Locomotive FC turn out Lights; unbeaten at home in last year
EL PASO, Texas – July 17, 2021 – El Paso Locomotive (7-1-3, 24 points) claimed a 1-0 clean sheet over Las Vegas Lights FC at home on Saturday. Forward Aaron Gomez scored the lone goal to extend his club-leading goal count while Goalkeeper Ben Beaury recorded two saves to earn his first professional shutout. The win extends the home undefeated streak to over a year unbeaten at Southwest University Park.
“In many ways [tonight was] very good, and in many ways, not so good,” shared Head Coach Mark Lowry. “It’s been a challenging week for everybody. A couple of injuries picked up, a few guys were unavailable, so we saw some changes in the lineup. All in all, an okay performance. Not a complete one, not a great one, but after the week we had, the three points in a really important moment of the season going into a tough stretch of 5 games in 16 or 17 days, that three points tonight set us up well for that.”
The Boys in Blue dominated the opening minutes of the game, setting the pace and tempo of the early stages. Key defensive stops from Defenders Yuma and Mechack Jerome gave way to early chances towards goal from Midfielder Sebastian Velasquez, Midfielder Chapa Herrera, and Forward Lucho Soliganc. While Lights twisted the game towards their favor towards the end of the first 45 minutes, the game stayed level on a scoreless draw in the half.
The Lights put up the pressure in the second half, however, Locomotive continued to rise with answers to stop the Las Vegas attack. Leaving Lights with only one shot on target through the first 75 minutes, which Beaury dove deep to get the save. The Locos pressure came back as the second half progressed opening up for an expert cross from Defender Eder Borellito find Gomez at the far post, who converted the textbook header for the opening goal. Locomotive held fast for the remainder of the match, keeping Lights off the grid, and ultimately securing three points at Southwest University Park on a 1-0 win.
