HERRIMAN, Utah (Friday, Oct. 18, 2024) - The third edition of MLS NEXT Pro Playoffs kick off this Sunday, with Real Monarchs on the outside looking in. Despite the slow start to the season, the Monarchs finished the second half of 2024 as one of the hottest teams in all of MLS NEXT Pro, earning 25 points in the final 13 weeks of the regular season. With that average of 1.92 points per game in its final 13 matches, Head Coach Mark Lowry’s side was the fifth-best team in the league during that span.

Entering Decision Day, the Monarchs found itself playing its first match with playoff implications since 2019, when it won the USL Championship Final 3-1 at Louisville City FC. That year, the Monarchs ironically defeated Lowry’s El Paso Locomotive, 2-1, in the Western Conference Final en route to the 2019 USL Championship.

After a 1-1 (4:2 shootout win) result against Ventura County FC on Decision Day, the Monarchs finished tied for 8th in the West, at the playoff line. A head-to-head 2-1 loss against Houston Dynamo 2 back on May 8 left the Monarchs on the outside looking in for the postseason. Real Monarchs Head Coach Lowry expressed his thoughts on missing the postseason while discussing the end of the season.

“There is always a process you go through every season, believing in the process, sticking to the process, and the results and progress generally occur at some point. The unfortunate thing for us is the process occurred a couple games too late,” said Lowry. “I think throughout the entire season the process was always there, at the start of the year we were losing games by one or two goals. We were always the better team in terms of the stats, we just weren't able to turn those performances into results.”

The playoffs were not always in the picture for this young Monarchs squad, whose Decision Day lineup had an average age of 19.1 years. Between matches seven and 26, the Monarchs spent 20 consecutive weeks below the playoff line, falling as low as 13th in the West after matchday, a 2-1 loss at LAFC2.

Coach Lowry pointed to a two week stretch of dominant home wins over Austin FC II (4-0) and Sporting Kansas CIty II (5-1) as the turning point from a slow first half of the season.

“Those two games really gave so much confidence to the group, because it showed that what we are trying to do will click into place and we can really dominate teams,” stated Lowry. “It works if we are able to apply it. It gave an insight of who we are and what we can do”

Results at Portland Timbers 2 (1-1, 4:2) and at The Town FC (1-1, 3:4) added further to the Monarchs confidence, grabbing its first road points of the year. The Monarchs earned points in six of its final eight road matches, including its first away win of the year at Colorado Rapids 2 courtesy of Owen Anderson and his two-minute scoring outburst in the 80th and 81st minutes.

After an uncharacteristic performance at Ventura County FC that resulted in a 3-1 loss, the Real Monarchs found itself backed into a corner. Under the calendar’s high pressure, the Monarchs rattled off six consecutive results that consisted of three wins and two shootout victories.

As the playoff run ultimately fell short, after needing a Decision Day win or Houston Dynamo 2 two-or-fewer point result (defeated Vancouver 3-1), the disappointment of missing the playoffs is outweighed by the potential of next season. Bright spots filled by young talent litter this Monarchs squad, bringing optimism to the 2025 MLS NEXT Pro campaign.

“We’ve set a culture, a foundation, everybody knows what we expect,” said Monarchs Assistant Coach Jamal Campbel-Ryce. “Going into next season is really exciting. Everybody knows how we play and what we want to do.”

End of Season Awards, as voted by Real Monarchs Coaching Staff

MVP: Griffin Dillon

Games Played: 23

Games Started: 20

Minutes: 1671

Goals: 1

Assists: 4

Pass %: 87

Griffin Dillon is coming off his second season with the Monarchs, after returning to the RSL pipeline following a collegiate career at Maryland. Dillon’s 2024 campaign is arguably his finest as a professional, a season that can be highlighted by a late-season, game-winning midfield strike over former RSL Academy Teammate David Ochoa.

“His improvement from day one to now is incredible. He has also been the one guy that has been the consistent figure, the glue,” said Lowry. “His importance to this team towards the end of the season is hard to look past.”

