FENTON, Mo. — An early penalty proved enough for Real Monarchs SLC which held on for the 1-0 victory against a hard working Saint Louis FC side at Toyota Stadium - Saint Louis on Saturday night before a sellout crowd of 5,432 fans. Against the league-leading Monarchs the hosts weren’t daunted and in the ninth minute Joey Calistri went close, forcing a stunning save out of the Monarchs’ goalkeeper Connor Sparrow as he turned the shot onto the post. All that good work from the hosts was undone in the 14th minute when a foul allowed Real forward Chandler Hoffman to step up and bury the penalty kick for his third goal in the past two games as he gave his side the lead against the run of play. That goal did little to stop the flow from Saint Louis, which continued to attack but now against a defense which had a goal lead the hosts struggled to break through as the Monarchs held onto the lead at halftime. Saint Louis came out from the break determined to get back on level terms, which the team probably deserved from the run of play, holding the bulk of possession. Saint Louis threw everything at the Monarchs in the second half, but a stern defensive display prevented clear chances, with balls cut out in the box too often, denying the hosts and allowing Real to walk away with victory.

Scoring
15’ – SLC – Chandler Hoffman (Penalty Kick)

• #STLvSLC: Highlights and Opta Box Score

Three Things That Matter:

• 1. Real Monarchs SLC hasn't lost often over the past two seasons, and when it does it doesn’t usually allow it to turn into back-to-back defeats. Having lost their last match against the Swope Park Rangers, the Monarchs came out and got the job done here with minimal fuss, recovering well from that frustrating loss on Wednesday night.

• 2. Saint Louis FC has struggled to go on runs this season and was staring down its best run of the season of three straight runs in this match. Despite playing well and winning the shot count 18-11 it just couldn’t convert that into goals.

• 3. When Real goalkeeper Connor Sparrow wasn’t stopping the Saint Louis' attack the Monarchs defense was getting in the way, making 20 interceptions in the match. That continued a trend for the Monarchs which had 18 interceptions on Wednesday.

USLSoccer.com Man of the Match

Connor Sparrow, Real Monarchs SLC — Against an attack that never let up, Sparrow made eight saves to keep a clean sheet and get his team the victory.

Upcoming Games:
Saint Louis FC vs. Sacramento Republic FC — June 23, 11p.m. ET, Papa Murphy’s Park
Real Monarchs SLC vs. Fresno FC — June 26, 9p.m. ET, Zions Bank Stadium