Rising Rallies To Take Point Against Sacramento
Published on September 14, 2025 under United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Phoenix Rising FC News Release
Phoenix Rising in action
(Phoenix Rising FC)
For the second time this season, Phoenix Rising rallied from a two-goal deficit to earn a result against Sacramento Republic FC. Forwards Rémi Cabral and Ihsan Sacko found the back of the net in the second half as Rising won a vital point against Sacramento with a 2-2 draw on September 13 at Heart Health Park.
"In the second half you saw the mentality, discipline and work ethic that changed the game," Rising Head Coach Pa-Modou Kah said. "I thought there was more for us to get from the game, but the will and desire not to lose is something I have to commend the players for. They have done it time after time and that's a strength. It's a strength to come back when you're down 2-0 in a tough place like Sacramento, but you could see we had an opportunity to win the game."
The draw saw Rising extend its unbeaten streak to five; a run that dates to August 16. Now with 31 points, Kah's side sits in seventh in the West and are only two points back of third with six matches to play in the regular season.
A SOLID CONNECTION
Rising fans saw a familiar site in the second half of Saturday night's match in Sacramento. In the 79th minute, midfielder Hope Avayevu and Sacko combined for their fourth goal of the regular season when the midfielder used a precise cross to put the ball on the right foot of Sacko for the equalizing goal. Notably, no other pair of Rising players have combined for as many goals.
"(The relationship) has been there since the beginning of the season," Avayevu said. "We're continuing to work together to make sure we can continue to help the team. You first have to be able to have a connection with the attackers up top to be able to connect with them to score goals."
Avayevu and Sacko have served as the fulcrum of Rising's high-powered attack this season, with 28 goal contributions between them. Avayevu leads all Rising players with 15 (6G, 9A), with Sacko behind him with 13 (7G, 6A).
GOAL-SCORING PLAYS
SAC - Russell Cicerone, 20th minute: Charging after the ball on the break, Russell Cicerone won it at midfield and charged down toward the right side of the box before using his right foot to slot the ball in at the far post.
SAC - Ascel Essengue (Own Goal), 32nd minute: Dribbling toward the byline, defender Ryan Spaulding sent a driven ball across the box that deflected off Ascel Essengue and into the back of the net.
PHX - Rémi Cabral (Penalty Kick), 59th minute: From the penalty spot, forward Rémi Cabral used his right foot to tuck the ball into the bottom-left corner of the net.
PHX - Ihsan Sacko (Hope Avayevu), 79th minute: Midfielder Hope Avayevu's lofted cross from the left side of the box found the feet of forward Ihsan Sacko, who used his right boot to redirect the ball into the back of the net.
NOTES
-Saturday marked Rising's final road match against Western Conference opposition.
-The club's final two road matches will take it to North Carolina (Oct. 10) and Pittsburgh (Oct. 25).
-Forward Rémi Cabral scored his fifth goal of the regular season with his penalty kick in the 59th minute.
-Cabral is the third Rising player to surpass five goals scored in the regular season (Ihsan Sacko, 7; Hope Avayevu, 6).
-With his goal in the 79th minute, Sacko netted his 13th goal contribution of the season (7G, 6A)."
-Only Avayevu (15; 6G, 9A) has more in regular season play.
-Notably, Saturday night marked the fourth time Sacko and Avayevu combined for a Rising goal in 2025.
-Rising's two-goal comeback matched its largest of 2025.
-Notably both those comeback results came against Sacramento Republic FC (April 19).
-With the draw, Rising extended its unbeaten run to five matches.
-It last suffered defeat against Lexington SC on August 9.
NEXT GAME
Rising next begins another three-match home stand against Loudon United FC at 7:00 p.m. (PT) on Saturday, September 20, at Phoenix Rising Stadium. The match will be broadcast on AZFS and ESPN+ with radio coverage available via KDUS 1060 AM (English) and La Onda 99.5 FM (Spanish).
Phoenix Rising (7-7-10, 31pts) vs Sacramento Republic FC (10-5-8, 38pts)
September 13, 2025 - Heart Health Park (Sacramento, Calif.)
Goals by Half 1 2 FT
Phoenix Rising 0 2 2
Sacramento Republic FC 2 0 2
Scoring Summary:
SAC: Cicerone, 20
SAC: Essengue (OG), 32
PHX: Cabral (penalty kick), 59
PHX: Sacko (Avayevu), 79
Misconduct Summary:
PHX: Sacko (caution), 31
PHX: Avayevu (caution), 41
SAC: Bennett (caution), 52
SAC: Desmond (caution), 58
SAC: Bennett (ejection), 75
PHX: Sainté (caution), 90+4
Lineups:
PHX: GK Rakovsky, D Flores (Formella, 90+2), D Czichos (Sainté, 62), D Essengue, D Rizzo (Smith, 62), M Scearce, M Okello © (Boye, 90+2), M Avayevu, F Denni, F Cabral (Johnson, 69), F Sacko
Substitutes Not Used: GK Henry, D Flood, M Emmers
TOTAL SHOTS: 10 (Multiple players, 2); SHOTS ON GOAL: 4 (Cabral, 2); FOULS: 18 (Sacko, 5); OFFSIDES: 4; CORNER KICKS: 4; SAVES: 4
SAC: GK Vitiello, D Desmond ©, D Kleemann, D Djedje (Baker, 45; Ukaegbu, 90+1), M Spaulding (Benitez, 68), M Fernandes, M Ross (López, 68), M Gurr, M Cicerone (Parano, 68), M Willey, F Bennett
Substitutes Not Used: GK Mazzola, M Wanner, M Portillo, F Jamieson
TOTAL SHOTS: 10 (Desmond, 3) SHOTS ON GOAL: 6 (Multiple players, 1); FOULS: 14 (Multiple players, 3) OFFSIDES: 2; CORNER KICKS: 4; SAVES: 3
Referee: Trevor Wiseman
Assistant Referees: James Ewer, Bhavik Dutt
Fourth Official: Robert Vincze
Attendance: 11,569
All statistics contained in this box score are unofficial.
Images from this story
 Phoenix Rising in action |
United Soccer League Championship Stories from September 14, 2025
- FC Tulsa Stuns New Mexico United with Late Winner on the Road - FC Tulsa
- FC Tulsa Stuns New Mexico United with Late Winner on the Road - FC Tulsa
- Monterey Bay Falls at Home to Hartford Athletic - Monterey Bay FC
- Rising Rallies To Take Point Against Sacramento - Phoenix Rising FC
- FC Tulsa Stuns New Mexico United with Late Winner on the Road - FC Tulsa
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.
