Premier Sports Campus | Lakewood Ranch, FL. — May 13, 2026

The Sporting JAX men’s team earned their first win of the season in their second Prinx Tires USL Cup match Wednesday against Sarasota Paradise. The win came in commanding fashion, giving the team three points in their group.

Return of the Raff

Sporting JAX found an early lead as Rafferty Pedder, who recently returned from injury, dribbled through the defense and found the back of the net following a strong assist from Kieran Sadlier in the 34th minute.

This marked Pedder’s second goal of the season, and the first goal scored by Sporting JAX in Cup play. 

“I think that [win] was obviously overdue and really needed, and hopefully gives everyone a bit of confidence and we can build on it next game in the Cup and then take it into the league and start winning there.”

Al-Qaq Delivers Again

Ahmad Al-Qaq cemented the win with a strong goal late in closing moments of the second half that brought the bench to their feet.

“It was good to be able to just put our chances away and be clinical,” said Al-Qaq. “The defenders and Christian did their thing on their side of the ball, and I think it was overall just a professional performance.”

This goal marks Al-Qaq’s second consecutive game with a goal scored, establishing a strong start for the young forward in Sporting JAX’s inaugural season.

Looking Ahead

Sporting JAX looks to bring the momentum from this strong win into their next Prinx Tires USL Cup game on Sunday against a formidable FC Naples side as the group stage continues.

With strong offensive attack and steadfast defense shown throughout the game, the team aims to continue bringing this impressive play into the future both later this week and in the regular season.

“For them to come through tonight with a clean sheet, two goals and seem pretty comfortable in the game, I’m really, really pleased for them,” said head coach Liam Fox. “We’ve spoken about using this as a building block, and that it’s hard to win games, but you have to keep working and helping each other out and digging in.”