The Swope Park Rangers continued their preseason with a 2-2 draw with fellow USL outfit Tulsa Roughnecks FC on Saturday afternoon at Swope Soccer Village.
The Rangers began the game on the front foot with Hadji Barry causing a turnover to set up Sporting KC Academy product Camilo Benitez, but he sliced his shot wide of the target in the fifth minute.
Ten minutes later, Rodrigo Saravia almost found Barry streaking over the top only to be denied by the Tulsa goalkeeper. From the ensuing corner, a scramble developed before Matheus Silva volleyed narrowly over the bar on the turn. In the 23rd minute, Barry again threatened as he rounded the Roughnecks gloveman but was unable to find the target from a tight angle.
Chase Minter went close twice in the space of four minutes as first his curling free kick clipped off the Tulsa defensive wall and drifted wide of the goal before he struck the underside of the crossbar with a fierce volley in the 36th minute.
The Rangers finally found the breakthrough in the 39th minute when Silva stepped up to curl a sumptuous free kick into the top corner from 30 yards out, leaving the Tulsa goalkeeper with no chance.
Barry continued to be a handful for the Tulsa backline in the second half and earned a penalty in the 60th minute when he was bundled over by a defender in the box. Barry dusted himself off and sent the penalty straight down the middle to give the Rangers a 2-0 lead.
Seconds later, Tulsa would have the opportunity to reduce the deficit as Silva was penalized for a handball in the box. Joaquin Rivas converted from the spot, firing into the bottom right corner to make it 2-1.
Several Sporting KC Academy players saw minutes in the second half, with Wilson Harris and Sean Karani each testing the Roughnecks ‘keeper late in the game. As the clock ticked down, Tulsa found an equalizer as a trialist cut in from the left wing and sent a well-struck shot low into the corner to make the final score 2-2.
The Rangers resume their preseason slate of games next weekend when the side hosts Creighton University at Swope Soccer Village with kickoff set for 3:30 p.m. CT.
Swope Park Rangers vs. Tulsa Roughnecks FC
February 17, 2018 – Swope Soccer Village (Kansas City, Mo.)
Swope Park Rangers 2, Tulsa Roughnecks 2
Scoring Summary:
SPR – Matheus Silva (Unassisted) 39’
SPR – Hadji Barry (Penalty Kick) 61’
TUL – Joaquin Rivas (Penalty Kick) 62’
TUL – Trialist 87’
Misconduct Summary:
TUL – Trialist (Yellow Card) 30’
SPR – Rodrigo Saravia (Yellow Card) 50’
Swope Park Rangers: Darrin MacLeod (Mark Pais 46’); Will Little, Matt Lewis (Massimo McGuire 61’), Dakota Barnathan (Kyle McLagan 61’), Parker Maher (Wilfred Williams 61’); Matheus Silva (Dakota Barnathan 77’), Rodrigo Saravia (Mario Magana 77’), Sebastian Cruz (Roman Knox 61’); Camilo Benitez (Sean Karani 77’), Hadji Barry (Wilson Harris 77’), Chase Minter (Sebastian Cruz 81’).
