Late goal sends Hearts of Pine to first home loss of season
Portland Hearts of Pine dropped their first home match of the 2026 season, falling 2‑1 to the Chattanooga Red Wolves at Fitzpatrick Stadium on Saturday night. The loss snapped a three‑game unbeaten run at home and left the Hearts with a 3‑4‑5 league record after three consecutive defeats.
Chattanooga struck first, just 66 seconds into the contest. After a hurried clearance by Portland center‑back Serigne Mbacke Faye fell into the middle of the 18‑yard box, Omar Hernandez pounced on the loose ball and fired a one‑time shot into the top left corner, leaving goalkeeper Hunter Morse no chance to react.
Portland answered in the 57th minute when newcomer Diego Gonzalez notched his first USL League One goal. Receiving the ball in attacking midfield, Gonzalez drove toward the left post, struck the ball with backspin that curled it across the line, and tied the game at 1‑1. The 23‑year‑old, who joined the Hearts on Monday after spending his entire career in the Houston Dynamo system, said after the match that he entered the game determined to either score or provide an assist.
The Red Wolves reclaimed the lead in the 90th minute. Pedro Hernandez met a long direct kick with a header that found the net, securing a 2‑1 victory for Chattanooga. In the dying moments, Portland had chances to level the score. Tyler Huck’s shot rattled the cross‑bar, and Ollie Wright forced a pair of saves from Chattanooga goalkeeper Jason Smith, who finished the night with five stops in the second half. Wright also struck the post earlier in the half, and a potential goal from a Brecc Evans header was whistled dead before Evans could make contact.
Portland head coach Bobby Murphy criticized his side’s first‑half performance, saying the team failed to follow instructions and lacked cohesion. “We created so many chances, we’ve got to take one of them,” Murphy remarked, “but you can’t play 45 minutes. The first half, we don’t turn up. Don’t want to run. Don’t want to do what we’re told. Want to do whatever we want. That’s what happens.”
Midfielder Matteo Kidd echoed the need for sharper focus in late‑game situations, urging the squad to “train it more, focus it more and try to come together more… find a guy, grab him, and don’t let him score.”
The loss continues a troubling pattern for Portland, which has conceded late equalizers or winners in recent matches against FC Naples, Union Omaha and Corpus Christi. Had the defense held firm in those games, the Hearts would sit at 6‑2‑4 with 22 points and inside the top four of the league table. Instead, they find themselves in the bottom third after a 5‑1 USL Cup defeat to Brooklyn FC and a 3‑2 road loss to last‑place Corpus Christi, where the winning goal came in the 98th minute.
Chattanooga entered the match ranked 13th in the 17‑team USL1 standings and climbed to 4‑4‑1 with the win. The victory gave the Red Wolves a much‑needed boost, while Portland will look to regroup before its next outing.
Gonzalez, who said he is fully recovered from an injury that limited his 2025 season, described his role as a playmaker tasked with getting on the ball, finding through balls and delivering passes and crosses. Coach Murphy praised the acquisition, noting that Gonzalez fills the void left by Masashi Wada’s injury and could, under different circumstances, already be competing in MLS.
