Nashville downs the Tornados to take over the South
The Southern Division got turned on its head last weekend at Montgomery Bell Academy as the Nashville Crushers steamrolled the undefeated Atlanta Tornados 4-0, becoming the new front runners for a spot in the NSL Championship. Nashville opted for a younger lineup to kick off their season, notably starting Colombian phenom Ronald “El Parcero” Palomino over veteran Juan Vargas for the home opener. Atlanta employed a fresh lineup as well, opting for the South American duo of Andres “El Bandido” Herrera and Matias Lacroix to combine with Kiwi star Lwamba “The Grandmaster” Chileshe at the top of their lineup.
Any question marks that lingered about the unproven Nashville squad were quickly diminished after the first period, in which the Crushers held the lead from start to finish. Crushers #1 Timothy Brownell handed the reigns to his teammate Palomino after just 6 minutes of play, leading 8-7 against Chileshe. Palomino stifled the Tornados offensive, nullifying the fast paced game of Lacroix in the mid stages and holding the lead for offensive weapon Simon Herbert to finish the job- which he did, firing the ball around with his British nonchalance to seal the period 24-18.
The second period saw an explosion of offensive play from Nashville, who racked up an astounding 38 points over 20 minutes of play. Nashville coach Dylan Cunningham opted to start the period with his engine player Ronald Palomino, and Tornados coach Celia Pashley countered with offensive talent “El Muchacho” Lacroix in an attempt to get ahead early. The plan blew up, as Palomino put up a devastating 14-2 bomba of Colombian wizardry to put the Tornados into desperation mode. Coach Pashley subbed on Herrera and called their 2 minute powerplay to try to get back in the match, but Nashville #1 Brownell was there to stymie the attack and even extend the lead, eventually subbing off with a 25-6 team lead for Herbert to again come in as the garbage man, cleaning up the last few minutes.
In period 3 it was do or die for the Tornados, and to their credit they fought tooth and nail, keeping the score level all the way towards the end stages. Palomino subbed off for Herbert with a narrow 16-15 lead after battling El Bandido Herrera for several minutes, and fireworks ensued as some chippy play between Herbert and Lacroix saw the score at 24-25, Lacroix scoring several on power play and throwing some massive fist pumps to the crowd. The match was nip and tuck until a pivotal moment occurred between the #1s with 4 minutes left on the clock: Atlanta missed the window to call their remaining power play. This was due to a lengthy rally between Brownell and Chileshe which put the clock past the 4 minute barrier, after which no power plays can be called. Atlanta coach Celia Pashley was shouting furiously for Chileshe to hit the tin and end the rally before the cutoff, but a rare blunder from The Grand Master left his team without its most valuable weapon and down 3 points with a few minutes to go. Brownell would hold the lead for Nashville, and the home crowd erupted as the Crushers moved to 1-0 and have their sights set on Derby City on May 17th, needing only to win one period in order to advance to the finals. 
