KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Swope Park Rangers tallied a pair of second-half goals and earned a comfortable 3-0 victory against Orange County Blues FC on Saturday at Children’s Mercy Victory Field at Swope Soccer Village. Dane Kelly scored late in the first half and Ayrton set up Mark Anthony Gonzalez and Johnny Grant in a three-minute span in the second half. With the victory, the Rangers improve to 7-8-4 (25 points) overall and 5-2-0 at home. Orange County falls to 6-9-4 (22 points) overall and 2-6-2 on the road. This is the only regular-season meeting between the two sides this year.

Scoring:
43’ – SPR – Dane Kelly (Alex Molano)
78’ – SPR – Mark Anthony Gonzalez (Ayrton)
81’ – SPR – Johnny Grant (Ayrton)

Three Things That Mattered:

• 1. USL all-time leading goal-scorer Dane Kelly had not scored a goal since April 2 against Tulsa Roughnecks FC, as an early-season hamstring injury then put his sizzling pace on hold. But even over the past month and a half in his return, Kelly still had not added to his total. That changed Saturday night as he slotted home a 43rd-minute goal to give the Rangers a 1-0 lead heading into halftime. Alex Molano played a lead pass ahead of Kelly who split a pair of Blues defenders and from the left side fired low inside the far right post past Orange County goalkeeper Brandon Miller. It was Kelly’s second goal of the season and 44th of his USL career.

• 2. Brazilian midfielder Ayerton was the story of the second half in terms of providing the buildup of the Rangers’ chances. In the 79th minute, his free kick from the right connected with Mark Anthony Gonzalez who rose amid a group of four Blues defenders and easily headed it home inside the near right post. Then in the 81st minute, Ayrton did the dirty work to split a pair of Orange County defenders near the end line, dishing a rolling ball that made it simple for Johnny Grant to redirect into the net for the three-goal advantage. 

• 3. With only one point in four consecutive matches, the defending Western Conference regular-season champion Orange County is in the midst of its worst stretch of the year. During this 0-3-1 stretch, the Blues have conceded 10 goals. Offensively, Orange County did not generate much either. Trevin Caesar had a good run in the early going with a cut to his left foot in the 22nd minute to force Jon Kempin into a save at the near left post, but Kempin and the Rangers were hardly threatened Saturday night.

USLSoccer.com Man of the Match:
Ayrton, Swope Park Rangers – The Brazilian midfielder provided a brunt of the setup work to fuel the Rangers’ offense, assisting both second-half tallies.

Upcoming Games:
Swope Park Rangers vs. San Antonio FC – July 30, 8:30 p.m. ET, Children’s Mercy Victory Field at Swope Soccer Village
Orange County Blues FC vs. LA Galaxy II – July 30, 10 p.m. ET, Anteater Stadium