San Antonio strikes early and often in win over NM United

There’s something to be said for taking a direct approach.

San Antonio FC did that more than once at Isotopes Park on Saturday night and it proved to be a winning strategy.

Rida Zouhir blasted a pair of lengthy shots into the net — the first one coming less than two minutes into the match — and SAFC rolled to a 3-0 victory over New Mexico United in front of 9,740 fans.

San Antonio (12-4-7), the defending USL champions, controlled things almost from the outset. While New Mexico (8-10-4) worked the ball around the pitch attempting to break down the opposing defense, SAFC hit long passes, attacked in transition and, when in doubt, let shots fly.

United Head Coach Eric Quill noted San Antonio's attacking style of play in the postgame news conference.

"They're hunters and they all do it collectively and with intensity," he said. "It's a distinct style but we've got to find solutions. We're capable of that but this wasn't our night."

San Antonio won for the sixth time in their last seven games. United, meanwhile, suffered its third straight loss behind a sputtering attack that has managed just one goal over its last three appearances and was limited to one shot on target Saturday night.

United’s defense did a more effective job in the second half but SAFC’s three first-half tallies had all but decided the outcome.

Before some fans had even settled into their seats, SAFC earned a corner kick, which NMU’s Sam Hamilton headed back toward the center of the field. The ball bounced right to Zouhir just outside the penalty area, and he promptly blasted it into the upper net cords for a 1-0 San Antonio lead.

It stayed that way until the 31st minute, when Zouhir lined up for a free kick from 25 yards out on the right wing. Rather than serve it in front, Zouhir laced a slicing shot past NMU goalkeeper Alex Tambakis and doubled his team’s lead.

It was Zouhir’s third goal in two matches against New Mexico this season. He has six this season overall.

United had one of its better scoring opportunities in the 36th minute when Amando Moreno settled a ball inside the SAFC box, but his shot sailed high.

Any legitimate hopes of a comeback fizzled when Santiago Patino made the most of a well-placed cross with a sliding shot into the net in the 40th minute.

Trailing 3-0 at halftime, United made several substitutions in the second half. Daniel Bruce entered the game and promptly put a shot on goal in the 47th minute, but SAFC goalkeeper Jordan Farr scooped it up and would not be seriously threatened the rest of the way.

Quill handed red card

"Long story short, we shot ourselves in the foot," Quill said. "It's on me and I apologize to the fans. I've got to have us ready and that wasn't the case tonight."

Frustrations started to become evident for the hosts in the final minutes. Quill picked up his second yellow card of the evening and was sent off with the resulting red card. Quill will serve a one-game suspension when NMU travels to face San Diego Loyal on Aug. 19.

Both teams engaged in a shoving match after a foul late in stoppage time, but a pair of yellow cards were enough to restore order.

United captain Josh Suggs called the loss "embarrassing."

"Give them credit," he said. "The biggest thing for us is we can't dwell on this loss, embarrassing as it is. Put it behind us, get into training and be better when we go to San Diego."

United remained in ninth place in the USLC Western Conference standings. San Antonio pulled to within two points of first-place Sacramento.

Photos: United falls to San Antonio FC