El Paso Locomotive (4-1-3, 15 points) fell short at H-E-B Park on a 2-3 score against Rio Grande Valley FC on Wednesday. Midfielder Jose Aguinaga found his first goal of the season while Forward Lucho Solignac found the second Locomotive goal of the night. The loss ends a historic 18-game undefeated streak that dates back to August 2020.
After a thirty-minute weather delay, the match kicked off in favor of Rio Grande Valley FC. In the fifth minute, RGV took advantage of a failed offside trap set by Locomotive, with a cross into the box that found Carter Manely open at the center of the box for an easy goal. The lead wouldn’t last as Locomotive quickly took control of the game, testing the Toros defense through Forward Aaron Gomez and crosses from Defender Macca King. In the end, a freekick taken by Midfielder Dylan Mares took a touch off Aguinaga and into goal to send the teams into the break level.
Rio Grande Valley opened the second half on the front foot pressuring the Locomotive defense, ultimately leading to Wan Kuzain picking up a goal from an awkward deflection in the box. RGV would extend its lead on a counterattack that opened up the goal for Rodrigo Lopez in the 73rd minute. Head Coach Mark Lowry threw his numbers forward for a point, pulling one back through a backheel from Forward Leandro Carrijo that found Solignac to convert. While Locomotive fought for the important road point, the El Paso side fell short on a 2-3 scoreline.
UP NEXT: Locomotive returns to Southwest University Park for an Independence Day celebration match up against New Mexico United. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. MT on Saturday, July 3. Tickets are available online at https://www.eplocomotivefc.com/tickets or by calling 915-235-GOAL. The match will also be broadcast live locally on the CW and on ESPN+.
GOAL SCORING RUNDOWN
RGV: Carter Manley (Rodrigo Lopez), 5th minute: Playing off a short corner, Lopez sent a cross into the middle of the box where a failed offside trap left Carter Manley wide open for an easy shot on goal which he converted for an early lead.
ELP: Jose Aguinaga (Dylan Mares), 31st minute: Earning a freekick from about 25-yards out, Mares rifled a shot in towards goal. At the top of the box, Aguinaga expertly stepped into the path, deflecting the shot just slightly to the right and out of the reach of RGV goalkeeper Tyler Deric to secure the equalizer just past the half-hour mark.
RGV: Wan Kuzain, 61st minute: As Macca King put his body in the way to stop a shot, the ball took a deflection and in towards the center of the goal into the path of Kuzain. Kuzain took one touch to send it into the back of the net.
RGV: Rodrigo Lopez (Juan Azocar), 73rd minute: Breaking away on the counter Azocar ran the ball down the right side, bringing in the attack before Locomotive numbers could get back. He sent the low cross over to Lopez who took one shot to the far post, adding to the RGV lead.
ELP: Lucho Solignac (Leandro Carrijo), 82nd minute: Picking up the ball at the top of the 18-yard line, Carrijo put the ball in toward the middle with a cheeky backheel into the path of Lucho, who took one touch to outmaneuver a defender and open space for a crack on goal to convert.
NOTES:
– Midfielder Jose Aguinaga adds his name to the Locomotive goal-scoring list, finding his first club goal with a smart deflection in the 31st minute.
– Midfielder Dylan Mares moves to tied for second-place in Locomotive club standings for assists in the regular season, with his sixth club assist.
– After 18-games undefeated, carrying a streak that dates back to August 2020, Locomotive suffered a loss in the regular season, falling 2-3 to a strong Rio Grande Valley FC side.
Match: El Paso Locomotive at Rio Grande Valley FC
Date: June 30, 2021
Venue: H-E-B Park; Edinburg, Texas
Weather: 86F; Partly Cloudy
Scoring Summary 1 2 F
El Paso Locomotive FC 1 1 2
Rio Grande Valley FC 1 2 3
RGV – Carter Manley (Rodrigo Lopez), 5’
ELP – Jose Aguinaga (Dylan Mares), 31’
RGV – Wan Kuzain, 61’
RGV – Rodrigo Lopez (Juan Azocar), 73’
ELP – Lucho Solignac (Leandro Carrijo), 82’
Lineups:
El Paso Locomotive (4-4-2): Logan Ketterer; Eder Borelli, Matt Bahner, Yuma (Mechack Jerome, 45’), Macca King (Ricardo Zacarias, 77’), Nick Ross, Chapa Herrera (Lucho Solignac, 69’), Jose Aguinaga (Richie Ryan, 69’), Diego Luna, Dylan Mares (Leandro Carrijo, 80’), Aaron Gomez
Subs not used: Ben Beaury, Aidan Apodaca
Rio Grande Valley (4-4-2): Tyler Deric; Roberto Alburquerque, Carter Manley, Adrian Vera, Erik Pimentel, Juan Cabezas, Rodrigo Lopez (James Murphy, 74’), Camden Riley, Ronald Cerritos (Juan Azocar, 63’), Wan Kuzain, Christian Sorto (Vicente Sanchez, 71’)
Subs not used: Josue Soto, John Sanchez, Baboucarr Njie, Colin Miller
Stats Summary: ELP | RGV
Shots: 10 | 12
Shots on Goal: 3 | 4
Saves: 2 | 1
Corner Kicks: 2 | 8
Fouls: 8 | 13
Offside: 0 | 4
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY:
ELP – Diego Luna (Caution), 77’
RGV – Adrian Vera (Caution), 87’
RGV – Wan Kuzain (Caution), 90’+3