New Mexico United and Las Vegas Lights FC Battle to 2-2 Draw in Front of 11,581 Fans
USL New Mexico United

New Mexico United and Las Vegas Lights FC Battle to 2-2 Draw in Front of 11,581 Fans

Published on August 16, 2025 under United Soccer League Championship (USL)
New Mexico United News Release


ALBUQUERQUE, NM - New Mexico United and Las Vegas Lights FC battled to a 2-2 draw on Saturday night at Rio Grande Credit Union Field at Isotopes Park, with 11,581 fans in attendance. The result sees United drop to sixth place in the USL Championship Western Conference standings.

The match got off to a fast start, as United's Valentin Noël opened the scoring in the 5th minute with a powerful strike that beat the Las Vegas goalkeeper and gave the home side an early 1-0 lead.

Las Vegas responded quickly. In the 12th minute, New Mexico native Anthony Herbert capitalized on a defensive lapse and slotted home the equalizer to make it 1-1. The rest of the first half remained tightly contested, with neither side able to pull ahead before the break.

The visitors struck again in the 74th minute, as forward Nighte Pickering finished clinically to give Las Vegas a 2-1 advantage. But United continued to push forward, and with just three minutes remaining in regulation, Thomas Amang rose in the box to head home the equalizer from close range, sealing the 2-2 result.

New Mexico United travels to Kentucky to face Louisville City FC on Saturday, August 23, with kickoff set for 6:00 p.m. MT. The Black and Yellow return home the following week to host Sacramento Republic FC on Friday, August 30, for Indigenous Peoples Night at Rio Grande Credit Union Field at Isotopes Park.

QUOTE SHEET:

Zico Bailey

Q: Not the result that you wanted but picked up a point for the first time in over a month, how big is that to at least get something out of tonight?

Yeah, I think, like you said, we at least got something from the game. We came back after being one goal down, but we were leading at one point in the game, so that's something we need to clean up. But yeah, we got one point, we just need to move on and learn from this game.

Q: Is it almost getting to the point now where you're like, oh, here we go again, another second half collapse?

No, I don't think we have that type of mentality. We believe in each other, we believe in our own abilities. I think it's just football and it happens. Sometimes it just doesn't go your way or individual mistakes happen. And at the end of the day, the opposition, they're gonna punish us when we make mistakes. So I think this is something that we had to clean up. We're doing our best in training. We're trying to take it into the next match. So that's really all we can say at this point.

Q; This is the first time in a while that you guys have been able to respond in the second half after going down. How big was that for you guys to be like, okay we can get back on track?

I think it's very big. Like you said, it showed fight from the team, and that's all you can ask for at the end of the day if you go down one goal.

Will Seymore:

Q: Talk about the results tonight and what the headspace is in the locker room?

Yeah, I mean, I think if you ask anybody in the locker room, it's a disappointing result. I think this is a game at home that we want to win outright. I think we haven't been in the best form, but coming home gives us a boost. I think that's something that we wanted to build on, it is something we want to use with momentum. And I just think there were certain aspects of our game that were a little off. I think everyone ran. I think everyone put their effort in. I just think that whatever it is, it was that final little bit that just couldn't get us over the line. Man down, we dug it out, and credit to the boys, we didn't give up until the 90th minute.

Q: It seems like the last two months the second half obviously has not been your strong suit so as a team to be able to actually come back and respond late in the second half how big was that for you guys just mentally?

Yeah, I think it's a positive. I think this team has all the tools to be successful, to win a trophy, to do all the things that we talk about. I think right now, obviously, it's been a tough few months with the results, a couple of months with a result, but I think it's going to take one of those gritty, grinded out performances to really kind of shift our mindset to build a winning run. But, you know, I wouldn't want to be in any other locker room, and these boys are some of the most talented guys in the league, so it's going to be us really, really digging deep and pushing over the line, and I think there's no better place to go. Louisville away, top team in the league so I think we're all in. We still have that confidence, but we just got to dig a little deeper and get three points.

Head Coach: Dennis Sanchez:

Q: Your thoughts on tonight's match?

You know, a lot of mixed feelings, on one hand I love the comeback and the resiliency down a player, down a goal, I mean, I know we were taking a little bit of risks at the end but to ultimately potentially find an extra one, for me this is the hunger and desire that we need from the first whistle so I'm still trying to instill, you know, when you go through these dips in form, like the first thing you start to lose is confidence and I think that ... You know, as a coach, my job is to remain consistent, to keep believing in them, keep instilling belief in them and ultimately knowing that like, you know, in a weird way, I hope this is a night that we can move forward, even though it wasn't a winner. I think that we're fully capable of getting the win if we play our game from the first whistle. Hopefully you come out of this one with a level of resilience that can push us forward in the right direction.

Q: First game in almost two months where you picked up a point in the standings. Can you talk about how big that is for you guys to pick up a point?

I want more. I mean, again, there's a balance of expectations and I still feel like the guys are kind of taking on things in the wrong way to a certain extent. What I mean by that is like putting on, you know, their own internal pressures to be perfect and I tell these guys all the time, like soccer life is an imperfect game. I'm really going to be judging them on their effort, their competitive spirit. They're willing us to defend for each other, to have each other's backs, how they respond in adversity. So, you know, in some ways, again, we saw that at the end of the game, you know, we're going to get through this. Again, it's a long season. I know that, you know, I talked to guys at the beginning of the year, like we're, we'll see what we're truly made of in adverse moments. And all I can continue to do is again, stay consistent, push them at the right times, continue to provoke certain players and get the most out of the guys.

Check out the New Mexico United Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



United Soccer League Championship Stories from August 16, 2025


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central