LAS VEGAS, NV – July 4, 2026 – El Paso Locomotive FC left Las Vegas with all three points on Saturday night, defeating the Lights 2-1.
The teams traded chances early, but Locomotive struck first when Alex Méndez finished a one-touch chance in the 20th minute.
After conceding the opener, Las Vegas responded by putting pressure on El Paso’s defense before finding an equalizer in the final seconds of the first half.
Locomotive came out of the halftime break with two substitutions, and the adjustments made an immediate impact. Just seven minutes into the second half, Álvaro Quezada restored the Locos’ lead, slotting the ball inside the far post past the Las Vegas goalkeeper.
The Lights were unable to find another equalizer as El Paso’s defense stood firm the rest of the way, securing the 2-1 victory.
Locomotive returns to action on Saturday, July 11, when it hosts New Mexico United for USA Night and another match in the Prinx Tires USL Cup. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. MT at Southwest University Park.
LV 1, ELP 2
Cashman Field
Attendance: 3782
MATCH NOTES
- El Paso scored multiple goals for the first time since its 2-0 victory over AV Alta FC in the Prinx Tires USL Cup on March 27. It also marked Locomotive’s first regular season match with two or more goals since a 2-2 draw against New Mexico United on May 6.
- Locomotive conceded a stoppage-time goal for the second consecutive match after Las Vegas found the back of the net in the 45+6′. In El Paso’s previous outing against Monterey Bay, the match’s lone goal came in the 91st minute to hand the hosts the victory.
- Alex Méndez recorded a goal and an assist in the same match for the second time this season. His first came in El Paso’s 3-0 victory over Monterey Bay, when he opened the scoring before setting up Rubio Rubín for the club’s second goal.
SCORING SUMMARY
- LV – 45+6’ Jonathan Rodriguez (Themi Antonoglou)
- ELP – 20’ Alex Méndez (Rubio Rubín), 52’ Álvaro Quezada (Alex Méndez)
LINEUPS
LV – (4-4-2) Charlie Lanphier, Themi Antonoglou, Aarón Guillén, Ben Ofeimu, Blake Pope, Ben Mines (66’ Abraham Okyere), Kyle Scott (66’ Giorgio Probo), Marc Ybarra (86’ Carson Locker), Christian Pinzón, Jonathan Rodriguez, Manuel Arteaga (66’ Oalex Anderson)
Subs Not Used: Nate Jones, Nyk Sessock, Carver Miller
ELP – (3-4-3) Abraham Romero, Noah Dollenmayer, Kofi Twumasi, Kenneth Hoban (45’ Nico Cardona), Gabi Torres (66’ Gabi Torres), Alex Méndez, Ricky Ruiz (77’ Palermo Ortiz), Eric Calvillo, Omar Mora (45’ Omar Mora), Rubio Rubín, Diego Abitia (67’ Memo Diaz)
Subs Not Used: Danny Gomez, Blake Gillingham, Tony Alfaro
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
- LV – 43’ Ben Mines, 69’ Marc Ybarra
- ELP – 80’ Palermo Ortiz
MATCH STATS: LV | ELP
GOALS: 1|2
ASSISTS: 1|2
POSSESSION: 62|38
SHOTS: 12|7
SHOTS ON GOAL: 1|3
SAVES: 1|0
FOULS: 14|18
OFFSIDES: 0|2
CORNERS: 8|3