One Knoxville SC edged Sarasota Paradise 2–1 at home on Saturday, with Babacar Diene's stoppage-time winner settling a USL League One contest that looked destined for a draw. Eli Conway opened the scoring in the 52nd minute, Reid Valentine equalized for the visitors in the 84th, and Diene struck deep into added time to snatch all three points.
The first half produced no goals, with neither side finding a breakthrough before the interval. One Knoxville came out sharper after the break, and Conway made the difference seven minutes into the second half, putting the hosts ahead 1–0.
Knoxville looked comfortable for much of the half, but the game shifted in the final 15 minutes. Anderson Rosa picked up a yellow card for Sarasota in the 78th minute, and Abel Caputo was booked for One Knoxville three minutes later as the match grew increasingly scrappy. Sarasota capitalized on the tension. Valentine pulled the visitors level in the 84th minute, finishing from an Aaron Walker delivery to make it 1–1.
A point looked the likely outcome, but Diene had other ideas. In the fifth minute of stoppage time, the One Knoxville forward latched onto a ball from Nicola Rosamilia and buried the winner, sending the home crowd into a frenzy and leaving Sarasota with nothing to show for their late fightback.
The result keeps One Knoxville SC's momentum alive in the second half of the League One season, with the kind of late dramatic win that could prove crucial in a tight playoff race down the stretch.
USL League One