LAS VEGAS, Nevada (Saturday, June 1) – Phoenix Rising FC (4-5-4) earned a point on the road in Las Vegas tonight, thanks to goalkeeper Rocco Rios Novo, who finished the night with 10 saves in a scoreless draw with Lights FC.
Rising and Las Vegas traded chances at opposite ends of the pitch in the opening 10 minutes of the match. Rocco Rios Novo came up with a save on a chance created by Vegas’ Soloman Asante in the 10th minute, answering a save from Lights goalkeeper Nicholas Ammeter on Panos Armenakas in the seventh minute.
The teams traded several set piece chances through the middle of the frame until Asante broke free on Vegas’ left flank, drove towards goal and tested Rios Novo with a hard, curling attempt in the 34th minute. Rios Novo was up to the task, diving low to his left side to punch the attempt out for a corner kick.
Asante was left unmarked down the left side at the opening of the second half. He tried a second time to beat Rios Novo low to the far post but once again the goalkeeper was alert and made a diving stop to his left to keep the match tied, 0-0.
Rios Novo made another huge save for Rising in the 56th minute, blocking down a point-blank header and then recovering to slap it off the goal line.
He made his seventh save of the game on Vegas’ Edison Azcona in the 64th minute, standing his ground and using his body to deflect a hard shot from just outside the six-yard box.
Rios Novo’s ninth save of the night may have been his best. The Argentine took a step backwards and laid out to get a fingertip on a hard shot from Vegas substitute Khori Bennett’s blast from just outside the box in the second minute of stoppage time. The dipping shot was pushed just over the bar by the goalkeeper to give Phoenix its fourth shutout of the season.
Scoring:
NONE
Discipline:
PHX – Edguardo Rito (caution) 21
PHX – Alejandro Fuenmayor (caution) 44
LVL – Charlie Adams (caution) 45+1
Lineups:
Las Vegas Lights FC – Nicholas Ammeter, Shawn Smart, Gennaro Nigro, Hafferty, Fabien Garcia, Charlie Adams (Alex Romero 60), Soloman Asante (Maliek Howell 83), JC Ngando, Valentin Noël, Coleman Gannon (Khori Bennett 83), Edison Azcona.
Substitutes not Used: Raiko Arozarena, Emrah Klimenta, Hayden Sargis, Sawyer Crisostomo, All Gue.
Phoenix Rising FC – Rios Novo, Alejandro Fuenmayor (Mo Traore 85), John Stenberg, Laurence Wyke, Edguardo Rito, Gabi Torres (, JC Azócar 70), Renzo Zambrano, Jose Andres Hernández (JP Scearce 74), Remi Cabral (Dariusz Formella 69), Panos Armenakas, Fede Varela (Erickson Gallardo 75).
Substitutes not Used: Patrick Rakovsky, Pape Mar Boye.
