It was a great Saturday night for Bermudian footballers and coaches in the US as Zeiko Lewis scored a fantastic winning goal for Union Omaha and Khano Smith guided his Rhode Island team into the USL Championship Eastern Conference Finals.

Lewis scored a fantastic winning goal as his side made it through to the USL League One championship match after beating Greenville Triumph 2-1.

The winger showed a fantastic first touch and a sparkling turn of pace to sprint clear of the Greenville defence before calmly slotting past the goalkeeper to score his side’s second goal in the 58th minute.

Union Omaha had fallen behind in the eighth minute but dominated the first half and pulled deservedly level in the 42nd minute through Aaron Gomez before Lewis guaranteed his side another shot at a trophy after they topped the league standings at the end of the regular season. They will now face Spokane Velocity at 4pm Bermuda time next Sunday.

While they make relentless progress towards the USL League 1 crown, the postseason has been tainted with tragedy for Lewis’s side as defender Mechack Jerome, along with his wife and a close relative, suffered life-changing injuries when a can of propane exploded in their garage while they were cooking ten days ago.

Rhode Island beat Louisville Battery 3-0 as Smith helped his side to become the first expansion team to advance to a conference final in their inaugural season since El Paso Locomotive FC in 2019.

Two goals from JJ Williams and a penalty rebound from Albert Dikwa means Smith will get the chance to become Eastern Conference champions when they play either Tampa Bay Rowdies or Charleston Battery, who face off in the semi-final on Sunday evening.