After falling short in last year’s Michigan State Cup final, Ann Arbor F.C. Elite are back in the USASA Region II tournament with a thrilling 6-5 win over Detroit United. Ann Arbor’s Blake Ordell had his second consecutive four-goal game, but nearly cost his team with a late red card that opened the door for the comeback-minded visitors from Detroit.

Those visitors controlled the game early, on a clear, cool evening in Ann Arbor, just under the shadow of The Big House (University of Michigan’s football stadium). However, the momentum shifted as Ordell scored the first goal of the game off a deflection midway through the first half.

After the halftime break, fans might have expected a similar defensive struggle, but the two teams would put that idea to bed shortly after kickoff. Less than a minute after play resumed, Chris Giebink of AAFC scored off an error by United goalkeeper Ryan Mathe -- a costly blunder against his former club. However, minutes later, United would cut the lead to 2-1.
 
Ordell would add three more in the second half, along with teammate Yaacov Rubin scoring the team’s final goal and after the dust settled -- Ann Arbor found themselves up 6-2 with about 20 minutes left to play.

Detroit wasn’t finished as they put another past the keeper to bring it within three, but it was Ordell’s costly red card with about 15 minutes left in the game that allowed Detroit to get back into the game. With a man advantage, Detroit scored a pair of goals in the final 10 minutes, but Ann Arbor’s defense held on for the 6-5 victory.

It was the second straight win for AAFC over Detroit United, having defeated them in last year’s state tournament, 3-2. Ordell finished with four tallies, giving him eight in his last two games. Last week, he scored all four goals in the club’s 4-0 win over Canton Celtic in the first round of the tournament.

Ann Arbor F.C. will move on the Region II Finals where they will take on Open Cup powerhouse Bavarian S.C. from Milwaukee, Wisc. The match will take place May 9 at 2 p.m. in Ann Arbor as the Elite will try to avenge a 6-0 loss to Bavarian S.C. two years ago that left them one win shy of a berth in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.