COMMERCE CITY, Colo. — The Colorado Rapids (11-13-9, 42 pts) will close out the 2022 MLS season on the road as they face Austin FC (16-10-7, 55 pts) at Q2 Stadium on Sunday, October 9 (3 p.m. MT; Altitude Sports, Altitude Sports Radio 92.5 FM).
Robin Fraser’s side enter the match following a 1-0 victory at home against FC Dallas on Saturday, their third win from their past four games. Diego Rubio earned a spot on the MLS Team of the Week roster for Week 33 after scoring the game-winning goal in the win, his 13th game-winning goal all-time in Burgundy, which surpassed Rapids great Paul Bravo for most in club history. The goal was also Rubio’s 15th of the season, leaving Rubio one away from tying Conor Casey's single-season club record of 16 goals. Rubio also reached his 22nd goal contribution of the year (15 goals, 7 assists), surpassing Mark Chung (21 in 2002) and John Spencer (21 in 2001) for the most goal contributions in a single season in club history. With the goal, Rubio became the first Rapids player to contribute to a goal in nine straight home matches since Chris Carrieri in 2002, as well as becoming the first Rapids player to score in six straight home MLS matches since Mark Chung in 2003.
Goalkeeper William Yarbrough recorded his 26th career shutout with the Rapids, tying him with Clint Irwin for second-most shutouts in club history. The two-time LigaMX champion is one win away from tying Irwin for third-most wins by a goalkeeper in club history (35). The match was also notable as Rapids legend Drew Moor made his final home appearance in Colorado, subbing in at the 80th minute to see out the result after his side had gone down to ten men following Gustavo Vallecilla’s red card.
The Rapids are 1-0-0 in their only contest at Q2 dating back to July 2021 (recap). All-time, Austin and Colorado each have two wins against each other across four MLS meetings, with the road team winning three of those four games; the only home victory in the series was a 3-0 Rapids win at DICK’S Sporting Goods Park in September 2021.
Colorado will face an Austin FC side that has already clinched a spot in the Audi 2022 MLS Cup Playoffs and will finished second in the Western Conference regardless of Sunday’s result. Los Verdes are winless in their last two games following a 1-1 draw at home against Nashville SC and a 2-0 loss on the road against Vancouver Whitecaps FC last weekend. MLS MVP candidate Sebastián Driussi leads Austin with 21 goals, second-most in the league, while veteran midfielder Diego Fagúndez has been the top deliverer with 15 assists this season, also second-most in MLS. In goal, Brad Stuver has recorded eight clean sheets this season.
