League

Recap: Barry scores in eighth straight match, SPR ties Tulsa 1-1

The Swope Park Rangers (14-10-8, 6th place) drew 1-1 with Tulsa Roughnecks FC (3-15-12, 16th place) on Saturday night at ONEOK Field in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Hadji Barry scored in his eighth straight match, setting a new USL record. 


Tyler Blackwood would have an early chance in the second minute, but his shot would skim just high of the crossbar. In the 11th minute, Blackwood would have another chance off a through ball sent by Matheus Silva, but Tulsa’s goaltender Fabian Cerda would be there to make the save. 


In the 15th minute, Sporting KC loanee Kharlton Belmar would send a ball to Barry in front of the box, but Barry would send it high with a header. In the 25th minute, Tulsa’s Joaquin Rivas would have a close chance, but it would slip to the left of the goal post. 


The Roughnecks brought the pressure inside the box in the 37th minute, but Sporting KC loanee Adrian Zendejas would lay on the ball to prevent the Tulsa opportunity. In the 44th minute, Barry would send the ball into the net off a great ball from Blackwood, making his goal total 16 on the season. SPR would take a 1-0 lead.


Zendejas would make two spectacular saves in the beginning of the second half. In the 47th minute, he would make a diving stop and in the 49th minute, he would prevent a header from Joshua Morton from crossing the line. 


In the 63rd minute, Zendejas would make a full-stretch diving save to stop another attempt from Rivas. Rivas would finally put one past Zendejas in the 68th minute to tie the Rangers 1-1. 


In the 73rd minute, an attempt from Tulsa’s Michael Gamble would miss just to the left of the post. Zendejas would make two more superb saves in close conjunction. Rivas would take a left-footed shot in the 76th minute, but Zendejas would be there with the stop. In the 78th minute, Zendejas would make another spectacular stretched out save off a Gamble attempt.


SPR would have two chances in the final minutes of the match to clinch the match, but both come up short. In the 89th minute, Belmar would send a beautiful cross to Ethan Vanacore-Decker, but the 23-year-old’s header would go just wide of the goal. Sporting KC loanee Amer Didic would suffer the same fate from a Chase Minter cross following a set piece situation in the 90th minute. The final score would stand in a 1-1 draw.


The Rangers will continue their road stand and face Sacramento Republic FC (15-7-7, 5th place) on Wednesday, October 3 at 9:30 p.m. CT. The Rangers will close out the regular season at Children’s Mercy Park on Sunday, October 14 at 2:00 p.m. CT when they face LA Galaxy II (10-15-6, 11th place).  


Memorable Moment

Hadji Barry has scored in his last eight starts and tonight it brings his goals scored this season to 16. A eight-match scoring streak is a new USL record. Barry surpassed former SPR player Dane Kelly, who managed a six-match scoring streak last season with Reno 1868 FC. Sixteen goals scored in a single season is a new career record for the forward. The 25-year-old now holds the SPR’s single-season goals scored record, surpassing Kharlton Belmar who previously held the record at 14 goals.


Swope Park Rangers vs Tulsa Roughnecks FC
September 22, 2018 – ONEOK Field
Swope Park Rangers 1, Tulsa Roughnecks FC 1


Scoring Summary: 
SPR – Hadji Barry 16 (Tyler Blackwood 3) – 44'
TUL – Joaquin Rivas 11 (Eti Tavares 2) – 68’ 


Misconduct Summary: 
SPR – Matheus Silva (Yellow Card) – 67’
TUL – Joshua Morton (Yellow Card) – 86’
SPR – Chase Minter (Yellow Card) – 90’+2’


Swope Park Rangers: Adrian Zendejas ©; Colton Storm, Graham Smith, Amer Didic, Justin Bilyeu; Matheus Silva, Rassambek Akhmatov (Chase Minter 74), Felipe Hernandez; Kharlton Belmar, Tyler Blackwood (Ethan Vanacore-Decker 74), Hadji Barry (Bryam Rebellon 83)