SAN ANTONIO — San Antonio FC (1-0-0) beat reigning USL Championship title holders Real Monarchs SLC (0-1-0) 1-0 at Toyota Field in front of 7,020 fans. A goal from defender Callum Montgomery earned the club its first win of the season and first victory under new Head Coach Alen Marcina.
“It’s a great opponent in the reigning champions,” Marcina said. “We knew it was going to be a challenge, but we saw it as a great opportunity to start the season going against them and we wanted to put on a good show for our fans and hopefully they left excited after tonight.”
SAFC scored the lone goal of the match in the 67th minute after forward Luis Solignac received the ball inside the box and found Montgomery with a low cross, which the centerback buried to give the hosts the 1-0 lead. Montgomery also scored a goal in the team’s preseason match against MLS club Orlando City SC last month.
The win propelled the Alamo City club’s run of unbeaten home openers since its 2016 inception. SAFC has posted a 3-0-2 record across their five season openers, with their biggest win coming in their 2017 opener as they beat LA Galaxy II 3-0.
Montgomery earned SWBC Man of the Match honors after helping the team earn its first clean sheet of the season as well, which was led by goalkeeper and San Antonio native Matthew Cardone’s two saves and one claim throughout the match.
San Antonio FC will return to USL Championship action on the road as they travel to face Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC at Weidner Field on Saturday March 14 at 4 pm CT.
Scoring Summary:
SAFC: 1-0, Callum Montgomery (Luis Solignac assist) 67’
Disciplinary Summary:
SLC: Yellow Card (Erik Holt) 15’
SLC: Yellow Card (Luke Mulholland) 23’
SAFC: Yellow Card (Gonzalo Di Renzo) 34’
SAFC: Yellow Card (Blake Smith) 38’
SLC: Yellow Card (Noah Powder) 56’
SLC: Yellow Card (Ashtone Morgan) 66’
SAFC: Yellow Card (Jack Blake) 82’
SLC: Red Card/Second Yellow (Noah Powder) 90’
Attendance: 7,020
SAFC Starting XI: GK: Matthew Cardone; D: Connor Maloney, Mitchell Taintor, Axel Sjoberg, Callum Montgomery, Blake Smith; M: Hayden Partain, PC, Jose Gallegos; F: Luis Solignac (c) (Jesus Enriquez 90’), Gonzalo Di Renzo (Ignacio Bailone 64’)
Substitutions not used: Carlos Mercado, Sebastian Mercado, Josh Ramsey, Santiago Viera, Tabort Etaka Preston
Postgame Notes:
San Antonio FC earned a 1-0 win over last year’s champions Real Monarchs SLC tonight…SAFC remains unbeaten in the club’s home openers since 2016, going 3-0-2 in those games…overall in their home openers SAFC has outscored its opponents 10-5
SAFC head coach Alen Marcina earned his first win as head coach of SAFC, taking his overall record in all competitions to 49-35-21
SAFC defender Callum Montgomery was named the SWBC Man of the Match after his performance…Montgomery scored the winning goal and added a key pass, two tackles, two clearances, one interception, and won 87.5 percent of his duels…becomes the fourth player to score on his debut in an SAFC home opener
San Antonio FC forward Luis Solignac led the team with two key passes and an assist while completing 75.9 percent of his passes…Solignac became the ninth player to lead the club on the field as captain
The SAFC defense and goalkeeper Matthew Cardone earned their first clean sheet, while the San Antonio native Cardone made two saves on the night