With just one game left in the season, the Carolina RailHawks are showing they have what it takes to be the best. Coming off a ten-day road trip that already collected one point in Edmonton, the RailHawks returned with a win over first-place San Antonio and a tie against second-place Tampa Bay.

Traveling to Heroes Stadium last Sunday, where only one other team had beaten the Scorpions, the RailHawks set out to claim three points. They stepped up to the task behind goals by Gale Agbossoumonde and Ty Shipalane.

Agbossoumonde scored his first goal of the season off a corner from Floyd Franks just before the end of the first half. Pablo Campos answered for the Scorpions, but only five minutes later, Shipalane beat San Antonio’s keeper to win the game for the RailHawks.

Shipalane’s performance against San Antonio, along with his game against FC Edmonton last Wednesday earned him the NASL Offensive Player of the Week title. His game winner is also up for NASL Play of the Week. 

Later in the week, the RailHawks moved on to Tampa Bay for a game that would determine playoff seeding for both teams. Shipalane again came up big for the RailHawks as they took home one point in a 1-1 tie on Wednesday.

The tie guarantees a home field advantage for the RailHawks in the first round of playoffs on September 29th. It also secured the second-place spot for Tampa Bay, giving them a first-round bye.

The past week of action also marked the RailHawks debut for three new players. Defenders Henry Kalungi and Jordan Graye and forward Matt Luzunaris all traveled with the RailHawks and played crucial roles in the matches.

The week also held some big upsets in Atlanta. The Silverbacks had a big week as they first beat Fort Lauderdale last Saturday, and then took down the Scorpions on Wednesday. Although the Silverbacks are out of the playoffs, they are determined to finish out the season well.

In the other two games of last week, Puerto Rico beat Minnesota 2-0 at home, and Tampa Bay traveled to FC Edmonton and headed back south with a 3-0 win.

Puerto Rico got revenge at home after losing to Minnesota last week. Islanders defender Anthony Vazquez got on the board first with an assist from David Foley. Foley then finished off the Stars with his own goal in the 85th minute. Vazquez was named NASL Defensive Player of the Week for his goal as well as his performance in the back.

In Edmonton, the visiting Rowdies set the pace early with a goal by Daniel Antoniuk in the 21st minute. They didn’t slow down as they cruised to a 3-0 victory.

As usual, all the past week’s action can be found on NASL’s Weekly Rewind as well as on Inside Minnesota Soccer, MLS Reserves and Soccer By Ives. Fans can also catch up on how NASL Alumni are doing in other leagues here.

Inside Minnesota also took a good look at how all the teams are doing heading into playoffs and caught up with NASL Commissioner David Downs.

Indy Week also recently spoke with RailHawks President Curt Johnson about new player signings and the change in the NASL schedule for 2013. And The Cary News took a good look at the local RailHawks players who brought their talents back to the Triangle this season.

All six playoff-bound teams have one last game to improve their seeding and prepare for playoffs. These last games will determine the match ups for the first week of playoffs and beyond.

The RailHawks host the Rowdies on Saturday in a game that could move Tampa Bay up to first or the RailHawks up to third place.

The Islanders host Atlanta and need to win to guarantee their hold on third place, as they sit only one point ahead of Carolina.

The fifth-place Strikers travel up to Edmonton, and San Antonio hosts Minnesota to round out the 2012 NASL regular season.

RailHawks fans can vote for their favorite player this season and buy their tickets for the game against Tampa Bay as well as the first round of playoffs. All other matches can be watched live at www.NASL.com/live.