Swope Park Rangers defender Oumar Ballo has been named to the USL Team of the Week for Week 18, while Alex Molano has been selected on the bench.
Ballo produced a strong defensive performance to preserve a shutout in SPR’s 3-0 win over Orange County Blues FC on Saturday, while Molano scored a 95th-minute equalizer against Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC last Wednesday before adding the game-winning assist against Orange County.
Ballo, 25, has made 11 appearances for the Rangers this season, starting six, and has played the full 90 minutes in three of SPR’s four shutouts this season. Ballo also has one assist, coming against Portland Timbers 2 on June 4.
Molano has played in nine games, including five starts, and last week added his first goal and assist for the club. The Rangers are 3-1-1 when the 24-year-old starts this season, and his game-tying goal against the Switchbacks was the latest goal SPR has scored.
Ballo, Molano and the Swope Park Rangers are back in action this Saturday, when the side hosts San Antonio FC at Swope Soccer Village. The Rangers will be celebrating Swope Park Appreciation night at that game, with more information on gameday features here. The game will kick off at 7:30 p.m. CT and will be live streamed on SportingKC.com, while tickets, starting as low as $12, are available here.
USL Team of the Week (Courtesy of USLSoccer.com)
GK – John Berner, Charlotte Independence: Berner recorded a five-save shutout, including a pair of outstanding stops, as the Independence defeated Pittsburgh 3-0.
D – Oumar Ballo, Swope Park Rangers: Ballo led the Rangers’ defense with a strong performance in the side’s 3-0 victory against Orange County on Saturday.
D – James Musa, Saint Louis FC: Musa scored the opening goal as Saint Louis boosted its playoff hopes with a 2-1 win against Colorado Springs on Saturday night.
D – O’Brian Woodbine, Charleston Battery: Woodbine recorded a pair of assists in Charleston’s 3-2 victory on the road against the Red Bulls II.
M – Yudai Imura, Richmond Kickers: Imura had a pair of goals in a 3-0 victory against Toronto FC II to lead the Kickers to their third consecutive win.
M – Sebastian Dalgaard, OKC Energy FC: Dalgaard’s strong performance was capped by a standout goal that helped Energy FC take the Black Gold Derby against Tulsa.
M – Liam Miller, Wilmington Hammerheads FC: Miller lifted the 10-man Hammerheads with an outstanding late finish that earned a 2-2 draw on the road against Orlando.
M – Jaime Villarreal, LA Galaxy II: Villarreal had a goal and assist as the Galaxy II defeated San Antonio FC 3-2 to earn their fourth consecutive victory.
M – Maikel Chang, Charleston Battery: Chang had the opening goal and then provided the assist on the game-winner as the Battery defeated the Red Bulls II.
F – Thomas Sanner, Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2: Sanner scored his first professional goal in stoppage time to lift WFC2 to a 2-1 victory against Sacramento on Sunday.
F – Long Tan, Arizona United SC: Tan had a goal and assist to lead Arizona to a big 3-0 win on the road against Real Monarchs SLC on Friday night.
Bench: Kendall McIntosh (POR), Mark O’Ojong (SEA), Lewis Hilton (CLT), Florian Valot (NY), Corben Bone (CIN), Alex Molano (SPR), Irvin Herrera (STL)
