USL San Antonio FC

San Antonio FC Defeats Seattle 3-1 to Continue Playoff Push

September 30, 2018 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
San Antonio FC News Release


SAN ANTONIO - San Antonio FC (13-12-7) beat Seattle Sounders FC 2 (5-20-5) 3-1 at Toyota Field on Saturday night. Goals from Lance Laing, Ethan Bryant, and Maxi Rodriguez earned SAFC three crucial points at home in front of 7,614 fans as the playoff race continues.

The Alamo City club opened the scoring in the 19th minute when forward Ever Guzman won the ball off a goal kick from the visitors and ran in on goal. The Mexican striker squared the ball towards Laing, where the midfielder finished with a tap-in for the 1-0 lead.

San Antonio native Ethan Bryant then opened his professional account in the 26th minute after Laing found him inside the box with a cross. Bryant finished with a one-touch volley that dinked off the crossbar and into the net to extend the lead to 2-0. Bryant is the youngest player to score a USL goal for SAFC (17 years, 40 days), while the match also marked the fourth this season in which Laing has tallied both a goal and assist.

The visitors pulled a goal back just before halftime after midfielder Azriel Gonzalez buried a shot from just outside the box. SAFC extended their lead yet again in stoppage time when San Antonio native Maxi Rodriguez buried a left-footed half volley from the top of the box to score his first professional goal and make it 3-1.

SAFC defender Greg Cochrane tallied his 100th appearance for the club in all competitions. Cochrane is the first player in franchise history to hit the 100 mark since the club's inception in 2016. The Pennsylvania native has appeared in 92.7 percent of all SAFC minutes since joining the team prior to its inaugural campaign.

San Antonio FC play its final two matches of the regular season at home as they look to earn a playoff spot. The club will return to USL action as they host Las Vegas Lights FC at Toyota Field on Saturday, Oct. 6 at 7:30 p.m. during Breast Health Awareness Night, presented by Methodist Healthcare.

Scoring Summary:

SAFC: 1-0, Lance Laing (Ever Guzman assist) 19'

SAFC: 2-0, Ethan Bryant (Lance Laing assist) 26'

Sounders 2: 2-1, Azriel Gonzalez (Shandon Hopeau assist) 45'

SAFC: 3-1, Maxi Rodriguez 90'

Disciplinary Summary:

Sounders 2: Yellow Card (Jesse Daley 43')

SAFC: Yellow Card (Ethan Bryant 62')

Sounders 2: Red Card (Rodrigue Ele 72')

SAFC: Yellow Card (Rafa Castillo 78')

SAFC: Yellow Card (Pecka 84')

SAFC: Yellow Card (Mikey Lopez 86')

Attendance: 7,614

SAFC Starting XI: GK: Matthew Cardone; D: Mike Seth, Darnell King, Cyprian Hedrick, Greg Cochrane (c); M: Pecka (Maxi Rodriguez 85'), Mikey Lopez, Jose Escalante, Ethan Bryant, Lance Laing (Rafa Castillo 74'); F: Ever Guzman (Kyle Murphy 59')

Substitutions Not Used: Armando Quezada, Sony Guadarrama, Charlie Ward, Connor Presley

Postgame Notes:

San Antonio FC recorded their ninth home win of the season with a 3-1 victory over Seattle Sounders FC 2...marked the fifth time in the 2018 USL season that the club has recorded at least three goals in a match...SAFC is now 4-1-1 against Sounders 2

San Antonio FC defender Greg Cochrane made his 100th appearance for the club in all competitions...Cochrane has made 91 USL regular season appearances, two USL playoff appearances and seven U.S. Open Cup appearances...Cochrane's 8,760 minutes in all competitions are the most in team history, and the defender has appeared in 92.7 percent of all SAFC minutes...both his first and 100th appearance for the club came against the Seattle Sounders 2, while San Antonio FC scored three goals in both of those matches

San Antonio FC midfielder Ethan Bryant scored his first professional goal in the win...the 17-year-old became the youngest SAFC goalscorer in team history at 17 years 40 days old...the previous youngest scorer was former midfielder Devin Vega

San Antonio FC midfielder Lance Laing was named the SWBC Man of the Match in the 3-1 win...Laing recorded a goal and an assist in the match marking the fourth for him in both categories...the game is the fourth this season that Laing has recorded at least one goal and one assist, which is the most by any SAFC player

San Antonio natives Matthew Cardone and Maxi Rodriguez joined fellow Alamo City native Ethan Bryant on the SAFC stat sheet...Cardone made four saves on the night while Rodriguez scored his first professional goal to seal the 3-1 victory

SAFC forward Ever Guzman recorded his third assist of the season...the forward has recorded either a goal or assist in five of his last seven matches

Toyota Field welcomed 7,614 fans to Toyota Field on the night, which marks the second-highest attendance of the 2018 season behind 7,946 on 3/24 vs. STLFC

Check out the San Antonio FC Statistics



United Soccer League Championship Stories from September 30, 2018


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