TULSA, Okla. – Rio Grande Valley FC tallied a whopping five second-half goals and defeated Tulsa Roughnecks FC 5-0 on Thursday at ONEOK Field. Second-half sub Dzenan Catic led the way with a brace, tallying in the 78th and 86th minutes. Emilio Garcia converted a 52nd-minute penalty kick, Ruben Luna followed up his own rebound in the 59th minute and Eric Bird crushed a 20-yard volley into the back of the net in the 82nd minute. The Toros extended their unbeaten streak to seven games (3-0-4), moved into fifth place in the Western Conference and pulled even in points with the fourth-place LA Galaxy II (36 points), who have a game in hand on RGV. The Toros are now 9-5-9 overall and 4-3-4 on the road. Tulsa, which sits last in the West, falls to 5-15-3 (18 points) and 3-8-1 at home. The Roughnecks have lost three straight. During this seven-game unbeaten run for RGV, the Toros have outscored their opponents 12-0.

Scoring:
52’ – RGV – Emilio Garcia (penalty)
59’ – RGV – Ruben Luna
78’ – RGV – Dzenan Catic
82’ – RGV – Eric Bird
86’ – RGV – Dzenan Catic

Three Things That Mattered:

• 1. Heading into this match, it was a bit surprising on paper that RGV hadn’t scored a goal in two previous meetings against the Roughnecks, having lost 2-0 during the season opener on March 26 and playing to a scoreless draw on July 10. The Toros took care of that setback early in the second half Thursday night and never let up. Emilio Garcia drove a low penalty kick conversion to the left of the net, past USL saves leader Alex Mangels who had anticipated correctly on the attempt. Ruben Luna finished his own rebound in the 59th minute after Mangels made an excellent stop on the first attempt. Dzenan Catic tallied twice, but sandwiched in between his goals was the highlight of the night from Eric Bird. After the Roughnecks headed the ball out of the box, Bird from 20 yards out crushed a beautiful volley into the net in the 82nd minute.

• 2. The Toros had a frantic start to the match, throwing heavy numbers forward, playing with width and mixing in some quick restarts. Despite no goals in the opening half, it has to be said that RGV’s Rob Lovejoy particularly had a strong first 45 minutes to keep Tulsa’s defense busy. Lovejoy was a regular threat as he either just missed the frame or was turned away by Mangels. In the ninth minute, Kevin Garcia set up Lovejoy with the run on the left. Lovejoy perhaps had a heavier first touch than he wanted and with Mangels rushing off his line, Lovejoy tried to chip with his left foot but pushed the attempt wide right. Another close chance Lovejoy generated was in the 44th minute when he cut to his right past a couple Roughnecks defenders, then uncorked a right-footed attempt that Mangels saved.

• 3. Tulsa’s best scoring chance came in the 17th minute with a solid one-touch pass from Sammy Ochoa to Cristian Mata on the left. RGV goalkeeper Calle Brown, making his seventh start of the season, came off his line and when Mata struck, Brown closed the distance and deflected the attempt with his foot. Jasson Ramos Carpio had an enticing 76th-minute free kick that perhaps was headed to the inside of the near left post and Brown dove for the save. Other than a couple other passing chances, the Roughnecks were kept quiet for much of the night as the Toros posted their 12th clean sheet of the season.

USLSoccer.com Man of the Match:
Rob Lovejoy, Rio Grande Valley FC - Though he did not find the score sheet, Lovejoy was RGV's motor offensively as he created five of the Toros' 22 shots and broke down the Tulsa defense before the host side conceded with regularity in the second half.

Upcoming Games:
Tulsa Roughnecks FC vs. OKC Energy FC – Aug. 20, 8:30 p.m. ET, ONEOK Field
Rio Grande Valley FC at Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC – Aug. 21, 3:30 p.m. ET, Switchbacks Stadium