HERRIMAN, Utah (Saturday, October 16, 2021) – Real Monarchs (5-18-6, 21 points) won a dramatic 4-3 match over Austin Bold FC at Zions Bank Stadium in a wild, hard-fought shootout on Saturday afternoon, dealing a blow to the visitor’s playoff hopes.
Leo Torres’ two first-half goals combined with an early second-half goal from Bode Davis and a game-winner from Milan Iloski led the Monarchs to its first-ever victory over Austin Bold FC.
The home side struck first in the 27th minute of the match when Torres rocketed his left-footed shot into the top-right corner of the net. Torres then doubled the lead in the 35th minute when Davis found him open near the top of the box and he buried the ball into the bottom-right corner to record his brace and give the hosts the 2-0 lead into the halftime break.
The Monarchs remained on the front foot in the second half and tripled its lead in the 51st minute of the match. Malik Johnson sent a cross into the box towards Davis, who buried the right-footed volley into the top of the net to take the 3-0 lead. Two minutes later, the visitors pulled one back when a loose ball in the box was cleaned up by Gilbert Fuentes. In the 68th minute of the match, Collin Fernandez fired a shot into the bottom-left corner of the net to narrow the gap to 3-2. Davis received yellow cards two minutes apart, resulting in an ejection and the Monarchs going down to 10 men in the 84th minute. Bold FC capitalized on the resulting free kick in the 85th minute to level the score at 3-3.
Following the score, a fight broke out between the sides inside the Austin goal that resulted in two more players being ejected, Monarchs goalkeeper Fernando Delgado and Austin Bold forward Jorge Troncoso. Despite now being down to nine men, the Monarchs continued to push. In the 89th minute, midfielder Bret Halsey broke away from the defense on the counter to force a two on one with the opponent’s goalkeeper. After drawing the goalkeeper out of position, Halsey laid the ball off to Iloski, who buried the game-winning ball into the open net to give the Monarchs the 4-3 win.
UP NEXT: Real Monarchs continue its home stand at Zions Bank Stadium with a second visit from Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC on Friday, October 22 at 7:00 p.m. MT. The match can be streamed on ESPN+ and the KSL TV app.
GOAL SCORING RUNDOWN:
SLC: Leo Torres, 27th minute: Following a foul on Charlie Wehan in the Monarchs half of the pitch, Leo Torres gathered the loose ball and beat a defender across the middle of the field before stepping into a powerful left-footed shot that rocketed into the top-right corner of the net.
SLC: Leo Torres (Bode Davis), 35th minute: Making a run down the right side of the pitch, Bode Davis found Leo Torres open in space above the center of the box. Torres cut to his left and buried the left-footed shot past the goalkeeper and into the bottom-right corner of the net.
SLC: Bode Davis (Malik Johnson), 51st minute: From the left side of the pitch Malik Johnson sent a cross into the box towards a streaking Bode Davis on the right side of the six-yard box. Davis buried a right-footed volley into the back of the net.
ATX: Gilbert Fuentes (Casey Walls), 53rd minute: Following a corner by Casey Walls, the ball bounced around the box and spilled out. Gilbert Fuentes stepped up and buried the loose ball into the right side of the net.
ATX: Collin Fernandez (Owayne Omar Gordon), 68th minute: After the ball bounced around in the box and with his back to goal, Owayne Gordon pulled it down and chipped a pass over to Collin Fernandez for the left-footed shot into the bottom-left corner of the goal.
ATX: Amobi Okugo, 85th minute: Austin Bold earned a free kick from the top-left corner of the box. Taken by Collin Fernandez, the shot hit the left post, forcing the ball back into play. Amobi Okugo broke through the line and smashed the rebound into the bottom-right corner of the net.
SLC: Milan Iloski (Bret Halsey), 89th minute: Midfielder Bret Halsey broke away past the defense and down the middle of the field on a counter-chance with forward Milan Iloski keeping up on his left side. Halsey executed the two on one by drawing the goalkeeper towards him and out of the six-yard box before laying it off to Iloski on his left. Iloski then buried the ball into the center of the open net.
NOTES:
- 15-year-old RSL Academy goalkeeper Fernando Delgado earned the start in his professional debut for the Monarchs this afternoon, officially becoming the youngest-ever goalkeeper in professional sports.
- Midfielder Leo Torres earned his first start for the Real Monarchs since arriving on loan from San Antonio FC last month and recorded his first professional goal in the 27th minute of the match.
- Head Coach Jamison Olave missed the match tonight due to COVID-19 health and safety protocols and was replaced on the bench by Assistant Coach Cody Worden.
Match: Real Monarchs vs. Austin Bold FC
Date: October 16, 2021
Venue: Zions Bank Stadium; Herriman, Utah
Weather: Sunny and 55 degrees
Attendance: 968
Scoring Summary: 1 2 F
Real Monarchs 2 2 4
Austin Bold FC 0 3 3
SLC: Leo Torres 27’
SLC: Leo Torres (Bode Davis) 35’
SLC: Bode Davis (Malik Johnson) 51’
ATX: Gilbert Fuentes (Casey Walls) 53’
ATX: Collin Fernandez (Owayne Omar Gordon) 68’
ATX: Amobi Okugo 85’
SLC: Milan Iloski (Bret Halsey) 89’
Lineups:
Real Monarchs (5-2-3): Fernando Delgado; Malik Johnson, Kevin Saucedo, Kyle Adams, Timi Sobowale (Jaziel Orozco, 80’), Bode Davis; Bret Halsey, Julio Benitez (Josimar Quintero, 57’) (Jimmy Slayton, 88’); Leo Torres (Christian Nydegger, 57’), Charlie Wehan (Daniel Flores, 80’), Milan Iloski
Subs not used: Ibrahim Bancé, Max Mata
Austin Bold FC (3-5-2): Hugo Fauroux; Casey Walls (Josue Soto, 76’), Collin Fernandez, Gustavo Rissi; Kofi Sarkodie, Xavier Báez (Gilbert Fuentes, 45’), Juan Pablo Torres, Amobi Okugo, Nicholas Hinds (Owayne Omar Gordon, 53’) (Aldo Quintanilla, 78’); Jorge Troncoso, Nathaniel Adamolekun (Roberto Avila, 45’)
Subs not used: Arshia Babazadeh, Omar Ciss
STATS SUMMARY: SLC / ATX
Shots: 4 / 3
Shots on Goal: 9 / 18
Saves: 3 / 2
Corner Kicks: 1 / 6
Fouls: 16 / 14
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY:
ATX – Kofie Sarkodie (caution) 13’
ATX – Casey Walls (caution) 27’
ATX – Amobi Okugo (caution) 71’
ATX – Collin Fernandez (caution) 74’
SLC – Bode Davis (caution) 82’
SLC – Bode Davis (dismissal) 84’
SLC – Fernando Delgado (dismissal) 86’
ATX – Jorge Troncoso (dismissal) 88’
OFFICIALS:
Referee: William Hoffman
Assistant Referees: Austin Holt, Bennett Savage
4th Official: Matthew Corrigan
