Monterey Bay Excavates Oakland Roots SC with 2-1 Win on Fan Fest at Cardinale Stadium

June 22, 2024 – United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Monterey Bay FC News Release

SEASIDE, California – Monterey Bay F.C. (6-7-4, 22 points) defeated its NorCal rivals Oakland Roots SC (7-8-2, 23 points) by a score of 2-1 in an afternoon match at Cardinale Stadium, presented by Cannery Row. Tristan Trager scored the 100th goal in Monterey Bay F.C. history with his first-half header, and Alex Dixon added the game-winning strike three minutes into the second half to secure the league double over Roots SC this season.

Both sides earned chances within the first 10 minutes of the match, but it was the visitors that came the closest forcing an early save out of Antony Siaha. Monterey Bay F.C. defender Carlos Guzmán went down with an injury in the 18th minute, forcing the side to change it up a bit tactically – Walmer Martínez slid back into a fullback role on the left side, and Chuy Enríquez slotted in on the left wing. Shortly after, Oakland looked to have scored the opening goal, but Lindo Mfeka was ruled to be in an offside position. Then in the 30th minute, Martínez made his way down the left sideline and into the box, utilizing a give-and-go with Enríquez to whip a ball into the box. Trager then rose up inside the six and headed the ball across the line to give the Crisp-and-Kelp the 1-0 lead at the halftime break.

It took Monterey Bay all of three minutes to double its lead once the second half got underway. Enríquez dropped the ball right in front of Dixon with a beautiful pass from the left side of the field. Dixon controlled the ball with his first, perfectly placing it out in front before burying the ball into the back of the net with his right-foot on his very next touch to give Monterey Bay the 2-0 lead. A few minutes later, Enríquez cut to his right and fired a shot on goal of his own, but it was caught by the goalkeeper. Oakland Roots SC got one back in the 64th minute of the match with a goal by Johnny Rodriquez to bring the match to 2-1. Then in the 71st minute, Rodriguez came close to leveling the score, but his shot from inside the box missed just wide of the left post on the far side. A second yellow for Oakland’s Irakoze Donasiyano in the 84th minute led to his dismissal, and then Rafa Baca earned a dismissal of his own with a hand ball leading to his second yellow of the match in the 5th minute of stoppage time.

Up Next

Monterey Bay returns to the road for two fixtures, the first being a Western Conference showdown…