San Antonio FC earned a 1-1 draw against Sacramento Republic FC on Saturday night at Papa Murphy’s Park. An equalizing goal from AJ Ajeakwa salvaged a point on the road for the Silver and Black.
“I’m very proud of our players for their effort and performance,” SAFC Head Coach Darren Powell said. “We didn’t get off to the best start this evening, but the response of our players was fantastic in an unbelievable atmosphere, so I’m proud of their attitude.”
Sacramento opened the scoring in the 19th minute when Emrah Klimenta found the end of a through-ball and slotted the ball past SAFC goalkeeper Lee Johnston.
SAFC forward AJ Ajeakwa equalized just over ten minutes later after midfielder Kris Tyrpak played him in on goal with a through-ball. Ajeakwa then placed the ball to the far post past goal-keeper Evan Newton to level the score at 1-1. The goal marked Ajeakwa’s third goal so far this season as well as Kris Tyrpak’s third assist for the club.
San Antonio FC goalkeeper Lee Johnston made his first professional start, recording three saves on the night after making his USL debut last weekend at Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC following Diego Restrepo’s ejection from the match.
“It felt great [to make my first start],” Johnston said. “I enjoy playing in front of big crowds; I played in front of them before in college, and tonight when I was called upon I was there to help the guys out.”
San Antonio FC will return to action at Toyota Field on Saturday, July 8 as it hosts Liga MX side Santos Laguna in the club’s first international friendly in franchise history. SAFC will then return to USL action on July 14 when they host OKC Energy FC at Toyota Field on ESPNU.
Scoring Summary:
SRFC: 1-0, Emrah Klimenta (Danny Barrera assist) 19’
SAFC: 1-1, AJ Ajeakwa (Kris Tyrpak assist) 31’
Disciplinary Summary:
SAFC: Yellow Card (AJ AJeakwa 39’)
Attendance: 11,569
SAFC Starting XI: GK: Lee Johnston; D: Ben Newnam, Cyprian Hedrick, Sebasiten Ibeagha, Greg Cochrane; M: Michael Reed (c), Devin Vega, Rafa Castillo, Kris Tyrpak (Mark O’Ojong 66’), Billy Forbes; F: AJ Ajeakwa (Shawn Chin 84’)
Substitutions Not Used: Ryan Roushandel, Victor Araujo, Aly Alberto Hassan, Maxi Rodriguez, Stephen McCarthy
Postgame Notes:
- San Antonio FC remain unbeaten vs. the Republic in their history, improving their record against the former USL champions to 1-0-2…in two matches in Sacramento SAFC has earned two 1-1 draws…SAFC conceded just one goal, marking the 15th match in which the club has conceded one or fewer goals in USL play
- SAFC forward AJ Ajeakwa scored his third goal of the season tonight…the forward recorded one shot on target on the night and completed 60 percent of his passes…marks his first goal since May 20 vs. Phoenix Rising FC
- San Antonio FC midfielder Devin Vega was named the SWBC Man of the Match after his impressive display on the field for 89 minutes…Vega completed 89.4 percent of his passes, recording two key passes and adding two tackles and one interception on the night…the start was Vega’s first since May 20 vs. Phoenix Rising FC
- SAFC goalkeeper Lee Johnston made his first USL start, played 90 minutes and recorded three saves…Johnston saved 75 percent of the shots he faced in his first start
- San Antonio FC had seven players record a passing accuracy of 83 percent or higher on the night, and had four players with a passing accuracy of over 90 percent (Cochrane, O’Ojong, Reed, Hassan)…Greg Cochrane led all SAFC players in passing accuracy (min. 2 passes) with a 94.4 percent clip…the defender also led the team in passes with 54…SAFC made 428 passes on the night at an 82.7 percent clip
- SAFC midfielder Kris Tyrpak recorded his second assist of the season tonight at Sacramento… Tyrpak had already surpassed his season total from the 2016 season when he collected one assist with Swope Park Rangers…the Texas native has scored three goals on the season as well
San Antonio FC earned a 1-1 draw against Sacramento Republic FC on Saturday night at Papa Murphy’s Park. An equalizing goal from AJ Ajeakwa salvaged a point on the road for the Silver and Black.
