Memphis 901 FC held scoreless in loss to San Antonio

Aggression has powered the success for Memphis in recent weeks. They had scored 13 goals during their five game unbeaten streak in league play.

Traveling to San Antonio, however, they ran into a brick wall. The home side were excellent in their defensive effort and intensity after scoring midway through the first half.

Memphis totaled 17 shots but only four landed on target. Every promising chance was thwarted by an awaiting defender. A lot of the game was also spent in the midfield where the physicality was on display from both sides. There were a total of 37 fouls, seven yellow cards and one Memphis red card.

Goalless games have been a rarity for 901 FC’s attack. They have two others this season, the last coming on April 6 against Orange County.

Memphis took hold of the possession advantage early. They were able to establish their attack through the midfield and compile the first four shots of the match.

Unsurprisingly, Marlon Santos was involved from kickoff with a shot in the second minute. He also drew a few fouls as the game tightened up. He was involved in a skirmish with San Antonio’s Luke Haakenson, the two receiving the first yellow cards of the match.

San Antonio was able to deflect and scrap away the attacks from Memphis before having a chance of their own. Kameron Lacey found Juan Agudelo making a near post run for the opening goal.

Memphis ended the half with eight shots but could not hit the back of the net. San Antonio went into a conservative shape after their goal, rarely pushing the ball up-field themselves.

Stephen Glass went to his bench out of the break, Nighte Pickering replacing Dylan Borczak. Pickering came off the bench five times in May.

The flow of the second half was sporadic with the physical play of San Antonio. They racked up fouls and yellow cards which kept Memphis from relying on their aggression. Neither team had a shot on target after thirty minutes.

Memphis announced the loan of Nick DePuy earlier in the week from Huntsville City. The 29-year-old had not played since 2022 due to injury but made his first appearance for Memphis in the 78th minute. His debut made a turn for the worse, receiving a red card three minutes later with a tackle just outside the box.

Still, the best chances for Memphis came afterwards with a long-ranged effort from Samuel Carreaga. Kendall McIntosh parried the ball away right to Marlon but his point blank shot was blocked as well.