EL PASO, Texas – El Paso Locomotive FC will close its March Homestand at Southwest University Park on Saturday, March 18 against Detroit City FC, with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m. MT. This match is the final of three consecutive home matches taking place during the spring break and will mark the first time Detroit City FC play a match in El Paso.
Tickets for the match are available for purchase online at eplocomotivefc.com/tickets or within the El Paso Locomotive FC official mobile app.
HOW TO WATCH EL PASO LOCOMOTIVE FC vs DETROIT CITY FC – SATURDAY, MARCH 18, 2023 @ 7:30 P.M. MT – SOUTHWEST UNIVERSITY PARK
Watch: ESPN+, KTSM.com, Estrella TV 9.2
Broadcast Talent: Duke Keith (play-by-play), Colin Deaver (color analyst), Rachel Phillips (sideline)
All El Paso Locomotive FC Saturday home matches in 2023 will be simulcast on KTSM.com and Estrella TV El Paso 9.2 (Cable 1244)
All USL Championship regular season and playoff games will be available to stream on ESPN+ in 2023.
Be sure to follow @eplocomotivefc on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for live updates of the match. Additionally, fans are encouraged to download the team’s official mobile app on the Apple App Store or Google Play for instant access to mobile tickets, team content and match notifications.
GAME PROMOTIONS
Fans are invited to come celebrate St. Patrick’s Day at Southwest University Park for Locomotive’s St. Paddy’s on the Pitch. Green beer, as well as green pretzel dogs, Irish sliders and pretzels with beer cheese, will be available for purchase at Southwest University Park and fans are encouraged to stay after the match for the first post-match fireworks show of 2023!
ALL-TIME SERIES
El Paso Locomotive and Detroit City FC have two of the league’s most dedicated and passionate fan bases, so it was no surprise that their first ever meeting last season was chosen as the marquee match-up for the USL Championship’s historic regular season debut on ESPN. Available to millions across the nation, the match ended in a hard-fought and fairly contested 1-1 draw, with midfielder Eric Calvillo scoring El Paso’s lone goal in the 32nd minute.
With the record at 0-0-1, El Paso will look to secure their first win this season and in the all-time series against Detroit.
EL PASO LOCOMOTIVE FC (10TH WESTERN CONFERENCE, 0-2-0, 0 PTS)
CLOSING OUT THE HOMESTAND – El Paso will play its third home match Saturday, March 18 against Detroit City FC to close out its March Homestand at Southwest University Park. This is the first time El Paso Locomotive have ever opened a season with three consecutive home games, with the added challenge that the matches all took place within a week (0-1 loss on Sat. March 11 vs Sacramento Republic and 1-2 loss on Wed. March 15 vs Colorado Springs Switchbacks).Head Coach and Technical Director Brian Clarhaut has spoken on the challenge, saying it is not an ideal way to start the season when keeping in mind player recoveries during such quick turnarounds.
EL PRIMER GOL – One positive from Wednesday’s match against Colordo Springs Switchbacks was forward Ricardo Zacarias, who scored Locomotive’s first goal of the 2023 season. Just three minutes into the second half, Zacarias found at his feet a deflected ball from Colorado’s defense. Zacarias displayed his attacking composure, calmly controlling the ball outside the 18-yard box to shoot it far into the bottom right corner past the Switchbacks goalkeeper. The ball would ricochet off the post and into the net, equalizing the match.
THE RETURN OF LUCHO – Southwest University Park erupted at the 71st minute on Wednesday when forward Luis ‘‘Lucho’’ Solignac made his season debut, coming into the game for forward Aaron Gomez. Lucho, who missed the 2023 season opener due to injury, has been the club’s top scorer the past two seasons (16 goals – 2022, 10 goals – 2021) and is a critical piece in the Locomotive attack who can convert build-up plays into goals. Just two goals away from being the club’s top scorer in the regular season, Lucho will look to replicate his goal-scoring form since joining Locomotive and lead efforts to help El Paso make a return to the playoffs.
DOMINATING BUT LOOKING FOR A WIN – Clarhaut’s side yet again managed to showcase its ability to control the ball and create scoring opportunities. For its first two games, Locomotive managed to hold over 58% possession and lead the league in total shots (12 vs Sacramento, 14 vs Colorado Springs), challenging teams to sit back and defend against the El Paso press. El Paso also lead the league in passes (1,040) and passing accuracy (83%). Opposition goals, however, have come from small errors in the attack that teams capitalized on in the counter. Clarhaut has stated that in addition to being better organized defensively in a counter, the team needs to take advantage of its scoring opportunities in order to positively show its dominance on the pitch. Hopefully with the return of a clinical striker and leader like Lucho on the pitch, Locomotive can begin to turn things around.
