This Saturday, on 90’s Night at Weidner Field, the Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC return to Colorado Springs as they host the Seattle Sounders FC 2. The Gazette Newspaper will be sponsoring the second part of the 2018 Poster Giveaway Series this weekend, with the first 500 fans receiving their posters as the gates open.
Wednesday evening saw the Switchbacks lose 2-1 at Sacramento Republic’s Papa Murphy’s Park, as the hosts maintained their undefeated start to 2018 after Shane Malcolm had opened the scoring for the Switchbacks.
“We’ve got to win our home games and the guys know that,” said Switchbacks Head Coach Steve Trittschuh. “Getting the goals in Reno was huge for us, and I thought we played well against Sacramento even though we lost. It was those two errors that cost us the two goals in Sacramento. We did enough in the first half to win that game. If we put our chances away there’s a chance we could have scored a few. We couldn’t capitalize in our transition going forward and they [Sacramento] get the win because we gave up two bad goals. That won’t happen at home. We’ve got to make sure we keep our focus because that’s been big for us this season here. Seattle will be tough as always and we haven’t had much time to prepare.”
The Seattle Sounders FC 2 have won twice and lost four times in the young 2018 USL regular season. A win on opening day against their Pacific Northwest rivals Portland Timbers 2 was followed by four consecutive losses for S2, until Head Coach John Hutchinson’s team bounced back with a 3-2 victory against Rio Grande Valley FC last Saturday. After the win against RGV and without having a midweek game like the Switchbacks, the Sounders S2 made their way to Colorado Springs a few days early to prepare for Saturday’s match in the altitude of Weidner Field.
Cameroonian striker Felix Chenkam scored twice for S2 in last weekend’s win against RGV at Cheney Stadium in Tacoma, Washington. Chenkam is tied for the lead on S2’s goal-charts with David Estrada on three goals apiece.
“They’re a good young team and they possess the ball well and they move out quickly in their transition play,” said Trittschuh. “We’ve got to always know where [Felix] Chenkam is. Ray Saari in the middle is also a very good, solid player – they’re a well-rounded team. It won’t be easy. It’s our third game this week and a lot of the same guys will be playing for us. It’s tough, but we’re glad to be home.”
“Seattle are coming off a win and came here a day early,” said Shane Malcolm. “We expect them to be ready. We’re trying to make this place a fortress for us to play in and I fully believe that the team and the fans are ready to do that. We’ve done well here this season and the conditions up here will help make sure we continue to fight.”
Saturday’s opponents will have to wait until early October for this weekend’s rematch. The Switchbacks will visit Cheney Stadium in Tacoma, Washington on October 10th as Steve Trittschuh’s team finish their 2018 USL regular season campaign.
“We know we’ll get a really good game from Seattle,” said Jordan Schweitzer. “As always they’ve got a young group that’s all looking to push on in that organization and make the first team. We’re really excited to have them here in the altitude at Weidner Field – it’s been a long trip but we do well here and hopefully the conditions can help us too.”
“We’ve got to be on our game – Seattle are quick and they’re a young team with a good front three,” said Taylor Hunter. “It always helps us to play better when we are at home and getting results in front of our fans means a lot to us. It will be especially nice to be back this weekend after our trip. We’ve been watching up on them and we’ll go through practice today and finish our plan. Seattle are a good team but we’re glad to be back.”
After Saturday’s match, the Switchbacks return to the West Coast for an April 28th showdown with Orange County SC at Champions Soccer Stadium at OC Great Park in Irvine, California.
Weidner Field will host the Switchbacks on Cinco de Mayo, with Colorado Technical University sponsoring a Cushion Giveaway for the visit of Reno 1868 FC.
“We’re strong here and we have to match the energy of being at home,” said Trittschuh. “We enjoy playing in this stadium but we’ve got to take advantage of being up here. We’ve got to play our up-tempo game and have somebody score when we need goals. We know Seattle are taking this weekend seriously and they’ll bring a good, strong squad.”
