LAFC2 fell 2-0 to Ventura County FC on Saturday night at William Rolland Stadium in Thousand Oaks, Calif., despite controlling much of the match and finishing with a 22-7 advantage in shots. The defeat was just the Black & Gold’s second since the start of May. Ventura County opened the scoring with two goals in quick succession. Julian Placias finished from the center of the box in the 25th minute before Eric Preston doubled the hosts’ advantage five minutes later, sending the Black & Gold into halftime trailing 2-0.
LAFC2 continued to create opportunities, with Tommy Mihalić, Charlie Kosakoff, and Ernesto Rodriguez each forcing saves before the break. The Black & Gold increased the pressure in the second half, particularly after Ventura County’s Jose Magaña was shown a red card in the 62nd
minute, but could not break through.
LAFC2 registered 16 attempts after halftime and put nine shots on target over the course of the match, but Ventura County goalkeeper Sebastian Conlon made nine saves to preserve the shutout. Rodriguez, DeCarlo Guerra, Nathan Mardaresco, and Marius Aiyenero each tested Conlon during the second-half push, with Aiyenero producing LAFC2’s final opportunity in stoppage time.
LAFC2 remains in seventh place in the MLS NEXT Pro Western Conference standings with a 7W-5L-6D record and 29 points through 18 matches. LAFC2 returns to action on Saturday, July 25, when the club travels to face North Texas SC at Mansfield Stadium in Mansfield, Texas. Kickoff is set for 5:45 p.m. PT, and the match will be available on MLSNEXTPro.com.
