Collin Smith, Darius Johnson make their first goal contributions with Rising
PHOENIX – Phoenix Rising took its first lead at home of the 2025 season but fell to a late surge of goals in a 3-2 loss to Detroit City FC on Saturday, April 12, at Phoenix Rising Stadium. Defender Collin Smith and forward Darius Johnson made their first-ever goal contributions for Rising, while forward Jearl Margaritha (1G, 1A) contributed to a goal in a second straight match and Hope Avayevu netted his second goal of the season.
“The fans want to see a team. We want to see a team,” Head Coach Pa-Modou Kah said. “This is a part of the progress. I know what the boys can do, and for me, I rally everybody to be behind the team. Their voices and their frustration are great because they believe and want this team to do better. So do we. It’s going to take moving in the right direction and working together to create a team that they can be proud of.”
A NIGHT OF FIRSTS
With his goal in the 42nd minute, defender Collin Smith scored his first goal with Rising. Additionally, his back-post header marked his first-ever goal in USL Championship play. Forward Darius Johnson also made his first-career USL Championship goal contribution, assisting midfielder Hope Avayevu for the game’s second goal late in the second half.
“The ball came into me, and I thought I was going to fly through the net. I was ready,” Smith said. “I was waiting for that one. I was ready for that one. I am super excited to be able to get that (goal) and of course, Margaritha did his thing.”
GOAL-SCORING PLAYS
PHX – Collin Smith (Jearl Margaritha), 42nd minute: Jearl Margaritha took on a series of defenders on a run down the left before serving a lofted cross to the back post, which Collin Smith nodded into the bottom-right corner of the goal
PHX – Hope Avayevu (Darius Johnson), 71st minute: On a counter-attack, forward Darius Johnson recovered his shot that hit the left post and laid it off to midfielder Hope Avayevu who used his right foot to finish into the bottom-right corner of the net.
DET – Darren Smith (Rhys Williams), 87th minute: Rhys Williams’ floated cross found Darren Smith at the back post who used his right foot to volley the ball into the back of the net from close range.
DET – Darren Smith, 89th minute: Detroit City worked the ball down the left side, with the ball reaching Smith in the center of the box, who poked the ball home.
DET – Jeciel Cedeño (Jay Chapman), 90th minute: Racing down the right side, Jay Chapman found the feet of Jeciel Cedeño, who cut into the middle before using his left foot to curl the ball into the far-left side of the net.
NOTES
–With defender Collin Smith’s goal in the 42nd minute, Rising took its first lead in a home match since September 28, 2024 (vs. LV).
–The goal marked Smith’s first-ever in USL Championship play.
–With his assist, forward Jearl Margaritha now has goal contributions in consecutive matches (1G, 1A).
–The assist is Margaritha’s third for Rising since joining the club.
–Rising has now scored three goals in the final 15 minutes of the first half, the third most in the USL Championship so far (LDN, RI, 4).
–Defender Casey Walls made his Rising debut, checking into the match in the 57th minute.
–Midfielder Hope Avayevu’s goal in the 71st minute marked his fourth goal contribution of the season (2G, 2A).
–Avayevu joins forward Ihsan Sacko (1G, 3A) for the most goal contributions so far this season.
–Additionally, the assist marked Darius Johnson’s first-ever goal contribution with Rising and first in the USL Championship.
NEXT GAME
Rising next begins its campaign in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, traveling to Tulsa, Oklahoma, to face FC Tulsa in the Third Round of the competition. The match is slated to kick off at 5:00 p.m. (PT) on Wednesday, April 16, at Hurricane Soccer and Track Stadium. The match will be broadcast on Paramount+ with radio coverage provided by Rising Radio (team socials).
Phoenix Rising (1-3-2, 5pts) vs Detroit City FC (3-1-2, 11pts)
April 12, 2025 – Phoenix Rising Stadium (Phoenix, Ariz.)
Goals by Half 1 2 FT
Phoenix Rising 1 1 2
Detroit City FC 0 3 3
Scoring Summary:
PHX: Smith (Margaritha), 42
PHX: Avayevu (Johnson), 71
DET: Smith (R. Williams), 87
DET: Smith, 89
DET: Cedeño (Chapman), 90
Misconduct Summary:
DET: Williams (caution), 11
PHX: Okello (caution), 15
PHX: Margaritha (caution), 50
Lineups:
PHX: GK Henry, D Cuello, D Mar Boye ©, D Montgomery (Walls, 57), D Smith, M Sainté, M Okello (Scearce, 57), M Avayevu (Formella, 79), F Sacko, F Cabral (Johnson, 69), F Margaritha (Rivera, 69)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Rakovsky, D Neville, M Ping, F Kowall
TOTAL SHOTS: 11 (multiple players, 2); SHOTS ON GOAL: 3 (multiple players, 1); FOULS: 12 (multiple players, 2); OFFSIDES: 3; CORNER KICKS: 3; SAVES: 2
DET: GK Herrera, D Amoo-Mensah, D Carroll, D Bryant, M Villanueva (Doner, 70), M Rutz (Morris, 59), M Chapman, M Williams, F Abedayo-Smith (Smith, 60), F Cedeño (Wiedt, 90+3), F Williams
Substitutes Not Used: GK Saldana, M Gasso, M Polisi
TOTAL SHOTS: 15 (Chapman, 4) SHOTS ON GOAL: 5 (Smith, 2); FOULS: 16 (Carroll, 3) OFFSIDES: 1; CORNER KICKS: 8; SAVES: 1
Referee: Natalie Simon
Assistant Referees: Ben Rigel, Justin Fillmore
Fourth Official: Mark Novosel
Attendance: 5,108
All statistics contained in this box score are unofficial.
