Toyota Field – The San Antonio Scorpions looked to be on their way to a draw as time began to tick off the clock late in the match, but then stunning goal in the final minutes took all that away.
Omar Cummings scored the loan goal for the red and black as the Scorpions fell 1-2 to Indy Eleven (1-2-0) in front of 5,305 fans at Toyota Field on Saturday night.
San Antonio began the game aggressive as they sent multiple shots towards the net, but Indy goalkeeper Christian Nicht came up big. The red and black had their best scoring chance when Marvin Chavez sent a 20-yard shot towards the net that forced Nicht to dive for the ball, keeping the game scoreless going into the second half.
The Scorpions got on the scoreboard in the second half thanks to a mistake by Indy. Cummings sent a shot sent a low shot towards the left corner of the net, beating Nicht to put San Antonio up 1-0 in the 52nd minute. Indy responded just 12 minutes later when Erick Norales put home a header past Scorpions keeper Jon Kempin to even the score 1-1.
Indy went ahead for good when Sergio Peña kicked the ball 40-yards in the 89th minute, sending the ball – and Kempin – into the net to give the visitors the 1-2 lead. Despite three minutes of stoppage time being added, the Scorpions could not find the equalizer.
“We were the better team,” Scorpions head coach Alen Marcina said. “Hands down. There’s no if, and, or but..whatever. Clearly the better team, you have to capitalize on opportunities. This could have been a 3-4 nothing game and if anyone sees differently I question their thought process on this game.”
San Antonio had five shots on target and Indy had six. The red and black had the edge in possession 51 percent to Indy’s 49 percent.
“We have to convert on our chances,” Marcina said. “We’re creating plenty of chances, now we just need to convert on those chances to get more goals.”
The Scorpions are now 0-0-2 (0 points) on the season and will hit the road for the first time in the Spring Season to take on Minnesota United next Saturday at 7 p.m. inside NSC Stadium.
