Saint Louis FC won 4-1 against Las Vegas Lights FC in front of 4,011 fans at Toyota Stadium in Match 23 of the USL Regular Season.
Saint Louis FC opened the scoring early for the second week in a row as Phanuel Kavita turned in a corner kick scramble in the 4th minute for his first goal of the season. Kadeem Dacres would then double the lead in the 14th minute with a beautiful curling effort that found the top corner before Las Vegas earned one back through a contentious penalty that was converted by Omar Salgado in the 19th minute. Kyle Greig would then score his team-leading ninth goal of the season in the 41st minute before Michael Cox put the icing on the cake with a fourth goal for the home side in the 88th minute to see Saint Louis FC improve to 8-6-8 with 32 points and riding a three-game win streak while Las Vegas Lights FC falls to 7-10-5 with 26 points in the USL Western Conference.
The first half started with Saint Louis FC on the front foot and they finished their first chance in the 4th minute as Kavita pounced on a bouncing ball in the box following a corner kick to score his first goal of the season. Dacres would soon double the advantage as he ran onto a perfectly weighted pass from Sam Fink and cut inside his defender and found the top corner of the net for his first goal of the season in the 14th minute. However, Las Vegas would be granted a lifeline in the 19th minute as STLFC goalkeeper Jake Fenlason was adjudged to have committed a foul while making a save and Salgado stepped up to finish for his second goal of the season. Lewis Hilton then had a great free kick from about 30-yards hit the post and bounce across the goal but not over the line in the 24th minute as the home side looked to reestablish their two-goal lead. That would happen in the 41st minute as Kyle Greig stripped a defender of the ball and opened the angle on Las Vegas goalkeeper Ricardo Ferrino to deftly finish and take the 3-1 advantage into the halftime break.
The second half saw Saint Louis FC start with a breakaway opportunity as Wal Fall was played alone on goal but Ferrino came up with a great double save in the 46th minute. The game was an aggressive affair all night and Las Vegas would pay the price when Miguel Angel Garduno was sent off with a straight red card in the 70th minute to finish the game with nine men. STLFC would then send the fans home happy with a late goal from Cox on his debut following an interchange with Corey Hertzog to finish with an easy tap-in in the 88th minute and earn a convincing win and crucial three points in the battle for the playoff positions.
“I’m extremely proud of the players for the way they performed and stood up to the challenges that got thrown at us,” said STLFC Head Coach Anthony Pulis. “When you play Las Vegas [Lights FC] they ask certain questions of you, and you either stand up and be counted and play like men or you don’t. We were able to stand up tonight which is extremely pleasing. It’s a massive three points for us but we can’t get too carried away with this because we have another game on Wednesday night which is going to be difficult and we have to be ready for it.”
UPCOMING GAMES:
Saint Louis FC vs. Sacramento Republic FC – Wednesday, August 15th at 7:30 p.m. CT at Toyota Stadium
Las Vegas Lights FC at Orange County SC – Wednesday, August 15th at 9:00 p.m. CT at Champions Soccer Stadium
