El Paso Locomotive got their first ever win in the USL Championship this past Saturday. The Locomotive came out on top of Orange County Soccer Club at home to get the first W of the season. Despite dropping points in their first three matches, there is still room for improvement as the season is still young.
First Half
The Locomotive showed good hustle to start the match. They controlled ball possession and forced plenty of corners, thus giving them crucial chances off set pieces. Not only were they creating chances, but they also played fast enough to force Orange County to stay back in order to defend.
Orange County later started committing fouls to stop El Paso as they unraveled quickly down the field. Nonetheless, they were still dangerous as they came close to scoring. Darwin Jones hit the post at the 33rd minute and could not score for the visitors. The Locomotive ended the half with an injury as Derek Gebhard went down and could not go on. Edson Partida came on from the bench.
Score was still intact by the end of the half, 0-0
Second Half
El Paso Locomotvie picked up right were they left off at the start of the second half. Partida made his presence felt as he led the home squad offesne. The Texan XI came close to scoring but they had no finish to their play.
The home team finally broke through a little over the 60th-minute mark. Omar Salgado hit one off the post and Partida put the rebound into the net to put El Paso ahead by one.
The Mexican midfielder on loan from Liga MX’s Toluca did it again near the final whistle. He finished off a brace coming off the bench and sealed the deal for El Paso.
Final Score: El Paso Locomotive 2-0 Orange County Soccer Club.
Postmatch Reactions
Coach Mark Lowry seemed happy with the result. Nonetheless, he made remarks in regards to what he did not like from his team on the field. Lowry stated “We got too anxious when we’re attacking. We went forward too quickly.” Calm and ball possession are clearly a priority for Lowry. According to Lowry, Gebhard’s injury is just “a mild sprain”.
What’s Next For The Locomotive?
The El Paso Locomotive will go on a bye week this weekend, They will return to action at home on April 13th against Phoenix Rising FC.