Recap | Navarro secures Rapids' last-minute 1-0 victory over Austin FC

The Colorado Rapids (7-10-1 22 pts., 11th West) earned three points at home with a 1-0 victory over Austin FC (4-7-5, 17 pts., 14th West) on Saturday night. 

On a perfect Saturday night, the Rapids had their eyes on securing three points to help celebrate Colorado’s 150th Birthday. 

The Rapids started the match on the front foot, creating a majority of the chances in the attacking third. A combination of the attacking front and the midfield created multiple chances for the hosts early, but the club was unable to break the ice in the opening moments. 

This pressure was maintained for most of the first half, with Colorado controlling the pace of play in just about every phase of the game. 

Austin’s best opportunity of the half came about halfway through from a free kick right on the edge of the eighteen-yard box. A low-driven shot was sent on net, but goalkeeper Nico Hansen was there with safe hands to clear away any danger from the high-quality chance. 

Colorado quickly corrected the course and camp back with chances of their own, but the half would end scoreless. 

Austin came out of the break with added energy, managing to maintain possession in the final third more consistently than they had up to that point in the match. That increase in energy didn’t amount to anything early, with Colorado stopping any real opportunity from their opposition. Any time that Austin threatened, including the dying moments of the match, the Rapids defense and Hansen made crucial stops to keep things level. 

That strong defensive play allowed the Colorado attack to threaten for a winner, which finally came in the stoppage time. The hosts kept putting shots on net, slowly weakening the Austin resolve. After a shot from Darren Yapi was saved by the goalkeeper, striker Rafael Navarro made a charge to the loose ball. Getting there first, the Brazilian was quickly fouled by a defender in the box, leading to a Colorado penalty four minutes into stoppage time. 

The Rapids’ Designated Player stepped up to take the penalty that he drew himself, and calmly sunk it to send the Colorado crowd home happy. The goal marked Navarro’s 37th as a member of the Rapids, putting him into a tie with John Spencer for the fourth most in club history. ​

The match would end shortly thereafter, with the state of Colorado earning a well-deserved 150th birthday present of three points. 

Also of note in the match was defender Keegan Rosenberry becoming the third player in club history to reach 200 MLS regular season appearances with the Rapids. The captain is only behind Drew Moor (210) and Pablo Mastroeni (225) for total appearances. 

Colorado will now have a week break before there next match against Sporting KC at DICK’S Sporting Goods Park on August 15. Kickoff in Colorado is set for 7:30 p.m. MT with coverage available on Apple TV, Altitude Sports Radio, Tico Sports Spanish Radio, ColoradoRapids.com, and the Colorado Rapids app.