing would come from it.
Fort Wayne would get the first shot of the game though as Mamadou Diarra forced a save out of KHFC goalkeeper Jack Moxom in the 5th minute. Moxom would then start a beautiful counterattack the other way, finding Noah Amissah in the attacking half. Amissah would bring the ball down, and after some beautiful back and forth passing, midfielder Nick McHenry would have a chance from inside the box, but his shot would be saved by Fort Wayne goalie Aurie Briscoe.
McHenry would get another chance less than 10 minutes later as defender Wade Stinson would rise above the Fort Wayne defense to win a header, nodding it into the path of the midfielder, but McHenry’s shot would go over the top of the bar.
The game began to find a rhythm over the next quarter of an hour with both teams fashioning chances of their own, but none were better than KHFC forward Noah Amissah’s in the 30th minute. After being played through from a ball over the top, Amissah would strike the ball with pace, but once again Briscoe would save for Fort Wayne.
Despite KHFC having the more of the momentum, Fort Wayne continued to keep them honest in defence, especially in the 34th minute when a cross from the left side found Fort Wayne forward Matthew Catavolo unmarked at the back post. Catavolo would take a shot on the half volley, but Jack Moxom continued his stellar first half in goal by reacting quickly to make a close range save.
Early in the second half, Fort Wayne began to see more of the ball which led to two shots within the first five minutes from Mamadou Diarra, both of which resulted in saves.
KHFC would still keep some of their momentum, as Wade Stinson once ahead got his head to a corner, except this time he drove it towards the far post, where it whizzed just inches wide of the upright.
The Hammers would continue to pile on the pressure, getting chance after chance from close range. But no matter how hard they tried, they just couldn’t find that breakthrough.
Fort Wayne were keeping themselves in the game, and then, late on, found a way to put themselves fully in control. After a scramble in the box off of an 81st-minute corner, Fort Wayne defender Thiago Dias would find the ball at his feet. Dias made no mistake about it, and ripped home a shot from just within the six yard box, rippling the back of the net and putting the visitors ahead 1-0.
KHFC would continue to push for a goal of their own, this time with a bit more urgency. Stinson would once again get his head to a ball, but couldn’t hit the target. McHenry would get a chance as well, but couldn’t beat Briscoe in goal.
Fort Wayne trickled away the last few minutes of stoppage time and walked away with all three points on the road.
The Hammers now find themselves in a precarious situation, sitting nine points behind second place Lexington SC with only five games remaining. This means, that mathematically speaking, KHFC needs to win three of their last five games. But after a very strong showing tonight– despite the loss– it’s reasonable to imagine that happening.
They’ll be back in action at home against Dayton Dutch Lions FC on Wednesday, June 18th, and fans are encouraged to cheer them on as they begin their run in!
