Republic FC fall short of a win for the second game in a row against Tacoma
In the season reboot opener against Tacoma Defiance on July 13, Sacramento Republic FC ended up settling for a disappointing tie.
Not much has changed.
Sunday night’s game against the same Tacoma team ended with the same 3-3 scoreline. And it echoed a similar theme — the difference between getting three points and ending with 3-3 ties against Tacoma twice and Reno last week will likely result in Republic FC finishing in second place in Group A and playing on the road in the first round of the playoffs.
For the third game in a row, Sac Republic surrendered a goal in the first few minutes. In that reboot opener in July, Tacoma scored in the first minute; on Sunday Tacoma forward Jesus Perez scored in the third minute.
That 1-0 score lasted until halftime.
“It’s something that we’ve been talking about for the past couple of weeks and for whatever reason just keeps happening,” Kharlton Belmar said. “It’s extremely disappointing because I think it’s something we focus on so much before the game, to make sure we start on the right foot and for whatever reason, we keep having mental lapses and putting ourselves in a tough spot.”
Changes in the lineup
Coach Mark Briggs elected to go with a different lineup Sunday against Tacoma.
For the first time since suffering an injury in the season opener against FC Tulsa on March 7, Juan Barahona was in the starting 11.
“I thought Juan, considering he’s just come back from injury, I thought he was one of our better players,” Briggs said. “I was extremely pleased to have Juan back on the field and have the qualities that he brings to the table.”
Goalkeeper Brady Scott made his first start for Republic FC after being loaned last month from Nashville SC for the remainder of the 2020 USL Championship season. He allowed a goal in the 3rd minute. Dekel Keinan was also making his first start since the FC Tulsa game but has appeared in a handful of games as a substitute prior to Sunday.
“A part of the loan was about getting Brady minutes,” Briggs said. “We just decided to give (Rafa) a break and let his body heal a little bit. I thought to be honest Brady did well for his first professional game. I thought he handled himself well. He communicated well.”
Wild second half ends with Lopez’s equalizer
Sacramento was finally able to find the back of the net when Villyan Bijev scored in the 48th minute off an assist from Sam Werner. About 10 minutes later, a handball was called in the box which resulted in Belmar scoring his first goal in a Republic FC uniform on a penalty. That gave Sacramento its first lead of the night at 2-1.
Tacoma tied it at 2-2 in the 66th minute off a goal from forward Alec Diaz.
The final 10 minutes of the game provided drama. Tacoma’s Rey Serrano scored in the 86th minute to give Tacoma a 3-2 lead. But in the final minute before stoppage time, Rodrigo Lopez scored to tie the game at three.
Sacramento will take on rival Reno next on the road Saturday. In their last matchup, Sacramento surrendered a late goal that put them in a tough position to win Group A.
SACRAMENTO REPUBLIC FC UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Sept. 26 at Reno 1868, 6:30 p.m.
Sept. 30 at Tacoma Defiance, 7 p.m.
Oct. 3 vs Portland Timbers 2, 7:30 p.m.
This story was originally published September 21, 2020 at 7:39 AM with the headline "Republic FC fall short of a win for the second game in a row against Tacoma."