SUPPORT FOR UKRAINE – For his first two matches with El Paso Locomotive, Ukrainian midfielder Denys Kostyshyn walked out onto the pitch with a flag of his native country, which has been at war with Russia since February of 2022. During Wednesday’s post-match press conference, Kostyshyn explained that he wore the flag to show support for Ukraine and to continue to spread awareness about the war in El Paso. Kostyshyn also explained to local press that fellow teammate and defender Artem Kholod was influential in his decision to move abroad and has helped him settle in to El Paso since joining Locomotive last December. Both Kholod and Kostyshyn are currently the only two Ukrainians to currently play in the USL Championship, and are two of three Ukrainians to currently play in the top two divisions of U.S. soccer (the third being Sergii Kryvtsov, who signed with Inter Miami FC of Major League Soccer in January).
DETROIT CITY FC (10TH EASTERN CONFERENCE, 0-1-0, 0 PTS)
Eastern Conference quarterfinalists Detroit City FC make their first ever visit to the Sun City and they won’t be an easy team to breakdown. The most disciplined team in 2022 (the team only received 67 yellow cards and no player suspensions), their five-man back line and midfield were challenges for any team who went up against them in their inaugural season in the USL Championship. Not to mention goalkeeper Nathan Steinwascher, a local standout who immediately earned the top spot in between the sticks, established himself as one the league’s best shot stoppers last season (xGA was 0.88 across 33 matches).
However, El Paso did manage to steal a point from its first ever meeting against Detroit at Keyworth Stadium last season, with midfielder Eric Calvillo shooting the equalizer into the top right corner past the outstretched hands off Steinwascher.
Both teams will be looking for their first points in 2023 at Southwest University Park. Though Detroit have only one game under their belts this season (a 1-0 loss at San Diego Loyal SC) and do currently sit tied for third in the league for shots taken (16), El Paso will look to exploit Detroit’s inability to connect passes (second to bottom in the Eastern Conference for overall passes and passing accuracy) to yet again dominate possession and create chances.
LO QUE ESTAN DICIENDO
Head Coach and Technical Director Brian Clarhaut on the quick turnaround against Detroit three days after the game against Colorado Springs
“As much as I hate it and how extremely hard it will be from a physical and mental standpoint, there’s no time to dwell and it’s on to the next against Detroit. We got to learn from this and tighten this up.’’
Forward Ricardo Zacarias on the team’s second-half performance against the Switchbacks on Wednesday.
“We came out firing and I was fortunate to have the goal, but we have to close out games. We have to be better the whole game. We are getting the opportunities; we just need to finish those chances. This game isn’t about opportunities, it’s about goals. Now we have to leave this game in the past and focus on Detroit.’’
UP NEXT: Saturday, March 25 at Louisville City FC. Kickoff 1 p.m. MT @ Lynn Family Stadium. Locomotive hit the road for their first away game of the 2023 season against the league runner-up and Eastern Conference champions, Louisville City FC.
Fans are invited to join and cheer on Locomotive at its official watch party, which will be held at Union Draft House Sunland (730 Sunland Park Dr. Ste. A) beginning at 1 p.m. MT!
ON THE HORIZON: Friday, March 31 at FC Tulsa. Kickoff 7 p.m. MT @ ONEOK Field. Locomotive closes out March with an away trip to FC Tulsa.
Fans are invited to join and cheer on Locomotive at its official watch party, which will be held at The Palomino Tavern (205 Cincinnati Ave) beginning at 7 p.m. MT!
ADDITIONAL INFO
The full 2023 match schedule can be found HERE. All USL Championship regular season and playoff games will be available to stream on ESPN+ in 2023. All Saturday home games will be simulcast on KTSM.com and Estrella TV 9.2 (Cable 1244).
All tickets for 2023, including Individual Match, Season Tickets and Pick Six Membership are on sale now and are available for purchase online at eplocomotivefc.com/tickets or within the official mobile app.
Fans who would like to secure full season tickets for the 2023 season can lock in their season ticket membership online by clicking HERE, calling (915) 235-GOAL or texting (915) 666-2005. You can also call (915) 235-GOAL for more information on Group Outings and Premium Suites. El Paso Locomotive FC does offer military discounts, which can be purchased HERE.
To check out the full 2023 promotional schedule, click HERE.
In need of gear to rep your Locomotive and El Paso pride year-round? Visit the official El Paso Locomotive FC Team Shop online HERE, in the team’s official mobile app or visit the physical retail store (1 Ballpark Plaza, El Paso, TX 79901) Monday through Saturday between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m.