SAN ANTONIO (Aug. 15, 2026) – San Antonio FC dropped just its second home match of the season Saturday, falling 3-0 to in-state rivals El Paso Locomotive at Toyota Field.
El Paso jumped ahead in the 20th minute and never looked back, scoring three goals in the first half to head into the break with a strong advantage.
Coming off its third match in seven days, San Antonio created some strong opportunities looking for its opener in the second half, outshooting the visitors 9-4 with three on-target strikes to test the Locos’ defense.
Goalkeeper Joey Batrouni made four saves in the match, giving him the seventh-most in the league this season.
Scoring Summary
ELP: Alex Mendez (Assisted by Amando Moreno) 20’
ELP: Alex Mendez 39’
ELP: Jimmy Farkarlun (Assisted by Amando Moreno) 44’
Next Up
San Antonio FC will finish out its homestand next Saturday, Aug. 22 against Oakland Roots SC. Kickoff from Toyota Field is set for 8:00 p.m. CT, and the match will be broadcast on ESPN+. The 2026 season is presented by Toyota.
Postgame Notes:
- San Antonio falls to 8-4-8 on the season with 32 points, remaining in second place in the Western Conference standings.
- SAFC moves to 8-5-4 against their in-state rivals, missing out on the 2026 Copa Tejas trophy.
- San Antonio outshot the Locos 12-10.
- Head Coach Carlos Llamosa made six changes to the starting lineup that faced Miami.
- Goalkeeper Joey Batrouni made four saves in the match.
Attendance: 7,742 (Sellout)
SAFC Starting XI: Joey Batrouni, Rece Buckmaster (Emil Cuello 63’), Alexis Souahy (Diogo Pacheco 70’), Mitchell Taintor (Captain), Tiago Suarez, Nelson Flores Blanco, Mikey Maldonado, Nicky Hernandez (Lucio Berron 46’), Curt Calov (Cristian Parano 46’), Jorge Hernandez, Santiago Patiño (Luke Haakenson 78’)
Substitutions Not Used: Danny Barbir, Daniel Namani, Leo Urrutia, Landry Walker
Disciplinary Summary:
ELP: Yellow Card (Kofi Twumasi) 28’
SA: Yellow Card (Joey Batrouni) 45’
ELP: Yellow Card (Eric Calvillo) 45’
ELP: Yellow Card (Noah Dollenmayer) 76’
SA: Yellow Card (Emil Cuello) 84’
SA: Yellow Card (Jorge Hernandez) 90+3’
Quotes:
Head Coach Carlos Llamosa
(On the offensive chances in the second half…)
“In the second half we push, we fought better. We kept the balance and tried to push El Paso back to their box and tried to play the game in the final third for us. Like I said, we had the Santi [Patiño] chance, [Cristian] Parano’s chance, then the offside goal call and their goalie made two saves. It wasn’t enough. We had two set pieces, but we didn’t finish those well, so it’s a little frustrating because we created chances, we just needed an early goal in the second half to put us back in the game. That gives us a lot of boost mentally. This is a plus, but we couldn’t get that goal early on the second half.”
(On how the team can respond after the loss…)
“We have to come back to our roots. We were playing good football the last couple games in Louisville, against Miami and Brooklyn. We were playing good games, both sides of the ball, defensively and offensively. As I said, I have a lot of praise for the maturity of the team to keep the possession, to keep the balance. We lost the ball, and we would have a players behind ready to defend. Tonight we lost the ball, and there was a counter-attack two-on-two up the field, so that’s something that we need to do better.”
Midfielder Luke Haakenson
(On the performance…)
“I think it was uncharacteristic. I think you could say that. I think you could say there was some fatigue. It was a long week, a three-game week, but we’ve done well with those this year. That hasn’t been an issue with us. I don’t think there’s a team in the league that watches more video than we do. We really study hard, so it’s going to be a week of a lot of film and a lot of review, and it’s going to be good for us to learn because we want to be hitting our stride and playing our best soccer in November, so this is going to be a great week for us to get in film and learn what we can.”
(On learning from the loss…)
“It’s a little bit of a step back, but like any good teams, one step back is always two steps forward if you learn from it … Like I said, it was a tough week, but a lot of positives because we advanced in the USL Cup and get a semifinal at home that we can look forward to, and I still think that we’re in a good position in the league to really push to be that home playoff spot and finish as high as we can, and there’s still plenty to play for. There are 11 games left, and it’s a long way to go. You don’t want to play your best soccer now. You want to play it in November.”
Midfielder Curt Calov
(On giving up the first goal…) “I think it was we were playing well. We created a chance right before that, and then they come down and score, so it definitely takes the wind out of our sails, but it’s part of soccer. We have to be ready. We have to go at the whistle the next time, and it just didn’t fall our way.”
