COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – It was a tale of two halves as Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC netted two second-half goals to rally for a 2-2 draw against Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 on Saturday at Weidner Field. Vancouver was in control with two goals in the span of four minutes late in the first half. Marco Bustos converted a penalty kick and Thomas Sanner headed home a Deklan Wynne cross to take a 2-0 lead into halftime. The Switchbacks came out of the break with a vengeance, with Masta Kacher and Kevaughn Frater scoring in the 48th and 58th minutes, respectively. The Switchbacks move to 6-6-6 (24 points) overall and 4-2-3 at home. Vancouver is now 4-8-4 (16 points) overall and 2-5-2 on the road.

Scoring:
38’ – VAN – Marco Bustos (penalty)
42’ – VAN – Thomas Sanner (Deklan Wynne)
48’ – COS – Masta Kacher (Josh Suggs)
58’ – COS – Kevaughn Frater

• #COSvVAN: Full match and Opta box score

Three Things That Mattered:

• 1. Within the span of four minutes, WFC2 netted a pair of goals to silence Weidner Field late in the first half. Thomas Sanner was in the mix for both of them. Sanner first felt some contact with a run into the box as he was fouled by the Switchbacks’ Sean McFarlane. Marco Bustos, playing in just his fifth match of the season, notched his fifth goal with a perfectly taken penalty kick in the 38th minute. Bustos’ left-footed shot brushed against the left-side netting as Switchbacks goalkeeper Moise Pouaty anticipated correctly with his dive, but it was out of his reach. Then in the 42nd minute, Deklan Wynne crossed the ball toward the far right post and connected with Sanner, whose header ricocheted off of the inside of that post and stayed across the goal line as the ball bounced into the left-side netting for a two-goal cushion.

• 2. Colorado Springs needed a quick response to get itself back in the game, and for much of this season Masta Kacher has been the main provider of such moments. Kacher scored his fifth of the season in the 48th minute, firing a shot that clipped the post to cut the deficit to 2-1. Ten minutes later, the Switchbacks took advantage of a set-piece opportunity, and Kevaughn Frater drove his free kick inside the left post for his fourth of the campaign.

• 3. The Switchbacks could have changed the tone of the match early on when they generated one of the best chances of the first half in the 26th minute when Eddy Prugh stepped up for the takeaway and instinctively led Aaron King with one quick touch. King surged forward and had only WFC2 goalkeeper Spencer Richey to beat, and Richey was up to the task as he left his line and sacrificed his body to block King’s right-footed attempt from just inside the box.

USLSoccer.com Man of the Match:
Thomas Sanner, Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 – Sanner’s header gave WFC2 a two-goal cushion with a header tally and he drew the penalty kick that led to Marco Bustos’ first-half tally.

Upcoming Games:
Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC at Phoenix Rising FC – July 15, 11 p.m. ET, Phoenix Rising Soccer Complex
Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 vs. Swope Park Rangers – July 12, 3 p.m. ET, Thunderbird Stadium