Big Picture
Colorado Rapids 2 (1-10-5, 9 pts.) picked up their first three points of the season with a hard-fought win over Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 (3-11-3, 14 pts.) on Saturday night at home.
Withstanding an early wave of pressure, Rapids 2 turned away a pair of dangerous chances in the early moments of the contest. Colorado quickly looked to spring the counterattack, but the visitors' backline recovered to cut out the opportunity. The hosts continued to hunt for openings, chasing down loose balls and probing for space in the attacking third. Despite their perseverance, Vancouver's defense held firm and denied Colorado a clear path to goal.
After a first half with no shots on goal from either side, Colorado came out with a hunger to turn persistence into production. Continuing to put out fires in their defensive third, Rapids 2 began knocking on Whitecaps FC 2’s door. Giving the home team their first shot on target, Rapids 2 forward Mamadou Billo Diop had a go at goal with a shot from distance in the 60th minute. Not long after, Sebastian Siegler also made an attempt of his own on net, but the strike couldn’t find its way through the crowd of bodies.
Their relentless pursuit eventually paid dividends as Rapids 2 built out from the back and created a forward surge. Following a solid tackle from Siegler, and another from Diop in the midfield, Diop found Jabari De Coteau making his way up the opposite sideline. Dribbling towards goal, and dancing around defenders, De Coteau put on the brakes to turn and play Diop the ball back just outside the center of the box. Nudging it wide to create space and open up his angle, Diop took a step and hammered a shot towards the goal’s top right corner. Vancouver’s goalkeeper got a hand on it, but it wouldn’t be enough as the ball spilled over his fingers and crossed the goal line.
With his second goal, and third goal contribution, of the season, Diop now sits alone in third on Rapids 2’s all-time scoring list. De Coteau’s assist marked his first of the season and his professional career.
However, the game was far from over, and Rapids 2 had their work cut out for them. Coming off the back of a series of unlucky deflected shots, Colorado’s backline had to dig in defensively. Though they bent, they never broke as goalkeeper Kendall Starks stayed cool between the posts, turning away WFC2’s offensive onslaught and keeping the door shut on the opposition.
As the minutes ticked down, Vancouver threw everything they could at the home team, but they stood tall. When the final whistle blew, Rapids 2 confidently claimed both their first win and first clean sheet of the season.
Rapids 2 will go on the road to take on Austin FC II on Sunday, July 5. Kickoff at Parmer Field in Austin, Texas is set for 6:30 p.m. MT, with coverage available on OneFootball.com and MLSNEXTPro.com.
Notables
- Forward Mamadou Billo Diop scored his second goal of the season.
- The goal marked his third goal contribution of this year’s campaign.
- With his 16th career goal, Diop now has sole possession of the third most goals by a Rapids 2 player and is one goal away from tying second place holder Yosuke Hanya.
- Defender Jabari De Coteau recorded his first professional assist and his first with Rapids 2.
- This is his first assist of the season.
- Goalkeeper Kendall Starks and the team secured their first clean sheet of the season.
- This marked Starks’ first clean sheet in his MLS NEXT Pro career and moves him into a tie for third most clean sheets by a goalkeeper for Rapids 2.
- Midfielder Jonathan De La Fuente made his first MLS NEXT Pro and Rapids 2 start.
Lineups:
Colorado Rapids 2: Kendall Starks, Jaden Chan Tack (28’ Sebastian Siegler), Charlie Harper [C], Grant Gilmore, Jabari De Coteau, Luis García (69’ Rogelio Garcia), Nathan Tchoumba (80’ Kai Thomas), Jonathan De La Fuente, Landon Strohmeyer (70’ Ali Fadal), Mamadou Billo Diop (73’ Chris Aquino), Bryce Jamison
Unused substitutes: Zack Campagnolo, Kamal Sawadogo
Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2: Adrian Zendejas [C], Trevor Wright, Prince Amponsah (90’+2’ Jayden Kim), Cristiano Bruletti, Carson Rassak (72’ Manav Badwal), Yuma Tsuji, Daniel Ittycheria (69’ Kevin Podgorni), Marko Popovic (80’ Tyler Brown), Micaah Garnette, Immanuel Mathe, Sahil Deo
Unused substitutes: Jesse Peace, Timothy Lodder
Officials:
Referee: Matt Thompson; Assistants: Cameron Siler, Bruno Rizo; Fourth Official: Jared Mosher
