Paradise midfielder Jonathan Bolanos makes a run with the ball during the team's match against AC Boise. Provided photo.

On a stormy Saturday night, Sarasota Paradise officially kicked off its first professional season in USL League One. Under a sky that started off gray, with flecks of lightning and sheets of rain, before turning pitch black, a line of Sarasota fans wrapped around the grounds of Premier Sports Campus in Lakewood Ranch. It was, for Paradise, a historic night—despite the start of the match against AC Boise being delayed by nearly two hours, the team welcomed a crowd of 2,791, the largest in club history.

“I have said before that we are all about the community and that it’s a win for us if we actually integrate ourselves into the community,” says Head Coach and Mika Elovaara. “When we were killing time waiting for the lightning to pass, I would step outside and see people lining up to get through the gates. That doesn’t happen everywhere.”

Although Paradise lost the match to AC Boise 1-0, a fellow first-year expansion team in USL League One, the team displayed a strong amount of technical skill, speed and heart in its first contest of the regular season. Largely a defensive stalemate, Paradise nearly jumped to a lead in the 31st minute when forward Garret McLaughlin headed in a corner kick from Ethan Bryant. The goal, however, was ruled offside by the official. “I thought that the first half was very evenly matched. In the second half we were more in control—we created more scoring chances than Boise and didn’t allow many opportunities for them, outside of that one goal,” says Elovaara. “Obviously, it’s a scoring game, we gave up one goal and they didn’t give up any, but in my perspective we displayed togetherness as a team throughout the match.”

After the first half ended in a 0-0 draw, Boise’s Denys Kostyshyn scored in the 73rd minute, proving the difference in the match. Despite the loss, however, it was an encouraging night for Sarasota’s very own professional soccer team. “Not only is it great to have the fans here, but we’re playing for them, to represent the community and Sarasota,” says midfielder Jonathan Bolanos.

Sarasota Paradise vs Fort Wayne FC, March 14, 7:30pm, Premier Sports Campus at Lakewood Ranch, 5895 Post Blvd, Lakewood Ranch.

Paradise midfielder Jonathan Bolanos makes a run with the ball during the team's match against AC Boise. Provided photo.

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