El Paso, TX (September 16, 2020) – The Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC fell to El Paso Locomotive FC 2-1 on Wednesday night at Southwest University Park.
In a tight first half, El Paso had the best opportunity to take the lead when the ball fell to Leandro Carrijo who turned and fired off a shot but Switchbacks goalkeeper, Sean Melvin, rushed out to close down the space and make the save.
El Paso took the lead from a corner kick in the 53rd minute as Saeed Robinson flicked his header off the underside of the crossbar and over the line. The Switchbacks had a couple of opportunities to equalize after Uvaldo Luna came into the game and had a strong shot saved and another effort just miss the top corner. The hosts doubled their advantage when a counter-attack put Omar Salgado behind the backline before he blasted his shot inside the right post in the 74th minute.
The Switchbacks pulled a goal back when Luke Ferreira played a ground cross to Mamadi Camara who controlled the ball and fired his shot from close range before the ball deflected off a defender and Logan Ketterer's fingertips before finding its way to the back of the net. Aidan Daniels almost completed the comeback when he hit a low shot from 25 yards towards the bottom corner, but Ketterer tipped the ball just beyond the post.
Camara's first professional goal was where the comeback attempt would end as the Switchbacks fell 2-1 on the road to last year's Western Conference Finalists.
"I am incredibly proud of the players for their commitment and application of what we asked them to do tonight on the road at one of the best teams in the league. We were moments away from doing something special here," said Switchbacks Head Coach, Alan Koch. "This group that we have been put in is the perfect group for us to be in right now. We need these difficult challenges to grow. Losing sucks but we are a few moments away from turning narrow losses into wins. We just played a team that put on a player who has played in La Liga and another who made the league team of the week this week as their subs in the second half. That quality was the difference. We are proud of our players and will keep pushing each other down the stretch."
The Switchbacks return to Weidner Field September 19 for an "away" game against New Mexico United before playing a traditional home game on September 26 at 6pm MT against the Real Monarchs SLC. All home matches in 2020 at Weidner Field will be available for Switchbacks Season Ticket Members only.
El Paso, TX (September 16, 2020) – The Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC fell to El Paso Locomotive FC 2-1 on Wednesday night at Southwest University Park.
In a tight first half, El Paso had the best opportunity to take the lead when the ball fell to Leandro Carrijo who turned and fired off a shot but Switchbacks goalkeeper, Sean Melvin, rushed out to close down the space and make the save.
El Paso took the lead from a corner kick in the 53rd minute as Saeed Robinson flicked his header off the underside of the crossbar and over the line. The Switchbacks had a couple of opportunities to equalize after Uvaldo Luna came into the game and had a strong shot saved and another effort just miss the top corner. The hosts doubled their advantage when a counter-attack put Omar Salgado behind the backline before he blasted his shot inside the right post in the 74th minute.
The Switchbacks pulled a goal back when Luke Ferreira played a ground cross to Mamadi Camara who controlled the ball and fired his shot from close range before the ball deflected off a defender and Logan Ketterer’s fingertips before finding its way to the back of the net. Aidan Daniels almost completed the comeback when he hit a low shot from 25 yards towards the bottom corner, but Ketterer tipped the ball just beyond the post.
Camara’s first professional goal was where the comeback attempt would end as the Switchbacks fell 2-1 on the road to last year’s Western Conference Finalists.
“I am incredibly proud of the players for their commitment and application of what we asked them to do tonight on the road at one of the best teams in the league. We were moments away from doing something special here,” said Switchbacks Head Coach, Alan Koch. “This group that we have been put in is the perfect group for us to be in right now. We need these difficult challenges to grow. Losing sucks but we are a few moments away from turning narrow losses into wins. We just played a team that put on a player who has played in La Liga and another who made the league team of the week this week as their subs in the second half. That quality was the difference. We are proud of our players and will keep pushing each other down the stretch.”
The Switchbacks return to Weidner Field September 19 for an “away” game against New Mexico United before playing a traditional home game on September 26 at 6pm MT against the Real Monarchs SLC. All home matches in 2020 at Weidner Field will be available for Switchbacks Season Ticket Members only.
