Santiago Patiño Scores Winner in 84th Minute
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (October 9, 2022) – San Antonio FC came back after trailing early to defeat Birmingham Legion FC 2-1 tonight, moving the team into a tie for the league’s single-season wins record with a 24-5-4 record. The team’s 76 points are already good for the third-most in league history, and just two shy of the league record.
Birmingham’s goal came from a penalty in the 19th minute, just the second penalty allowed by San Antonio this season.
SAFC answered with Ignacio Bailone’s fifth goal of the season in the 41st minute to tie the match at 1-1 just before halftime. The header, coming in just his fifth start, moved the Argentine into a tie for the fourth-most goals on the team.
The headed goal came as a result of Fabien Garcia’s third assist of the season.
The 1-1 score held until the 84th minute when Santiago Patiño scored his sixth goal of the season to go ahead for good. Nicky Hernandez assisted on the goal, his second straight match with an assist.
SAFC returns home for the regular season finale on Saturday against Orange County SC. The match kicks off from Toyota Field at 7:30 p.m. as SAFC prepares for the postseason, which starts at Toyota Field on Friday, October 28 at 7:30 p.m. CT. Tickets for both matches are on sale at SanAntonioFC.com or the SAFC app, with both matches streamed live on ESPN+
Scoring Summary:
BHM: 0-1, Marlon Santos (Penalty) 19’
SAFC: 1-1, Ignacio Bailone (Assisted by Fabien Garcia) 41’
SAFC: 2-1, Santiago Patiño (Assisted by Nicky Hernandez) 84’
Disciplinary Summary:
SAFC: Yellow Card (Alen Marcina) 45+1’
BHM: Yellow Card (Marlon Santos) 53’
BHM: Yellow Card (Jacob Rufe) 90’
SAFC: Yellow Card (Nicky Hernandez) 93’
SAFC Starting XI: GK: Jordan Farr (captain); D: Carter Manley, Jasser Khmiri, Fabien Garcia, Jordan Ayimbila (Saad Abdul-Salaam 45’), Shannon Gomez; M: Cristian Parano (Nicky Hernandez 80’), Jordy Delem, Ates Diouf (David Loera 45’); F: Jack Lynn (Justin Dhillon 57’), Ignacio Bailone (Santiago Patiño 69’)
Substitutions not used: Grant Makela
Postgame Notes:
- SAFC moves to 24-5-4 on the season with 76 points, leading the USL Championship.
- SAFC’s 76 points on the season are the third most in a season in league history, trailing Phoenix’s 78 from 2019 for the league record.
- The win is the 13th of the season for SAFC on the road, tying the single-season league record set by New York in 2016.
- The win is the third time this season that SAFC has won after failing to score first.
- Ignacio Bailone’s goal in the 41st minute was his fifth of the season, moving into a tie for the third-most on the team.
- Santiago Patiño scored his sixth goal of the season, moving into a tie for the second-most on the team.
- Nicky Hernandez assisted on Patiño’s goal, his fourth of the season.
- Jordan Ayimbila earned his first start in USL Championship play.
- SAFC moves to 24-0-4 when scoring this season, and 3-5-3 when the opponent scores first.
Quotes:
Head Coach Alen Marcina
(On the win…)
“I’m proud of the collective. This was a clear and total team effort. There were players who hadn’t received many minutes [who] stepped up today in a big way. We were missing our four captains so leadership was dispersed among a number of different players, and all 11 guys, guys entering the field, all talking and all communicating remained cohesive. I felt we deserved and earned the three points.”
Forward Santiago Patiño
(On the comeback win…)
“I think in this league, playing away is going to be a grind. I think we have the mentality, we have the players to play these type of games. I think we did a great job of trailing one to zero, and tying the game then winning the game. I think we have a great group of guys, a great coaching staff, we have a great club that supports us and we have everything we need to succeed.”