The Tacoma Defiance picked up a shootout win over Ventura County on Sunday, the first time they’d beaten their Southern California rivals in three meetings this year. The Defiance emerged from the shootout with a 4-3 win, with Jacob Castro making two saves and Travian Sousa converting the final spot kick to clinch the bonus point. Still, it was a bit of a frustrating result for the Defiance, who jumped out to a 2-0 lead behind two Dylan Teves goals in a first half they thoroughly dominated.
But after starting the game with seven players on first team contracts, the Defiance made a host of changes early in the second half and surrendered their lead. Both Ventura County goals came off free kicks from almost exactly the same place on the pitch. The Defiance had a couple decent chances to grab a late winner but couldn’t find the final touch. A regulation win would have pushed the Defiance past Ventura County in the standings, but they are instead two points behind.
Ventura County leads MLS Next Pro with seven shootout wins and this was just their second loss in the bonus stage. The Defiance improved to 2-1 in shootouts.
Standings
Highlights
Key Performers
Dylan Teves: The midfielder has now scored in three consecutive appearances for the Defiance, scoring four goals in that time. Both goals were well taken in this one, the first from a tight angle and the other through traffic. It’s becoming pretty apparent that he can play at this level. Unfortunately, it also might be a case of the “Quadruple-A player” where he might not be quite good enough for MLS. Still, he’s showing that he might deserve a little more of a look, though.
Danny Leyva: Watching Leyva play is always fun, as he’s clearly a creative player who can pick out a pass. The ball he played to Teves for the initial goal was a good example of what he does well, as he helped win the ball back with some counter-pressing and then slipped Teves in with a first-time touch. He completed 10 of 11 long balls, was credited with 10 recoveries and won 4 of 7 duels. He was deployed as a defensive midfielder here, but I do wonder how he might look as Albert Rusnák’s backup.
Jacob Castro: The goalkeeper wasn’t great, but he came up with two big saves in the shootout and nearly made a third. I think it’s fair to say that his positioning and decision-making can sometimes get him in trouble, but in a shootout like this he shows some impressive shot-stopping ability. Castro is still relatively new to goalkeeping and you can see why coaches like his potential.
Stats
MATCH SUMMARY
Tacoma Defiance 2 (4) – Ventura County FC 2 (3)
Sunday, August 18, 2024
Venue: Starfire Stadium
Referee: Justin St. Pierre
Assistants: Salvador Reyes, Conrado Garcia
Fourth official: Kelsey Harms
Weather: 66 degrees and sunny
SCORING SUMMARY
TAC – Dylan Teves (Danny Leyva) 18’
TAC – Dylan Teves (Sota Kitahara) 44’
VCFC – Ifunanyachi Achara (Jose Luis Magana Jr.) 55’
VCFC – Paul Ilijah Paul Gindiri (Gabriel Arnold) 68’
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
TAC – Danny Leyva (caution) 31’
VCFC – Ascel Essengue (caution) 52’
VCFC – Tucker Lepley (caution) 63’
TAC – Blake Bowen (caution) 67’
TAC – Osaze De Rosario (caution) 90+2’
SHOOTOUT SUMMARY
VCFC – Gabriel Arnold (saved)
TAC – Chris Aquino (scored)
VCFC – Nicolas Schelotto (saved)
TAC – Kalani Kossa-Rienzi (saved)
VCFC – Jose Luis Magana Jr. (scored)
TAC – Osaze De Rosario (scored)
VCFC – Harbor Miller (scored)
TAC – Blake Bowen (scored)
VCFC – Erik Hernandez (scored)
TAC – Travian Sousa (scored)
LINEUPS & STATS
Tacoma Defiance – Jacob Castro; Reed Baker-Whiting (Kalani Kossa-Rienzi 46’), Nathan (Antino Lopez 63’), Jonathan Bell (Stuart Hawkins 46’), Travian Sousa – captain; Danny Leyva (Snyder Brunell 75’), Sota Kitahara; Dylan Teves (Blake Bowen 63’), Chris Aquino, Georgi Minoungou; Osaze De Rosario
Substitutes not used: Lars Helleren, Sebastian Gomez, Yu Tsukanome, Gio Miglietti
Total shots: 11
Shots on goal: 3
Fouls: 14
Offside: 1
Corner-kicks: 3
Saves: 1
Ventura County FC – Brady Scott – captain; Riley Dalgado, Ascel Essengue, Jose Luis Magana Jr., Harbor Miller; Gabriel Arnold, Tucker Lepley (Nicolas Schelotto 75’); Sean Karani (Christian Coreas 90+4’), Ruben Ramos Jr. (Dylan Vanney 75’), Ifunanyachi Achara (Erik Hernandez 75’); Paul Ilijah Paul Gindiri
Substitutes not used: Owen Pratt, Victor Casillas Martin, Enrique Martinez
Total shots: 14
Shots on goal: 3
Fouls: 8
Offside: 1
Corner-kicks: 2
Saves: 1
