On Wednesday night, the Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC visit Sacramento Republic FC at Papa Murphy’s Park in California’s capital city. A huge 4-0 win against Reno 1868 FC started the Switchbacks’ western road trip on Saturday evening at Greater Nevada Field. Goals from AJ Ajeakwa, Luke Vercollone, and Jamal Jack were aided by an early own-goal from Reno midfielder Luis Felipe Fernandes.
“It was great to finally score some goals,” said Switchbacks Head Coach Steve Trittschuh. “Being able to get those goals gives us some real momentum going into Wednesday night against a very good Sacramento team. They have experienced players who know how to play. [Jeremy] Hall, [Villyan] Bijev, [Cameron] Iwasa, Adam Moffat…these are all good, experienced players and they’re very tough to beat, especially in Sacramento. We must keep improving what we can game-by-game and look to finish this trip with a strong performance in a tough place to play.”
Sacramento Republic FC have won both of their matches at Papa Murphy’s Park in the 2018 USL season. A 2-1 victory over San Antonio FC on March 17th was followed by a 1-0 win over the Seattle Sounders FC 2 on April 7th. Third in the USL’s Western Conference table at the time of writing, Sacramento Republic FC are unbeaten with three victories and two draws. Sacramento Head Coach Simon Elliott’s team won 1-0 against Orange County SC behind a Cameron Iwasa goal on March 24th at Champions Soccer Stadium at OC Great Park.
“We’ve got an idea what Sacramento are about – we’ve just got to show up defensively and we’ll be alright,” said Trittschuh. “For the most part we played really well against Reno and to get the goals was huge for the team. Guys were really happy with the win and getting it on the road helps before this Wednesday. The players picked off a lot of passes in the win in Reno and we’ll look to keep that going this season. Luke’s goal really helped us. That was the nail in that match – it came at the perfect time and lifted the whole team.”
“Getting the first goal of the season really takes the pressure off to feel like you have to score all the time. It’s helpful and good to score – especially on the road,” said Vercollone. “The win against Reno was really good for us. To be able to do that on the road says a lot about this group and the win gives us a big confidence boost going forward.”
Switchbacks fans will have to wait until July 14th to welcome Sacramento Republic FC to Weidner Field, with Heat Depot sponsoring a Premium Bottle and Bag Giveaway. After Wednesday’s match, the Switchbacks will return to Colorado Springs as they welcome the Seattle Sounders FC 2 on Saturday night. The contest against S2 will be the Switchbacks’ third game in the last week.
“We don’t have too much room for training while we’re gone, it’s more about walking through things on the road and the guys getting their legs back under them,” said Trittschuh. “We can only travel with 16 players so some have to really manage their legs and it’s not easy at times. But the win in Reno gives us a big boost and I hope we take that forward. Two more games this week – it won’t be easy, but Sacramento is a fun place to visit and I think we’re looking forward to it and to playing against a good team.”
Iwasa is tied for the lead in goals for Sacramento Republic with Christian Eissele. Iwasa, Bijev, and Keven Aleman each have an assist on the young 2018 USL regular season. Undisputed number one goalkeeper Josh Cohen will almost certainly start on Wednesday against the Switchbacks after recording another 90 minutes in Sacramento’s 1-1 draw with the Las Vegas Lights on Saturday evening in Nevada.
“Sacramento are a solid, tough, organized team and they’re really difficult to play against, especially in Sacramento,” said Vercollone. “They’ll be motivated to win and they’ll use their great crowd so we’ve got to play our game and be ready for the test. These next two games are really big for us and I’m hoping we can continue to improve and keep this momentum going into the weekend at home.”
On Saturday evening the Switchbacks return to Weidner Field to host the Seattle Sounders FC 2 on 90’s Night. The first 500 fans at Weidner Field will receive the second part of the 2018 Poster Giveaway Series, courtesy of The Gazette Newspaper.
On Wednesday night, the Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC visit Sacramento Republic FC at Papa Murphy’s Park in California’s capital city. A huge 4-0 win against Reno 1868 FC started the Switchbacks’ western road trip on Saturday evening at Greater Nevada Field. Goals from AJ Ajeakwa, Luke Vercollone, and Jamal Jack were aided by an early own-goal from Reno midfielder Luis Felipe Fernandes.
“It was great to finally score some goals,” said Switchbacks Head Coach Steve Trittschuh. “Being able to get those goals gives us some real momentum going into Wednesday night against a very good Sacramento team. They have experienced players who know how to play. [Jeremy] Hall, [Villyan] Bijev, [Cameron] Iwasa, Adam Moffat…these are all good, experienced players and they’re very tough to beat, especially in Sacramento. We must keep improving what we can game-by-game and look to finish this trip with a strong performance in a tough place to play.”
Sacramento Republic FC have won both of their matches at Papa Murphy’s Park in the 2018 USL season. A 2-1 victory over San Antonio FC on March 17th was followed by a 1-0 win over the Seattle Sounders FC 2 on April 7th. Third in the USL’s Western Conference table at the time of writing, Sacramento Republic FC are unbeaten with three victories and two draws. Sacramento Head Coach Simon Elliott’s team won 1-0 against Orange County SC behind a Cameron Iwasa goal on March 24th at Champions Soccer Stadium at OC Great Park.
“We’ve got an idea what Sacramento are about – we’ve just got to show up defensively and we’ll be alright,” said Trittschuh. “For the most part we played really well against Reno and to get the goals was huge for the team. Guys were really happy with the win and getting it on the road helps before this Wednesday. The players picked off a lot of passes in the win in Reno and we’ll look to keep that going this season. Luke’s goal really helped us. That was the nail in that match – it came at the perfect time and lifted the whole team.”
“Getting the first goal of the season really takes the pressure off to feel like you have to score all the time. It’s helpful and good to score – especially on the road,” said Vercollone. “The win against Reno was really good for us. To be able to do that on the road says a lot about this group and the win gives us a big confidence boost going forward.”
Switchbacks fans will have to wait until July 14th to welcome Sacramento Republic FC to Weidner Field, with Heat Depot sponsoring a Premium Bottle and Bag Giveaway. After Wednesday’s match, the Switchbacks will return to Colorado Springs as they welcome the Seattle Sounders FC 2 on Saturday night. The contest against S2 will be the Switchbacks’ third game in the last week.
“We don’t have too much room for training while we’re gone, it’s more about walking through things on the road and the guys getting their legs back under them,” said Trittschuh. “We can only travel with 16 players so some have to really manage their legs and it’s not easy at times. But the win in Reno gives us a big boost and I hope we take that forward. Two more games this week – it won’t be easy, but Sacramento is a fun place to visit and I think we’re looking forward to it and to playing against a good team.”
Iwasa is tied for the lead in goals for Sacramento Republic with Christian Eissele. Iwasa, Bijev, and Keven Aleman each have an assist on the young 2018 USL regular season. Undisputed number one goalkeeper Josh Cohen will almost certainly start on Wednesday against the Switchbacks after recording another 90 minutes in Sacramento’s 1-1 draw with the Las Vegas Lights on Saturday evening in Nevada.
“Sacramento are a solid, tough, organized team and they’re really difficult to play against, especially in Sacramento,” said Vercollone. “They’ll be motivated to win and they’ll use their great crowd so we’ve got to play our game and be ready for the test. These next two games are really big for us and I’m hoping we can continue to improve and keep this momentum going into the weekend at home.”
On Saturday evening the Switchbacks return to Weidner Field to host the Seattle Sounders FC 2 on 90’s Night. The first 500 fans at Weidner Field will receive the second part of the 2018 Poster Giveaway Series, courtesy of The Gazette Newspaper.
