SANDY, Utah – Playing their second match at Rio Tinto Stadium this season, T2 battled back from an early deficit and scored a late game-tying goal to earn a point on the road in a 1-1 draw against Real Monarchs SLC in Sandy, Utah, on Saturday night.
T2 (3-3-2, 11pts) conceded an early goal in the ninth minute to Real Monarchs SLC (1-5-3, 6pts). Midfielder Adolfo Ovalle played a through pass into the box for forward Emery Welshman, who shot across the face of goal, beating T2 goalkeeper Jake Gleeson inside the far post.
T2 gathered themselves and were able to battle back to level the score in the 87th minute as midfielder Will Johnson took a pass from midfielder Santiago Biglieri into the right side of the penalty box and played a measured pass across the box to forward Rundell Winchester, who put away a half volley for the game-tying goal. The goal was Winchester’s second of the season.
Real Monarchs SLC finished with an 11-5 advantage in total shots, but Gleeson came up with several key saves for T2, making six saves in the match, including three vital stops early in the second half.
With the result, T2 finished their three-game, regular-season series unbeaten against Real Monarchs SLC (1-0-2), including consecutive 1-1 draws at Rio Tinto Stadium. T2 earned a 3-1 win over Real Monarchs in the team’s first-ever USL match on March 29 at Merlo Field in Portland.
Following Saturday’s match, T2 will open play in the 2015 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup against PDL side Michigan Bucks in a second-round match at Ultimate Soccer Arenas in Pontiac, Mich., on Tuesday, May 19; kickoff is set for 4:30 p.m. (Pacific).
Tuesday’s road match will be available live online via a high-definition web stream at www.timbers2.com.
T2 (3-3-2, 11pts) at Real Monarchs SLC (1-5-3, 6pts)
May 16, 2015 – Rio Tinto Stadium (Sandy, Utah)
Goals by Half 1 2 F
Real Monarchs SLC 1 0 1
T2 0 1 1
Scoring Summary
SLC: Welshman (Ovalle), 9
POR: Winchester (Johnson), 87
Misconduct Summary
POR: Thoma (Caution), 43
POR: Delbridge (Caution), 76
SLC: Orozco (Caution), 79
POR: Fatawu (Caution), 79
Lineups & Stats
POR: GK Gleeson, D Peay, D Manning (Rose, 10), D Delbridge, D Thoma, M Besler (Gavin, 62), M Johnson ©, M Fatawu, F Winchester, F Belmar (Biglieri, 81), F Nanchoff (Richards, 71)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Luthy, D Clarke, M Payne
TOTAL SHOTS: 5; SHOTS ON GOAL: 2; FOULS: 15; OFFSIDES: 4; CORNER KICKS: 1; SAVES: 6
SLC: GK Fernandez, D Okwuonu, D Orozco, D Kavita, D McGovern, M Velazco (Baldin, 77) M Sundly (Celestino, 85), M Ovalle, F Tavares (Orellana, 71), F Welshman (Losee, 85), F Rauhofer
Substitutes Not Used: GK Rodriguez, D Copeland, M Arnone
TOTAL SHOTS: 11; SHOTS ON GOAL: 7; FOULS: 9; OFFSIDES: 2; CORNER KICKS: 9; SAVES: 1
Referee: Alex Krelo
Assistant Referees: Jay Hutchinson, Jeff Young
4th Official: Marcelo Chaparro
Attendance: 2,615
Weather: Rain, 50 degrees
All statistics contained in this box score are unofficial
