EL PASO, Texas – El Paso Locomotive FC (West-2, 9-4-4, 31 points) fought to a 0-0 draw at Monterey Bay FC on Saturday night at Cardinale Stadium, taking home a point and continuing its undefeated streak in USL Championship away matches (five wins, three draws).
Immediately after the first half whistle, defender Nick Hinds pressed forward to create Locomotive’s first opportunity of the night. Knocked down in the box, he got up immediately to keep possession of the ball and sent a short pass to forward Aaron Gomez, who saw his first shot kept out and the rebound just flying over the cross over.
Hinds and Gomez would once again come together for Locomotive’s second big chance of the first half, but the latter’s header once again flew inches over the crossbar.
Despite a drop in possession in the second half, Los Locos would pick up their intensity in front of goal, registering 11 total shots — including an outside-the-box effort from midfielder Eric Calvillo in the dying minutes of extra time.
Defensively, Locomotive’s backline was solid and managed to keep out Monterey Bay’s chances. In total, El Paso registered 18 won tackles out of a possible 24 and made 11 interceptions. Midfielder Denys Kostyshyn registered tackles (six) and won duels (15) out of any Locomotive player on the night. Another defensive highlight came from midfielder Liam Rose, who won back possession of the ball 11 times.
Though Locomotive were unable to find the net, Locomotive were disciplined and organized defensively to bring home the point and keep the clean sheet.
FORECAST: 58ºF, clear skies
TEAM NOTES
- Locomotive remain undefeated in its eight away matches this season (five wins, three draws).
- Goalkeeper Benny Diaz recorded his sixth clean sheet of the season, just one off from equalizing for the top spot in the Western Conference leaderboards.
- This is the first 0-0 match Locomotive has played to since June 29, 2022 (0-0 at Rio Grande Valley FC).
- Midfielder Petar Petrovic returned from injury and to the pitch for the first time since May 5, coming in as a second half substitute in 80′.
SCORING SUMMARY
- ELP — N/A
- MB – N/A
LINEUPS
ELP – (4-4-2) Benny Diaz, Bence Pavkovics, Erik McCue, Eder Borelli – C, Marc Navarro (Miles Lyons), Nick Hinds (Emmanuel Sonupe), Eric Calvillo, Liam Rose, Aaron Gomez (Petar Petrovic), Denys Kostyshyn (Louis Herrera), Luis Solignac
Subs Not Used: Javier Garcia, Diego Abarca, Chris Garcia
MB – (4-2-3-1) Antony Siaha, Mobi Fehr (Alex Lara), Hugh Roberts II – C, Kai Greene, Morey Doner, Adrian Rebollar (Simon Dawkins), James Murphy (Chase Boone), Walmer Martinez, Alex Dixon, Sam Gleadle, Christian Volesky
Subs Not Used: Carlos Herrera, Sean Okoli, Grant Robinson, Jesus Enriquez
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
- ELP – Eric Calvillo (Yellow) 35′, Benny Diaz (Yellow) 69′, Eder Borelli (Yellow) 88′
- MB – Adrian Rebollar (Yellow) 42′, James Murphy (Yellow) 54′, Mobi Fehr (Yellow) 57′
MATCH STATS: ELP | MB
GOALS: 0|0
ASSISTS: 0|0
POSS. %: 46|54
SHOTS: 18|12
SHOTS ON GOAL: 6|3
SAVES: 3|6
FOULS: 13|8
OFFSIDES: 1|1
CORNERS: 5|4
UP NEXT: Wednesday, July 12 vs San Antonio FC. Kickoff at 7 p.m. MT at Southwest University Park. El Paso Locomotive FC welcome the 2022 USL Championship title winners to Southwest University Park for a heavily anticipated Copa Tejas rematch, with both teams looking to battle for second place. Locomotive will also be offering a Hawaiian Shirt Giveaway to the first 1,500 fans through the gates, which open at 6 p.m. MT.