REAL MONARCHS SLC WELCOME LA GALAXY II FOR REGULAR-SEASON FINALE AHEAD OF INAUGURAL PLAYOFF RUN
Club Looks to Finish Season Positively & Improve 11-1-3 Home Record;
HC Mark Briggs’ USL Frontrunners Lead League w/ 19 Wins, 64 Points & More;
Club Looks to Build Momentum Heading into Playoff Opener on Fri., Oct. 20
SANDY, Utah (Friday, October 13, 2017) – Real Monarchs SLC (19-5-7, 64 points, USL Regular- Season Champions / West #1) host LA Galaxy II in the 2017 USL regular-season finale at Rio Tinto Stadium, with kickoff set for 7:00 p.m. MT. Head Coach Mark Briggs looks to finalize preparations for his team in advance of the club’s inaugural playoff match, kicking off on Friday, Oct. 20, at 7:30 p.m. MT in Sandy.
The Monarchs and ‘Los Dos’ have met once previously in 2017, a game that saw the Monarchs walk away from Southern California with a 3-0 victory after goals from MFs Sebastian Velasquez, Charlie Adams and Karsten Hanlin solidified the victory. GK Connor Sparrow earned the shutout in goal, making three saves in the match.
Last week’s match saw the Monarchs draw 1-1 with Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2, clinching the best record in the USL and the first trophy in club history with the USL Regular Season Championship Shield, celebrated in front of a season-high crowd of 8,402 at Rio Tinto Stadium. San Antonio FC’s draw with Tampa Bay effectively handed the Monarchs the trophy 20 minutes before the end of the match with Vancouver, mathematically separating the Monarchs from the rest of the competition.
Beginning with the Western Conference Quarterfinal next Friday, Oct. 20, the Monarchs have earned the right to host every USL Cup Playoff match to which it advances after claiming the league’s best record and the USL Regular Season Shield against Vancouver last weekend. Sacramento Republic FC, Tulsa Roughnecks FC and Oklahoma City Energy FC could visit Rio Tinto Stadium next Friday after the seeding is set from this weekend’s matches.
How to Follow Real Monarchs SLC vs Los Angeles Galaxy II – Sat., Oct. 14, 2017
• Coverage Begins: 7:00 p.m. MT
• Local Stream:www.RSL.com w/ Landon Southwick and Taran Meyer
• English Radio: n/a
• Spanish Radio: n/a
• Online: The @RealMonarchs Twitter feed provides updates
Game Notes for Saturday’s Monarchs vs Los Angeles Galaxy II game Available Online
The link to the Adobe PDF version of the Game Guide in advance of Saturday’s contest between Real Monarchs SLC and Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 is available HERE. If you have any problems obtaining the document, would prefer to receive it as an attachment, or are seeking more information on the match, please contact Taran Meyer in the RSL Communications Department via email at tmeyer@RSL.com.
Elsewhere in the Claret-and-Cobalt pyramid, Real Salt Lake visits Rocky Mountain Rival Colorado Rapids on Sunday at 5:30 p.m. MT as it continues its push for the Major League Soccer Playoffs with two games remaining in the MLS Regular Season. RSL currently sits 12-11-4 under Head Coach Mike Petke, building on an impressive 7-2-4 (25 points) record that began July 1, a current run that sees RSL unbeaten in its last seven at Rio Tinto Stadium, including four straight wins. RSL currently sits one point outside of the playoff picture in seventh place in the Western Conference, with two matches remaining. RSL will play its final home match of the season on Sun., Oct. 22 against Sporting Kansas City, with kickoff set for 2:00 p.m. MT.
Opening last month, the Zions Bank Real Academy training campus arrives in Herriman, Utah, approximately 20 minutes southwest of Rio Tinto Stadium. The $72 million facility – which includes five grass “TORO Fields” (sod installation began earlier this August) – will soon serve as the daily training home beginning in 2018 for both of the club's professional teams – RSL (MLS) and Real Monarchs (USL) – while centralizing the club's U-18, U-16 and future U-14 development academy youth selections, under the supervision of Academy Director Martin Vasquez. The Herriman facility will provide adjacencies for an on-site charter school with STEM disciplines (Science/Technology/Engineering/Math) for nearly 200 boys and girls.
Opening in mid-November in North Logan, Utah, after breaking ground a year ago, RSL Owner Dell Loy Hansen will dedicate the first of a half-dozen regional training centers across Utah and Arizona to be built in the next 24-36 months. Each $6 million RTC houses a classroom, as well as an indoor and outdoor field, dedicated to fulfilling a curriculum consistent with the club's vision and mission for youth soccer training and education, and the continued development of both recreational and competitive pre-Academy (ages 7-12) initiatives across Utah and Arizona.
