Monterey Bay Drops First Match of the 2026 Season against Rival Oakland Roots, 1-0
USL Monterey Bay FC

Monterey Bay Drops First Match of the 2026 Season against Rival Oakland Roots, 1-0

Published on March 8, 2026 under United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Monterey Bay FC News Release


SEASIDE, California - Monterey Bay FC (0-1-0, 0 points) kicks off its fifth season with a 1-0 loss against rival Oakland Roots SC (1-0-0, 3 points) at Cardinale Stadium.

Despite not scoring a goal, MBFC's defense showed strength along with a phenomenal display of goalkeeping. The night began with a series of saves by Fernando Delgado. Within the first eight minutes of play, Oakland Roots was awarded two corner kicks, but both were blocked by Delgado.

"We didn't get the result we wanted, but it's very special to play in front of a crowd like this," said Fernando Delgado, Monterey Bay FC goalkeeper. "There was a lot of nerves heading into the first game of the season, but we have a great environment in the locker room. We have a young team, a great coaching staff and the connection we all have together means a lot to everyone. Starting on Monday, we have the entire week to get things in order and focus on El Paso."

Monterey Bay FC's offense was shut out after 10 attempts with only four shots on goal and recording a 39.2% possession rate. On the other side, MBFC's defense registered 16 fouls while receiving a total of four yellow cards with three of them coming in the second half.

"This game is about moments, and I don't think we had enough moments," said Jordan Stewart, head coach of Monterey Bay Football Club. "A lot to reflect on, a lot to improve on during the week. Luckily, we have a game next week to try and put things together and do things right again El Paso."

Oakland Roots recorded nine shot attempts with three on goal with the game-winner scored at the 85th minute by Mark Fisher (first goal of the season).

"Get scored late is tough, tough for everyone in the locker room and it's going to eat us alive until next week," said Stuart Ritchie, Monterey Bay FC defender. "We're going to need to look ourselves in the mirror first, it's a new group, but that isn't an excuse."

Monterey Bay Football Club will return to the field to seek their first win of the season next Saturday, March 14, as they will host El Paso Locomotive FC at Cardinale Stadium with the match set to kick off at 7 p.m.

Additional Notes

Missing the match due to injury were Nico Gordon (precautionary), Adrian Rebollar (concussion protocol) and Facundo Canete (meniscus).

Information

Date: March 7, 2026

Venue: Cardinale Stadium; Seaside, California

Weather: Clear and 68°F

Attendance: 4,240

Scoring Summary: 0 1 F

Monterey Bay FC 0 0 0

Oakland Roots SC FC 0 1 1

MB: None

OAK: Mark Fisher 85'

Lineups

Monterey Bay FC (0-1-0): Fernando Delgado, Abdel Talabi (Joel Garcia Jr., 50 ‚¬Â²), Stuart Ritchie, Nicholas Ross (Eduardo Blancas, 45 ‚¬Â²), Luka Malešević, Giorgi Lomtadze (Ilijah Paul Gindiri, 65 ‚¬Â²), Wesley Leggett, Omari Glasgow, Belmar Joseph Jr. (Johnny Klein, 86 ‚¬Â²), Kelsey Egwu, Zack Farnsworth

Subs not used: Ciaran Dalton, Djimon Anderson, Andres O'Neal, Angel Villasana

Oakland Roots SC (1-0-0): Raphael Spiegel, Tommy McCabe, David Garcia, Bobosi Byaruhanga, Wolfgang Prentice (Neveal Hackshaw, 71 ‚¬Â²) Peter Wilson (Jackson Kiil, 91 ‚¬Â²), Tyler Gibson (Danny Trejo, 71 ‚¬Â²), Mark Fisher, Julian Bravo, Michael Edwards, Faysal Bettache

Subs not used: Raiko Arozarena, Anthony Herbert

Stats Summary: MB / OAK

Shots: 10 / 9

Shots on Goal: 4 / 3

Saves: 2 / 4

Corner Kicks: 1 / 3

Fouls: 16 / 10

Possession: 39.2% / 60.8%

Misconduct Summary

MB: Giorgi Lomtadze (caution) 41'

MB: Kelsey Egwu (caution) 58'

MB: Joel Garcia Jr. (caution) 77'

MB: Luka Malešević (caution) 82'

OAK: David Garciak (caution) 70'

Officials

Referee: Nabil Bensalah

Assistant Referee: Bruno Rizo

Assistant Referee: Eric Krueger

Fourth Official: Eduardo Hernandez Garcia

Check out the Monterey Bay FC Statistics

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United Soccer League Championship Stories from March 8, 2026


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