Hunter Freeman's 27th-minute chip against Fort Lauderdale Sunday night was perfect, whether he meant for it to be or not. 

The 30-year-old fullback ran onto a pass sent to the right corner by Ayoze, took a touch and lofted the ball toward goal in what appeared to be a cross. When Strikers goalkeeper Josh Ford realized the danger of Freeman's play he backpedaled and made a diving attempt to clear. But it was too late; the ball settled into the bottom left corner of the net, far post, and the Cosmos had a 1-0 lead.

Here's @huntfree sending it in from the edge in the first half. #NYCvFTL pic.twitter.com/HMNcGfqaEl

— New York Cosmos (@NYCosmos) August 2, 2015

New York would add another in the first half through Leo Fernandes and finish the match win a 2-0 victory. Freeman was voted Emirates Cosmos Man of the Match by the media, earning his first selection of the season after battling back from injury in the spring.

Members of the media will cast their votes to determine the Emirates Cosmos Man of the Match at every Cosmos home game. At each home match, the winner will receive an Emirates Airbus A380 model airplane with an engraved plaque recognizing the player’s achievement.

The Emirates Cosmos Man of the Match award will culminate in a season-ending Emirates Cosmos Player of the Year award. The recipient of the Emirates Cosmos Player of the Year award will receive two round trip tickets on Emirates from New York (JFK) to Dubai (DXB) to celebrate a triumphant season.

2015 Previous Emirates Cosmos Man of the Match Winners:

 Walter Restrepo: July 5 vs. Indy Eleven (T 1-1)

 Jimmy Maurer: June 17 vs. New York City FC (W 2-2, 4-3 PKs)

 Hagop Chirishian: June 13 vs. Jacksonville Armada FC (T 3-3)

 Leo Fernandes: May 27 vs. Jersey Express (W 3-0)

 Raúl: May 23 vs. San Antonio Scorpions (W 3-0)

 Carlos Mendes: May 10 vs. FC Edmonton (W 4-2)

 Lucky Mkosana: May 2 vs. Ottawa Fury (W 1-0)

 Marcos Senna: April 18 vs. Tampa Bay Rowdies (W 2-0)