“I’m very proud of our players for their effort and performance,” SAFC Head Coach Darren Powell said. “We didn’t get off to the best start this evening, but the response of our players was fantastic in an unbelievable atmosphere, so I’m proud of their attitude.”
Sacramento opened the scoring in the 19th minute when Emrah Klimenta found the end of a through-ball and slotted the ball past SAFC goalkeeper Lee Johnston.
SAFC forward AJ Ajeakwa equalized just over ten minutes later after midfielder Kris Tyrpak played him in on goal with a through-ball. Ajeakwa then placed the ball to the far post past goal-keeper Evan Newton to level the score at 1-1. The goal marked Ajeakwa’s third goal so far this season as well as Kris Tyrpak’s third assist for the club.
San Antonio FC goalkeeper Lee Johnston made his first professional start, recording three saves on the night after making his USL debut last weekend at Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC following Diego Restrepo’s ejection from the match.
“It felt great [to make my first start],” Johnston said. “I enjoy playing in front of big crowds; I played in front of them before in college, and tonight when I was called upon I was there to help the guys out.”
San Antonio FC will return to action at Toyota Field on Saturday, July 8 as it hosts Liga MX side Santos Laguna in the club’s first international friendly in franchise history. SAFC will then return to USL action on July 14 when they host OKC Energy FC at Toyota Field on ESPNU.
Scoring Summary:
SRFC: 1-0, Emrah Klimenta (Danny Barrera assist) 19’
SAFC: 1-1, AJ Ajeakwa (Kris Tyrpak assist) 31’
Disciplinary Summary:
SAFC: Yellow Card (AJ AJeakwa 39’)
Attendance: 11,569
SAFC Starting XI: GK: Lee Johnston; D: Ben Newnam, Cyprian Hedrick, Sebasiten Ibeagha, Greg Cochrane; M: Michael Reed (c), Devin Vega, Rafa Castillo, Kris Tyrpak (Mark O’Ojong 66’), Billy Forbes; F: AJ Ajeakwa (Shawn Chin 84’)
Substitutions Not Used: Ryan Roushandel, Victor Araujo, Aly Alberto Hassan, Maxi Rodriguez, Stephen McCarthy
Postgame Notes:
- San Antonio FC remain unbeaten vs. the Republic in their history, improving their record against the former USL champions to 1-0-2…in two matches in Sacramento SAFC has earned two 1-1 draws…SAFC conceded just one goal, marking the 15th match in which the club has conceded one or fewer goals in USL play
- SAFC forward AJ Ajeakwa scored his third goal of the season tonight…the forward recorded one shot on target on the night and completed 60 percent of his passes…marks his first goal since May 20 vs. Phoenix Rising FC
- San Antonio FC midfielder Devin Vega was named the SWBC Man of the Match after his impressive display on the field for 89 minutes…Vega completed 89.4 percent of his passes, recording two key passes and adding two tackles and one interception on the night…the start was Vega’s first since May 20 vs. Phoenix Rising FC
- SAFC goalkeeper Lee Johnston made his first USL start, played 90 minutes and recorded three saves…Johnston saved 75 percent of the shots he faced in his first start
- San Antonio FC had seven players record a passing accuracy of 83 percent or higher on the night, and had four players with a passing accuracy of over 90 percent (Cochrane, O’Ojong, Reed, Hassan)…Greg Cochrane led all SAFC players in passing accuracy (min. 2 passes) with a 94.4 percent clip…the defender also led the team in passes with 54…SAFC made 428 passes on the night at an 82.7 percent clip
- SAFC midfielder Kris Tyrpak recorded his second assist of the season tonight at Sacramento… Tyrpak had already surpassed his season total from the 2016 season when he collected one assist with Swope Park Rangers…the Texas native has scored three goals on the season as well
