Monterey Bay Tops New Mexico United 1-0 in Seaside, Secures Second-Consecutive Shutout

SEASIDE, California (Sunday, June 2, 2024) – Monterey Bay F.C. (5-5-4, 19 points) defeated the current Western Conference leaders New Mexico United (7-3-1, 22 points) by a score of 1-0 on Paws at the Pitch Night at Cardinale Stadium, presented by Taylor Farms. Chuy Enríquez opened his goalscoring account for the Crisp-and-Kelp with the game-winning score in the second half, while Antony Siaha saved a penalty and influenced another PK miss enroute to a season-high seven save night.

Access the postgame quote sheet here

Monterey Bay employed a high press from the first whistle in this one, a decision that led to some dangerous chances early, however none came closer than Walmer Martínez in the 9th minute. After breaking past the New Mexico back line, Martínez’ initial attempt was thwarted by the onrushing goalkeeper, only for the ball to spill back into his path. With an empty net in his sights, Martínez attempted to chest the ball down for an attempt at the opening goal, but his first touch was slightly too heavy and the ball rolled out for a goal kick. In the 22nd minute, a blunder by the New Mexico goalkeeper left the net empty after Adrian Rebollar beat him to a long ball. Rebollar worked his way around several defenders at the top-left corner of the box, but his attempt to get a shot off towards the open net was blocked. MBFC earned three consecutive corners in the 27th minute, with the third resulting in a header by Kai Greene, but it was cleared off the line despite appeals from the home side that it fully crossed the line. New Mexico United came back with three rapid fire chances of their own just past the half-hour mark, but Siaharesponded with three incredible saves to keep the visitors off the board. Michael Gonzalez fired off a shot from the top of the box that was deflected high up into the air by a New Mexico defender and looked to sneak inside the crossbar on its way down, but the goalkeeper managed to tip it up and over the bar to keep the match scoreless at the halftime break.

The home side found the opening score nearly 20 minutes into the second half. Following a leaping save in the box, Siaha perfectly distributed the ball ahead to Morey Doner down the right sideline. As he neared the top of the box, Doner whipped the ball across to Enríquez. With three defenders lurking, Enríquez saw his first attempt blocked, before quickly firing in a second attempt that beat the goalkeeper to give the Crisp-and-Kelp the 1-0 lead. Now a goal behind, New Mexico United pushed forward for the equalizer and won a penalty with a hand ball called against the hosts. Zico Bailey stepped up to the spot, and with Siaha diving in the same direction, the shot was pulled just enough to ricochet off the left post and out. Monterey Bay unluckily conceded a second penalty in the 81st minute. This time, Mukwelle Akale stepped up for New Mexico, but the result remained the same. Having heavily influenced the previous penalty, Siaha now dove in the opposite direction and stonewalled the attempt to keep New Mexico United off the board once again and secure a second consecutive clean sheet amidst a seven-save performance.

Up Next

Monterey Bay wraps up the homestand next Saturday, June 8 against the current Western Conference leaders and fellow NorCal rivals Sacramento Republic FC on Pride Night at Cardinale Stadium. The match kicks off at 7 p.m. PT and will be broadcast locally on KION (46 & 23 over the air, 46 Dish, 27 DirecTV and 5/705 HD Xfinity), with live streaming available on ESPN+.

Golden Memorial Man of the Match

Without a doubt, Antony Siaha earns the night’s Golden Memorial Man of the Match for his heroic performance in the Club’s pivotal home win over New Mexico United. Facing a top team in the conference, Siaha broke his season high for the second match in a row with seven saves. He was unbeatable from the spot as well, as he greatly influenced a missed penalty and then saved another to maintain Monterey Bay’s clean sheet in four days. In addition, Siaha becomes the first player of the season to earn back-to-back Man of the Match awards for MBFC.

Additional Notes

Chuy Enríquez scored his first goal as a member of the Crisp-and-Kelp in the match, the game-winner in the 64th minute.
Missing the match due to injury were Luther Archimède (knee), Chase Boone (knee), Simon Dawkins (knee), Jesse Maldonado (knee), Anthony Orendain (ankle), and Tristan Trager (ribs).

Information

Date: June 2, 2024
Venue: Cardinale Stadium; Seaside, California
Weather: Clear and 62 degrees
Attendance: 3,419

Scoring Summary: 1 2 F

Monterey Bay F.C. 0 1 1
New Mexico United 0 0 0
MB: Chuy Enríquez 64’

Lineups

Monterey Bay F.C. (4-1-4-1): Antony Siaha; Grant Robinson (Chuy Enríquez, 45’), Carlos Guzmán, Kai Greene, Morey Doner; Rafa Baca ; Walmer Martínez, Adrian Rebollar, Mobi Fehr, Michael Gonzalez (Max Glasser, 79’); Alex Dixon (Pierce Gallaway, 89’)
Subs not used: Carlos Herrera, Alex Lara, Miguel Guerrero, Xavi Gnaulati

New Mexico United (4-2-3-1): Alex Tambakis; Abdirizak Mohamed (Will Seymore, 90+1’), Christopher Gloster, Anthony Herbert, Jon-Talen Maples; Zico Bailey, Dominick Hernandez (Mukwelle Akale, 45’), Nanan Houssou, Avionne Flanagan (Dayonn Harris, 60’), Jacobo Reyes (Harry Swartz, 60’); Greg Hurst (Daniel Bruce, 60’)
Subs not used: Kristopher Shakes, Arturo Astorga

Stats Summary: MB / NM

Shots: 9 / 17
Shots on Goal: 3 / 7
Saves: 7 / 1
Corner Kicks: 4 / 3
Fouls: 17 / 11
Possession: 43.2% / 56.8%

Misconduct Summary

MB: Kai Greene (caution) 7’
NM: Greg Hurst (caution) 39’
NM: Avionne Flanagan (caution) 43’
NM: Anthony Herbert (caution) 61’
MB: Rafa Baca (caution) 68’
MB: Anthony Siaha (caution) 83’