The Big Picture
Colorado Rapids 2 (6-11-3, 22 pts.) collected three points against Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 (6-8-5, 24 pts.) in a 1-2 result on Wednesday night at Swangard Stadium. Rapids Academy midfielder Rogelio Garcia scored his second goal in as many matches, while captain Marlon Vargas found the game-winning goal in stoppage time of the first half.
Garcia, who grabbed his first start of the season during tonight’s match, was first to find the back of the net in the 39th minute.
Alec Díaz kicked off the full team play in the midfield, finding Steve Flores in open space on the right flank. Flores continued forward to the edge of the box before releasing a short pass on the outside of his foot to Díaz on the endline. Before he ran out of space, Díaz looked for the far post where Garcia was placed to tap the ball into the back of the net.
Garcia’s goal marked his second in just five days, after he netted his first professional goal in last Saturday’s match against Houston Dynamo 2.
As the half was coming to a close, Colorado earned one more opportunity for a set piece from the corner.
Aguirre stood over the ball and collected the rebound on the service to send it back into the box. After taking a few bounces in the box, Vancouver cleared the ball only as far as Vargas who collected it with ease, dribbling to the edge of the 18. Vargas took one look at goal and struck the ball with pace into the top right corner of the near post for his eighth goal of the season and the game-winning goal of the match.
Following the half, Díaz attempted a breakaway in the 59th minute but was torn down from behind by a Vancouver defender, earning the home side a red card. Despite playing down a man, the Whitecaps were able to find the back of the net in the 69th minute, ending the game 1-2 in favor of Colorado.
Rapids 2 will return home to face off against Rocky Mountain rivals Real Monarchs on Sunday, August 18. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. MT at DICK’S Sporting Goods Park.
Notable:
- Rapids Academy M Rogelio Garcia scored the opening goal for Rapids 2 in back-to-back matches against Houston Dynamo 2 and Whitecaps FC 2.
- M Marlon Vargas netted his eighth goal in tonight’s match, continuing to lead the team in goals scored in 2024.
- F Alec Díaz recorded his second assist of the season during tonight’s match at Swangard Stadium.
- M Garcia recorded his first start for Rapids 2 in tonight’s match against Whitecaps FC 2.
- Rapids Academy M Landon Strohmeyer made his professional debut with Rapids 2 in tonight’s game.
- Rapids Academy GK Zackory Campagnolo recorded his first win on a road trip during tonight’s game at Swangard Stadium.
- Colorado Rapids 2 won two back-to-back matches for the first time in the 2024 MLS NEXT Pro season with a 2-1 win over Houston Dynamo 2 and a 1-2 win over Whitecaps FC 2.
- Colorado Rapids 2 traveled with 10 Rapids Academy players to Vancouver. Four of the 10 academy players made the team’s starting XI and eight of the 10 made an appearance in tonight’s match against Whitecaps FC 2.
Postgame Media Availability:
Head Coach Erik Bushey
Colorado Rapids 2 Forward Alec Díaz
Select postgame quotes transcribed below.
COLORADO RAPIDS 2 HEAD COACH ERIK BUSHEY
On the match…
"Really pleased with the boys, all of them. Obviously, we had a young squad. We had Michael Edwards coming in, who hasn’t been with us for a while now. In a position to not just get minutes, but help us win. I just think he is worth pointing out because he was a great soldier and great leader at the back at the same time. It is hard to say just how proud I am of the whole group. I thought we came out, we were good in possession, we controlled the tempo largely in the first half, really pleasing soccer. I think that continued in the game. We created a couple chances to score a couple of excellent goals. The challenge coming out in the second half is if we can sustain that. We don’t expect to see the same opponent that sat off a little bit in the first half now that they are down two goals. I thought the start of the second half was largely positive and the red card for the opponent changed the game. I think it is easy to assume the advantage is only going to increase but in some cases the man advantage becomes a bit of a trap. I don’t want to say we fell into it, but the game certainly wasn’t easy from then on and I think Vancouver deserves a lot of credit for that. Ultimately, we would have much rather won with a clean sheet. From a development standpoint, once again when we have to fight to the end and deal with, if not embrace the pressure that the game and the opponent is throwing at us, it’s good for our character and it’s good for our development to play in those scenarios where pressure increases. To get out with the 2-1 win and another victory, is really satisfying and I am super happy for the players.”
On how the pressure of the game helps young players and veteran players alike…
“Well, pressure helps everybody. It is a different kind of pressure potentially for the academy guys coming into this scenario with the second team. It is different from that for the more senior players. For each individual, there is great value in it. For the most part, everybody responded well. Michael [Edwards], for example, never showed real anxiety, even when we conceded, for me his game didn’t change. Sometimes for the young guys, it’s happening fast and they might not be dedicating thought to it, it's just time to work. They are not naive to the game, they have faced it before at different levels. This was an away game on a beautiful night with players who were prepared to work. I think excitement played a greater role than nerves. Ultimately, for each individual player, the collective tonight got it done and it’s a meaningful three points and experience.”
On winning three of the last four matches…
“In all seriousness, everybody feels good when you win. It’s been a long, hard season but each point and every three points just has a tremendous value. It really isn’t about trying to create momentum for the last eight games, it’s trying to create positivity for the next game. That is what we have done by way of tonight, we have created momentum that is going to allow us to believe when we enter our next game that we can once again perform and get the points. Since the last time we beat Vancouver, I think they have dropped one game in the last eight, nine, ten games. The Vancouver team has proven that they can beat the best teams in our division and we have as well, we just haven’t done it consistently. Three out of four, we will see what it means. It would mean something if the one loss in those four was with a good performance, it was not. We have to work each day and be intentional each day about building on and creating this consistency. I am excited to see how the boys come back and how they continue to prepare as they set their sights on the next game. We will just continue to set our sights on the next game only and see just how far we can progress as a team.”
COLORADO RAPIDS 2 FORWARD ALEC DÍAZ
On the match…
“It was a tough game against a good opponent. Any time we play away from home, it’s going to be a tough game. We were really just happy with it. It was a full team performance and it took all 18 players on the roster and we are really happy we could get it done.”
On winning back-to-back matches…
“It gets to a point where obviously we want to play a certain way, but at the end of the day three points is the most important thing. Especially going into this last stretch of the season, we know it’s going to be tough but we have to try to keep the momentum rolling and keep accumulating three points. Hopefully, we can get another three against Real Monarchs in two weeks time and against Austin after that. We just have to make sure we keep the momentum going and we rack up the points.”
On his role as a veteran in a game with multiple academy players…
“We were joking about it today about how many academy players we have on this trip but all the older guys on the team, we were kind of excited about it honestly. We have a lot of confidence in these guys, we see them everyday in training and they prove it every time they get on the field. We are just really happy they are able to get these minutes and contribute for us. We know that every time they go up, they are going to work hard, they are going to do what they have to do. Today Rogelio [Garcia] was here for us, he was here for us on the weekend as well, as well as Colton [Swan]. I am really glad he [Garcia] was able to get another goal tonight and super happy for him and really proud of the guys.”
On the last eight games of the season…
“At this point, it is about getting points. We have eight games left, and we have been able to get six points in the past two games. At this point, we have to get as many points as we can to try to make our way back into this playoff hunt, which I think we are perfectly capable of doing and I think we have proved it in the past two games. With eight games left, obviously we are shooting for 24 points and that’s all we can do, just take it one game at a time and every game focus on getting those three points.”
