The Swope Park Rangers played to a 1-1 draw with Saint Louis FC at World Wide Technology Soccer Park on Wednesday night. Sporting Kansas City loanee Diego Rubio scored on his debut for the club, but Saint Louis responded with a penalty kick from Irvin Herrera in the second half as the two sides shared the points and the Rangers moved into a tie for sixth in the USL Western Conference.
The Rangers (8-8-5, 29 pts.) controlled much of the opening period and went close when Emmanuel Appiah hit the post in the 14th minute. Rubio played Tyler Pasher down the left wing and his cross found Appiah making a late run into the Saint Louis FC (7-8-7, 28 pts.) area, but his prodded finish ricocheted off the post and out.
In the 24th minute, Saint Louis’ leading scorer Herrera ran off the back of the Rangers defense but goalkeeper Jon Kempin came out to block his close-range attempt. Kempin was at it again two minutes later, doing well to beat away Schillo Tshuma’s shot from inside the area.
The Rangers took the lead in the 34th minute, when Appiah’s long ball over the Saint Louis backline was pursued by Rubio, but Saint Louis goalkeeper Mark Pais got to the ball first. However, Pais could only smash his clearance straight into Rubio who tapped home from close range to make the score 1-0.
Just before halftime, SPR almost found a second goal when Pasher got to the endline and clipped in a cross that Pais could only redirect against the inside of his own post and out.
Ayrton was the first to threaten in the second half when he got the ball out of his feet around 25 yards out, but Pais got down well to hold at the second time of asking. In the 61st minute, Saint Louis FC’s Chad Bond turned in the Rangers area and rattled a shot against the crossbar.
Saint Louis found their equalizer in the 65th minute after Tommy Meyer was adjudged to have fouled Jordan Roberts in the area. Herrera stepped up and slammed the ball into the top corner for his 11th goal of the season to make the score 1-1.
Rubio was replaced by Dane Kelly in the 81st minute, and the Jamaican forward immediately got involved by setting up Alex Molano for a swerving volley from distance that Pais did well to hold. In stoppage time, Kelly twice had opportunities inside the STL area, but was unable to force the ball home as SPR settled for a point.
Man of the Match presented by Courtyard Overland Park Metcalf
- Diego Rubio – Made his debut for the Swope Park Rangers after joining on loan from Sportiing KC earlier in the day and was a constant menace to the Saint Louis FC backline. Scored the opening goal in the 34th minute and led the team with four shots.
Next Match
- The Swope Park Rangers remain on the road this weekend when they travel to Oklahoma to face Tulsa Roughnecks FC on Saturday, Aug. 6 at ONEOK Field. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. CT, with a live stream available on SportingKC.com.
Swope Park Rangers vs. Saint Louis FC
August 3, 2016 – World Wide Technology Soccer Park (Fenton, Mo.)
Swope Park Rangers 1, Saint Louis FC 1
Scoring Summary:
SPR – Diego Rubio 1 (Unassisted) 34’
STL – Irvin Herrera 11 (Penalty Kick) 65’
Misconduct Summary:
SPR – Tommy Meyer (Yellow Card) 20’
STL – AJ Cochran (Yellow Card) 53’
SPR – Amer Didic (Yellow Card) 64’
STL – Tyler David (Yellow Card) 68’
Swope Park Rangers: Jon Kempin; Tommy Meyer, Amer Didic, Oumar Ballo, Ever Alvarado; Ualefi, Christian Duke © (Tomas Granitto 89’), Emmanuel Appiah (Mark Anthony Gonzalez 73’); Ayrton (Alex Molano 78’), Diego Rubio (Dane Kelly 81’), Tyler Pasher (Kris Tyrpak 66’).
Substitutes Not Used: Zac Lubin, Nansel Selbol.
STATS: Shots 13, Shots on Goal 6, Corners 5, Fouls 10
Saint Louis FC: Mark Pais; Richard Dixon, AJ Cochran, James Musa, Mitch Lurie (Jacob Bushue 79’); Parker Maher (Jamiel Hardware 31’), Tyler David (Sam Fink 77’), Chad Bond ©, Schillo Tshuma (Jordan Roberts 62’); Mike Ambersley (Vince Cicciarelli 77’), Irvin Herrera.
Substitutes Not Used: Ryan Thompson, Seth Rudolph.
STATS: Shots 16, Shots on Goal 6, Corners 4, Fouls 9
Referee: Andrew Musashe
Assistant Referees: Christopher Slane and Aaron Schumacher
Fourth Official: Matt Geringer
Attendance: 4,582
Weather: Partly cloudy and 82 degrees