Defensive Player of the Year: Back Line & Goalkeepers

Clean Sheets: 6

Shootout Wins: 5

Clearances: 119

Interceptions: 16

Coach Lowry could not point to a single player, mentioning the back line and goalkeeper collective, handing the group the award. Players like Tommy Silva, Erik Holt, Zack Farnsworth, Keller Storlie, Sebastian Joffre, Will Mackay and Fernando Delgado all earned praise from the staff.

When reflecting on his defensive unit, Coach Lowry says: “The back five, in general. The way we ask them to defend, we have a very specific way of defending in the box which has led us to be number one in the league for preventing touches in our box.”

The Monarchs 3-2-4-1 formation in possession requires defensive players to both defend and build out from the back. The task requires great composure and is a very underrated part of the Monarchs’ attack.

Academy Player of the Year: Owen Anderson

Games Played: 16

Games Started: 15

Minutes: 1156

Goals: 5

Assists: 0

Pass %: 85.2

“Owen’s progression and the way he's been able to affect games with the goals he’s scored, to go and win games for us is a whole different level.” - Mark Lowry

In his second year with the Monarchs, Anderson served up a career year. Anderson burst onto the scene, scoring four of his goals in a five-match span, including his first professional brace. Logging over 1000 minutes for the second consecutive year, the crafty midfielder earned high praise from the Monarchs’ staff in his ability to both create and finish scoring chances.

Individual Category Leaders: Top 5 and Ties

Goals:

Zavier Gozo: 5 / Owen Anderson: 5 / Matthew Bell: 4 / Damien Barker John: 3 / Ilijah Paul: 3 / Sebastian Joffre: 3 / Beni Redzic: 3

Assists:

Noel Caliskan: 5 / Daron Iskenderian: 4 / Griffin Dillon: 4 / Tommy Silva: 3 / Bertin Jaquesson: 2

Clean Sheets:

Will Mackay: 3 / Fernando Delgado: 2

Appearances:

Zack Farnsworth: 26 / Keller Storlie: 26 / Tommy Silva: 24 / Griffin Dillon: 23 / Noel Caliskan: 21 / Daron Iskenderian: 21

Starts:

Keller Storlie: 25 / Zack Farnsworth: 23 / Tommy Silva: 21 / Noel Caliskan: 20 / Griffin Dillon: 20

Minutes:

Keller Storlie: 2270 / Zack Farnsworth: 2059 / Tommy Silva: 1952 / Noel Caliskan: 1818 / Griffin Dillon: 1671

Real Monarchs 2025 Roster (as of Oct. 18)

Under Monarchs Contract:

47 Damien Barker John - Forward

52 Sean Petrie - Midfielder

77 Owen Anderson - Forward

88 Izahi Amparo - Midfielder

39 Aiden Hezarkhani - Forward

40 Omar Marquez - Forward

53 Juan Gio Villa - Defender

Under RSL / MLS Contract:

12 Matthew Bell - Forward

21 Axel Kei- Forward

32 Zackery Farnsworth - Defender

33 Derrick Silva - Defender

34 Luca Moisa - Midfielder

37 Luis Rivera - Defender

38 Jude Wellings - Midfielder

72 Zavier Gozo - Forward

92 Noel Caliskan - Midfielder

99 Jaziel Orozco - Defender

Returning to Academy:

49 Bennett Ewing - Goalkeeper

68 Slade Hall - Goalkeeper

80 Grayson Carter - Forward

86 Cayne Madlangove - Defender

95 Will Mackay - Goalkeeper

96 Pete Loveridge - Goalkeeper

Club Option TBD:

42 Keller Storlie - Defender

45 Benjamin Redzic - Forward

51 Omar Enrique Alba Burrowes - Defender

57 Fernando Delgado - Goalkeeper

70 Jhalmar Sebastian Joffre - Forward

81 Griffin Dillon - Midfielder

Player Option:

No Players

Free Agent:

41 Daron Iskenderian - Midfielder

44 Bobby Pierre - Defender

74 Nicolas Ovalle Raffo - Midfielder

97 Jordan Perruzza - Forward

Receiving Loan:

50 Monnehan Franck Lionel Dijero - Midfielder