Still pushing to secure a playoff berth, San Antonio FC will try to halt a long scoring drought when it hosts New Mexico United on Saturday at Toyota Field at 7:30 p.m.
After playing two straight games on the road, SAFC (9-7-12, 39 points) returns home for the final two games of the regular season as it is locked in a tight battle for a postseason berth in the USL Championship Western Conference table.
With the season coming down to the wire, SAFC coach Carlos Llamosa said the club is taking it game by game with its playoff hopes on the line.
"With two games left, we're taking it one at a time," Llamosa said. "Right now, we're working and focusing on New Mexico. It's a home game after two road games. This is a must win for Saturday. For 90 minutes we have to be ready to fight, to control the game, to create chances to score goals. The only thing we want to chase here is six points the last two games and finish as high as we can in the playoff line."
San Antonio faces a New Mexico club, which has already clinched a playoff spot and sits in second place in the Western Conference, one game back of first place El Paso Locomotive FC. New Mexico (14-7-7, 49 points) is on a two-game winning streak as it fights for El Paso for the top seed in the conference.
SAFC sits in eighth in the conference after last weeks scoreless draw with Oakland Roots SC in Oakland. In earning the point, SAFC was able to stay above the playoff line, three points ahead of two other clubs, Phoenix Rising FC and Las Vegas Lights FC, who are still in the running for a playoff spot.
SAFC hopes to end a four-game scoreless streak that has led three draws and one loss.
Along with the rest of defense, goalkeeper Joey Batrouni has been steady at the net for SAFC. Batrouni earned USL Championship Team of the Week honors for his performance in Oakland, where he had three saves, including denying an Oakland penalty kick in stoppage time after the first half.
With the shutout, SAFC earned its 11th clean sheet of the season, tied for fourth best in the league. Batrouni has nine of those clean sheets, which is the fourth best individually in the USL, and his 68 saves rank him sixth in the league.
SAFC defender Mitchell Taintor said his club needs to stick together in its final two regular season games as they aim for a playoff spot.
"First off, we need to be together as a group," Taintor said. "We need to believe in one another, we need to believe in ourselves. There's a lot of talent on this team. Right now, we need pre-season energy. We need to be ultra-focused every single day. It's always all business, but especially where you're in moments of mercy like this, it's all business times two. It's going to take that extra bit of focus, extra bit of energy and grit. I think the overarching theme is the mentality and being together and the belief in the group that we can go and do something special."
Although New Mexico is ahead of SAFC in the table, San Antonio defeated the Unite twice this year, including a 2-1 win in Albuquerque on Aug. 29, which was the last win for SAFC.
New Mexico is sixth in the league in goals scored (44). Leading the United attack is forward Greg Hurst, who has 12 goals, ranking him as one of the top 10 scorers in the USL.
Defensively, New Mexico goalkeeper Kristopher Shakes has made it tough for opposing players with a league best 111 saves.
Last year, New Mexico swept SAFC in four matches across all competitions, including a first-round playoff game. Taintor said San Antonio has used last season as motivation against United.
"I think the mentality going into those games has been really, really good from an attacking standpoint and defensive standpoint and team standpoint," Taintor said. "We're up for these games, regardless of the position that we're in now. We want to play against the best teams. We want to test ourselves; we want to win those games. There's a lot to play for. There's a real reward if we win it, there's also real consequence if we lose. So, I'm excited, it's going to be a great night. We're going to give it our all."
Subscribe
There’s more to San Antonio with the Express-News. Subscribe today for just 25¢.This article originally published at SAFC hopes to continue recent success against New Mexico in push for postseason.