Desert drama: Phoenix Rising edges United in PKs

Saturday’s Jägermeister Cup match in Phoenix was certainly worth staying up late to watch.

New Mexico United players might lose a little sleep over it, however.

Phoenix Rising FC eventually got the last laugh, winning a penalty shootout and earning two Jägermeister Cup points after playing to a hard-fought 3-3 draw with United. NMU settled for one point in the Group 2 standings.

Penalties ended up being a determining factor throughout the match as Rising FC converted one in regulation and hit three more in the shootout. New Mexico’s first three shootout attempts were stopped by Phoenix goalkeeper Patrick Rakovsky, putting the visitors in a 2-0 hole.

United goalkeeper Alex Tambakis then posted back-to-back saves, and Will Seymore and Kalen Ryden converted from the spot to briefly even the shootout count at 2-2. But Phoenix’s Jearl Margaritha banged in his team’s final chance to earn his side an extra point in the Jägermeister Cup group standings.

United is 1-0-1 with four points with two more group matches to go before the knockout round. Phoenix is 0-1-1 with two points.

“Coming home with a point after a cup match on the road, I guess you’d say that’s all right,” NMU coach Dennis Sanchez said in a postgame interview. “But when you have a 3-2 lead late, you want to close that out. Just certain moments of the game we didn’t control the way we wanted to, which needs to be a learning experience for us.”

Mukwelle Akale, Luiz Fernando and McKinze Gaines scored regulation goals for New Mexico, which led 1-0, trailed 2-1 and regained the lead at 3-2 before Phoenix pulled even in the 70th minute.

Both teams had numerous scoring chances in the back-and-forth contest, with Rising FC ending up with a 12-11 shot advantage (7-5 in shots on target). New Mexico held 59% of the possession.

United had the better of things for most of the first half, taking a 1-0 lead when Akale curled a free kick over Phoenix’s defensive wall and into the top of the net in the 14th minute. Akale’s second goal in as many weeks held up until the closing minutes of the first half.

Phoenix got even after NMU’s Jaylin Lindsey was called for a penalty for taking down Darius Johnson in the box. Ihsan Sacko cashed in the ensuing kick in the 40th minute.

Rising FC scored again in first-half stoppage time after a United turnover and defensive breakdown. Margaritha chipped a centering pass over a sliding Tambakis to the front of the goal, where Hope Avayevu stood unmarked for an easy header and a 2-1 halftime lead.

“I thought we started really well, had control for the first 40 minutes,” Sanchez said. “The PK really changed the momentum and things got away from us for a few minutes late in the first half.”

United bounced back after halftime. Fernando blasted home an equalizing goal on a well-placed chip pass from Chris Gloster in the 57th minute. New Mexico then grabbed a 3-2 lead in the 63rd, when Akale forced a turnover, passed to Marlon Vargas, who found Gaines open for a tap-in goal.

But Phoenix cashed in on a well-placed corner kick in the 70th minute that Tambakis and NMU’s defenders were unable to turn away. John Scearce was credited with the goal, which ultimately forced a draw. Jägermeister Cup matches do not include overtime but proceed to a shootout when matches end in a draw.

“Up and down match with lots of transition moments on both sides,” Sanchez said. “I loved the fight after we went down 2-1 and I thought our substitutes (including Gaines and Vargas) gave us a nice boost. Just a couple moments we’d really like to have back.”

After going 2-0-1 in three straight road matches, United returns home Saturday to host defending USLC champion Colorado Springs Switchbacks at 7 p.m.