USL San Antonio FC

San Antonio FC Earns 3-1 Win over Real Monarchs; Extends Unbeaten Streak to Five

July 27, 2019 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
San Antonio FC News Release


SAN ANTONIO - San Antonio FC (7-8-6) beat Real Monarchs SLC (8-7-4) 3-1 at Toyota Field on Saturday night. Goals from midfielders Brian Gomez and Billy Forbes as well as one from forward Frank Lopez earned the Alamo City club three points at home to remain unbeaten in five consecutive matches.

"We're always pleased to get three points in this league and we're proud of the efforts of the players," SAFC Head Coach Darren Powell said. "At times we could have made that game more comfortable, but fair play to Monarchs who kept going and have quality players."

SAFC opened the scoring in the 15th minute when he found a rebound off a save from goalkeeper David Ochoa and lobbed a shot past the keeper and a defender to gain the early lead. The goal marks Gomez's fourth of the season, while the Argentina native has also recorded three assists in 2019.

The Alamo City club doubled its lead in the 31st minute when midfielder Cristian Parano drove up the middle of the pitch and found Lopez in on goal with a pass. The Cuban striker fired a shot past Ochoa to score his third goal in as many matches for the club and ninth overall in USL Championship play this season. The assist also marked Parano's first of the campaign.

Real Monarchs went down a man in the 42nd minute of the match after forward Lionel Etoundi was given a red card for a dangerous tackle on SAFC goalkeeper Matthew Cardone, who was substituted after the challenge by goalkeeper Jonathan Viscosi. The visitors scored just before the halftime whistle after a mistake in the back left midfielder Luis Palma in on goal to make it 2-1.

SAFC scored the insurance goal in the 83rd minute when Forbes found the end of a pass by Lopez and fired the ball high into the roof of the net to make it 3-1. The goal marks Forbes third of the season while the assist marks Lopez's first for the club.

Real Monarchs pressed late in the match, but a standout performance from Viscosi in which he tallied four saves paired with strong defensive performances from Kai Greene, Joshua Yaro and Eby Ackon helped SAFC hold on to their lead.

SAFC will return to USL Championship action on Saturday, Aug. 3 as the club hosts Sacramento Republic FC at Toyota Field at 7:30 p.m.

Scoring Summary:

SAFC: 1-0, Brian Gomez 15'

SAFC: 2-0, Frank Lopez (Cristian Parano assist) 31'

SLC: 2-1, Luis Palma 45'

SAFC: 3-1, Billy Forbes (Frank Lopez assist) 83'

Disciplinary Summary:

SLC: Yellow Card (Noah Powder) 28'

SLC: Red Card (Lionel Etoundi) 42'

SLC: Yellow Card (Justin Portillo) 51'

SLC: Yellow Card (Jack Blake) 62'

SLC: Yellow Card (Konrad Plewa) 82'

SLC: Yellow Card (Kalen Ryden) 90'

Attendance: 6,550

SAFC Starting XI: GK: Matthew Cardone (Jonathan Viscosi 43'); D: Kai Greene, Eby Ackon, Joshua Yaro; M: Pecka (c), Michael Lahoud, Cristian Parano, Jack Barmby (Jose Gallegos 83'); F: Billy Forbes, Frank Lopez, Brian Gomez (Walter Restrepo 80')

Substitutions Not Used: Johnny Fenwick, Pascal Eboussi, Bradford Jamieson IV, Rocky Perez

Postgame Notes:

San Antonio FC extended its unbeaten run to five league matches, winning their third match in their last four games...SAFC is now unbeaten in their last nine home matches as they improve their record against Real Monarchs SLC to 4-2-1...SAFC has now scored three goals in three of their last four matches as well

San Antonio FC forward Frank Lopez was named the SWBC Man of the Match after he recorded a goal and assist in the 3-1 win...in three games with SAFC since joining on loan, Lopez has scored three goals and added an assist, taking his season goal tally to nine which leads the club...only two SAFC players have reached the 10-goal mark (Ever Guzman, 2018/Billy Forbes, 2017)

SAFC goalkeeper Jonathan Viscosi entered the game in the 43rd minute after an injury to teammate Matthew Cardone...Viscosi would go on to make four saves and help SAFC earn the home win...Cardone made two saves prior to exiting, giving SAFC at least six saves for the third time this season

SAFC midfielder Brian Gomez scored his fourth goal of the season and first since 5/18 vs. Tulsa...midfielder Billy Forbes added his third goal of the season in the game while teammate Cristian Parano recorded his first assist of 2019

With the 3-1 win, SAFC has conceded just two goals in their last four league matches...defender Joshua Yaro led the team with eight clearances tonight while Eby Ackon added a team-high three tackles, four interceptions and 11 possessions gained

San Antonio's nine shots on target were the second-most this season (high- 10 vs. AUS 7/3/19)...SAFC recorded a passing accuracy of 87.0 percent, which also marks the second-highest this season (high- 89.1 vs. ELP 6/26/19)

Check out the San Antonio FC Statistics



United Soccer League Championship Stories from July 27, 2019


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