Las Vegas Lights FC gain three crucial points by an own goal and late save by goalkeeper Raiko Arozarena at Cashman Field.
Las Vegas Lights FC picked up a 1-0 win against Lexington SC on Saturday night after a first-half mistake gave them the edge. In the 17th minute, Lexington goalkeeper Brooks Thompson misplayed the ball into his own net, handing Vegas the only goal of the match. The Lights backed up the lead with steady play, holding 51% of possession and keeping pressure on with intense defense.
Goalkeeper Raiko Arozarena made sure the advantage held, stepping up with two big saves, including a highlight stop in the 95th minute to seal the clean sheet. Arozarena now has eight total clean sheets this season. With grit and a strong mentality, the Lights protected their early lead and earned all three points at home.
What They’re Saying
GOALKEEPER RAIKO AROZARENA
Sus pensamientos generales sobre el partido…
Se siente bien, ya que estamos últimos en la tabla, solo nos toca ganar y todos los partidos tenemos que jugarlos como una final y hoy fue un gran partido y se siente genial llevarnos los tres puntos.
Sobre cómo se sintió al hacer la parada ganadora del juego…
Me sentí como, wow, qué gran tapada hice. Yo creo que esa fué la última que ellos iban a tener y entonces después estaba loco porque terminara, el ref que pitara, entonces cuando pitó, celebré mucho porque tenía mucha emoción en ese momento.
HEAD COACH DEVIN RENSING
On his overall thoughts on the match…
I’m really proud of the effort. We had some guys injured and we had guys step up that haven’t seen minutes lately – Nate Jones and Jack Singer, they stepped up big time for us. Even Shawn Smart and Turner (Humphrey) coming in at the end. Great team effort, I’m really proud of the guys. It wasn’t always the prettiest, but we dug deep and worked our a** off.
On how important these three points were looking at the playoff race…
I know we’re at the table and that just puts us one step closer. It’s a competitive league and we just got to keep pushing forward. All I’m thinking about now is Phoenix and getting 3 points there and working close to that playoff line.
On how special his first win being at home at Cashman Field…
I’m just happy that the fans got to see a win. It’s been a while here and they deserve that. They deserve to to cheer for something, and I’m just happy that we got 3 points in here at Cashman Field. Yeah, it feels good.
On looking forward to Phoenix and using this momentum…
We’re gonna go face a tough Phoenix team. I think the guys saw a little bit of their hard work the last couple of weeks with me, and to tell you the truth, they’ve been really great since l’ve been here. Aside from the 20 or so minutes at the start against North Carolina where we had a a little bit of a letdown. The guys have been great and working hard, and I’m just happy to see them rewarded.
Summary
Lights Starting XI:
Arozarena (GK), Singer (Smart, 71′), Herbert, Gartig, Jones (Humphrey, 80′), Pearson (O’Driscoll, 63′), Leal, Gaines (Pickering, 63′), Gannon, McNamara (c), Rodriguez (Stojanovic, 80′)
Lexington SC Starting XI: Thompson, Burks, Hafferty, Firmino, Epps (Rodrigues, 46′) (c), Ferri, Sargeant, Gibert, Adedokun, Williams (Ajago, 63′), Burke
Goals:
LV – Brooks Thompson (OG) – 17′
Discipline:
LV –Yellow, Tommy NcNamara – 52’
LV –Yellow, McKinze Gaines – 58’
LEX – Yellow, Kieran Sargeant – 82′
LEX – Yellow, Cory Burke – 86′
LEX – Yellow, Blaine Ferri – 90′