This Saturday, on 90’s Night at Weidner Field, the Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC return to Colorado Springs as they host the Seattle Sounders FC 2. The Gazette Newspaper will be sponsoring the second part of the 2018 Poster Giveaway Series this weekend, with the first 500 fans receiving their posters as the gates open.
Wednesday evening saw the Switchbacks lose 2-1 at Sacramento Republic’s Papa Murphy’s Park, as the hosts maintained their undefeated start to 2018 after Shane Malcolm had opened the scoring for the Switchbacks.
“We’ve got to win our home games and the guys know that,” said Switchbacks Head Coach Steve Trittschuh. “Getting the goals in Reno was huge for us, and I thought we played well against Sacramento even though we lost. It was those two errors that cost us the two goals in Sacramento. We did enough in the first half to win that game. If we put our chances away there’s a chance we could have scored a few. We couldn’t capitalize in our transition going forward and they [Sacramento] get the win because we gave up two bad goals. That won’t happen at home. We’ve got to make sure we keep our focus because that’s been big for us this season here. Seattle will be tough as always and we haven’t had much time to prepare.”
The Seattle Sounders FC 2 have won twice and lost four times in the young 2018 USL regular season. A win on opening day against their Pacific Northwest rivals Portland Timbers 2 was followed by four consecutive losses for S2, until Head Coach John Hutchinson’s team bounced back with a 3-2 victory against Rio Grande Valley FC last Saturday. After the win against RGV and without having a midweek game like the Switchbacks, the Sounders S2 made their way to Colorado Springs a few days early to prepare for Saturday’s match in the altitude of Weidner Field.
Cameroonian striker Felix Chenkam scored twice for S2 in last weekend’s win against RGV at Cheney Stadium in Tacoma, Washington. Chenkam is tied for the lead on S2’s goal-charts with David Estrada on three goals apiece.
“They’re a good young team and they possess the ball well and they move out quickly in their transition play,” said Trittschuh. “We’ve got to always know where [Felix] Chenkam is. Ray Saari in the middle is also a very good, solid player – they’re a well-rounded team. It won’t be easy. It’s our third game this week and a lot of the same guys will be playing for us. It’s tough, but we’re glad to be home.”
“Seattle are coming off a win and came here a day early,” said Shane Malcolm. “We expect them to be ready. We’re trying to make this place a fortress for us to play in and I fully believe that the team and the fans are ready to do that. We’ve done well here this season and the conditions up here will help make sure we continue to fight.”
Saturday’s opponents will have to wait until early October for this weekend’s rematch. The Switchbacks will visit Cheney Stadium in Tacoma, Washington on October 10th as Steve Trittschuh’s team finish their 2018 USL regular season campaign.
“We know we’ll get a really good game from Seattle,” said Jordan Schweitzer. “As always they’ve got a young group that’s all looking to push on in that organization and make the first team. We’re really excited to have them here in the altitude at Weidner Field – it’s been a long trip but we do well here and hopefully the conditions can help us too.”
“We’ve got to be on our game – Seattle are quick and they’re a young team with a good front three,” said Taylor Hunter. “It always helps us to play better when we are at home and getting results in front of our fans means a lot to us. It will be especially nice to be back this weekend after our trip. We’ve been watching up on them and we’ll go through practice today and finish our plan. Seattle are a good team but we’re glad to be back.”
After Saturday’s match, the Switchbacks return to the West Coast for an April 28th showdown with Orange County SC at Champions Soccer Stadium at OC Great Park in Irvine, California.
Weidner Field will host the Switchbacks on Cinco de Mayo, with Colorado Technical University sponsoring a Cushion Giveaway for the visit of Reno 1868 FC.
“We’re strong here and we have to match the energy of being at home,” said Trittschuh. “We enjoy playing in this stadium but we’ve got to take advantage of being up here. We’ve got to play our up-tempo game and have somebody score when we need goals. We know Seattle are taking this weekend seriously and they’ll bring a good, strong squad.”
