EDINBURG, Texas – The feeling was a too familiar one for Rio Grande Valley FC on Saturday night, as they departed Toro Field with another shutout, but only one point to show for it.

“Every game we dominate teams with possession and get chances here and there,” said midfielder George Malki following Saturday’s 0-0 draw with OKC Energy FC. “In the first half, we were so-so, one shot on goal, maybe two, but the second half I think we really turned it on, and we got unlucky.”

The Toros fifth consecutive shutout saw the side concede only one shot on goal as it controlled much of the play against OKC. Throughout the outstanding defensive streak, however, the side has hit a goal drought, with a 4-0 win against Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 the only victory in that span.

Four 0-0 draws have kept the side in the USL Western Conference playoff positions, but the team’s current seventh-place position could be a lot higher, and a lot more secure when it comes to the race for the postseason.

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The fact the side is creating numerous chances each game is a positive for Coach Wilmer Cabrera. With the side averaging more than 11 shots per game, and almost five on target, the belief is goals will start to come as long as the chances keep getting created.

“We’ve been having a lot of possibilities,” said Coach Wilmer Cabrera. “We’ve hit the post, the goalkeeper’s saved, we had one on the line saved, but that’s part of the game. We continue dominating the other teams, we just need to continue believing, and at some point a goal is going to come. Meanwhile, we create options, and we don’t [concede] a goal in the back, we have to continue believing, and we have to continue moving forward.”

Thanks to the attack’s struggles, the Toros’ defensive effort has gone somewhat overlooked. The five-game shutout streak has matched the mark reached by Louisville as the current Eastern Conference leader didn’t concede a goal across five games in May. Malki said the team’s understanding has improved progressively throughout its inaugural season, and that has paid dividends on the field.

“I think it really comes from pressing up top, winning the ball back and making our jobs easier in the back,” Malki said. “We defend as a team, and it’s been showing. We’ve been unlucky with the goals, but eventually that goal’s going to open up and it’s going to pour goals, I think.”

Certainly, with the attacking talent they have, if the Toros can find a way to burst the dam things could start moving quickly in the team’s final nine games of the regular season.

“All that beautiful work that we’ve been doing in possession and defense, at some point it has to pay off with three points, and hopefully with goals,” said Cabrera. “We’re going to continue, we don’t give up.”