UTCA, SONORA MEET FOR SECOND STRAIGHT NIGHT

Tonight’s Game: Utica City FC wraps up their two-game road trip against the Soles de Sonora. Kickoff is at 8 p.m. EST.

Last Game: It was a back and forth affair all night long, but Utica City was able to come away with a 12-11 overtime victory over the Soles de Sonora Saturday night at the Centro de Usos Multiples. Ricardo Diegues recorded four goals, while Bo Jelovac and Alencar Ventura Junior scored twice and Liam Callahan, Nate Bourdeau, Cristhian Segura, and Moises Gonzalez all added one goal apiece. Andrew Coughlin made 14 saves in the win.

Head to Head: This is the second meeting all-time between Utica and Sonora. Utica won the first ever matchup last night. Ricardo Diegues leads all scorers in the series with four points. 

Scouting the Soles: Sonora comes in with a record of 9-11 and sits in fourth place in the Western Division. Enrique Cañez leads the offense with 43 points, followed by Gustavo Rosales with 25 points. Alejandro Gallardo is the top goalkeeper with a record of 6-4-1, a 6.42 goals-against average, and a .637 goals-against average.

Mr. Consistent: Ricardo Diegues made a big statement in last night’s win. Diegues scored four goals in his return to the lineup, the second time he’s scored four goals in a game this season. He has also tallied at least one point in every game he has played in this season. The forward was 24 points (19-5-24) in 11 games this year.

Big Welcome: Alencar Ventura Junior introduced himself to Utica fans in a big way. Junior netted two goals and an assist in last night’s win. Junior has scored in every MASL game he has played in, most recently with Cedar Rapids in 2017. He also scored 19 goals in 17 PDL games with Western Mass that year.

High Powered: Utica’s power play has played very well lately. City has scored on five of their last seven attempts on the power play in the last six games, including two goals on the man advantage last night. City’s power play ranks 11th in the MASL at 40% (8-20). 

Career Year: Bo Jelovac is in the midst of a career season. Jelovac has set new career bests in assists and points and sits five goals away from tying his career high in goals. He also has points in six straight games, collecting 16 points (8-8-16) during that stretch. The captain has posted 33 points (15-18-33) in 17 games this season. 

Next Game: Utica City returns to action Sunday, March 8 at home against the Kansas City Comets. Kickoff is at 2 p.m. Tickets are still available at the Box Office, over the phone by calling (315) 790-9070, or online at www.empirestatetix.com The game can be viewed on MASL.tv.