Oakland Roots pulled off a 2-1 win over El Paso Locomotive, where recently signed Tucker Lepley arched in a curling shot from atop the box in the 83rd minute. The results move Oakland into third place in the Western Conference, tied for points with second-place Orange County but behind on head-to-head results. Roots now are just one point behind first-place San Antonio FC.
El Paso started the game strongly with a goal that was wiped for offsides in just the 2nd minute, and followed it up with an official tally just seconds later in the 3rd when Alvaro Quezada played a pass into the six-yard box to Rubio Rubin, who netted it to make it 1-0.
Following the goal, Oakland began to find their footing in the match, testing Locomotive’s back line with deep lobs into the attacking third and maintaining more possession with cleaner passing.
Things changed drastically in the 18th minute when one of those long balls, off the foot of Neveal Hackshaw, found Wolfgang Prentice alone in behind. El Paso’s Palermo Ortiz made contact with Prentice and was subsequently red-carded for denying a clear goal-scoring opportunity, forcing Locomotive to play the remaining 70+ minutes down a man.
After nearly 30 minutes of constant pressure, Roots finally broke through for the equalizer after an outlet pass to the left side from Hackshaw found Jesus de Vicente. Oakland’s left back curled a cross into the six-yard box to find Peter Wilson, taking a touch before following through with a volley out of the air for his fifth goal of the season.
Oakland continued to dominate the pitch with the benefit of being up a player, finding a go-ahead goal from their newest addition Tucker Lepley, who shook two defenders near the top of the El Paso box before hitting an inch-perfect curling shot to the top left bin to give Roots its lead in the 83rd minute.
Here is our RootsBlog Man of the Match and our talking points from Saturday.
Man of the Match: Tucker Lepley
We name Tucker Lepley our RootsBlog Man of the Match for his game-winning goal in the 83rd minute of his debut. It was an illustrious left-footed finish from atop the box, executing a curling shot with shades of Man City’s Jeremy Doku.
Tucker Lepley, take a bow
Tucker Lepley was magnificent in his debut, making an immediate impact on the right side. He was heavily involved in his 35 minutes of action, taking 32 total touches, completing 25 of 26 passes, five passes into the final third, while his lone shot on target was his 83rd-minute banger.
“[The shot] was one of the things I like to do. I felt Tyler [Gibson] coming on the outside, and I knew when the ball came to me, I knew I could duck inside the defender. When I came inside — I’ve been working on that finish already in training this week — so it was almost second nature,” Lepley said of the moment.
Lepley entered in the 55th minute, filling in on the right side. As coach Ryan Martin describes, it’s a spot where the new signee is most comfortable.
“I think he can play anywhere in the midfield. He can play as a right-sided guy coming in on his left; that’s where he feels the most comfortable. He’s only been with us for four training sessions, so we wanted to simplify his role. We felt like that was a good starting place, and he made the most of it,” Martin said.
Martin went on to detail Lepley’s multifaceted background, saying he can feature in the #10 and #8 roles along the midfield.
“We’ll see him as a #10, we’ll see him as an #8. He’ll feature heavily as we get into it. You can see the connection between him, Florian Valot, Faysal Bettache, and Tommy McCabe starting to build. I think he’ll get better and better,” Martin said.
Roots are certainly loaded in the attacking midfield role. Multiple people have filled that role this season and at different points in their careers, like Valot, Bettache, Danny Trejo, Wolfgang Prentice, and Bobosi Byaruhanga. Martin added that Lepley’s versatility was a big part of why they chose to bring him in.
“His versatility was a big key to that. He can play left back in a pinch, he can play the #6, #8, and #10. He can play wide on the right or wide on the left. His versatility is a tremendous asset, similar to Mark Fisher, and what his versatility can do to teams at this level. Guys who can play in multiple positions are key at this level; guys like Wolfy, who was a left back by the end of the game. Those types of players are hard to find in this league,” Martin said.
Martin mentioned that one of the early conversations he had with Lepley, where the loanee told him, “we’re going to score goals” with the talent they have available on the attacking side.
“I had a feeling I was going to be here, so I watched some of the past games. I saw the way they were moving the ball, getting into the channel, getting into the pockets, and creating a lot of chances. I felt it was a system I could come in and really help. We already have so much quality in the team, and I let coach Ryan know that I was a fan of his system, and I was coming here to play it. An open dialogue is what I found this week; he lets the players express themselves and speak true things. I think that shows in the creativity of the players,” Lepley said.
Lepley’s journey to the Bay wasn’t an easy route. He bounced on and off LA Galaxy’s MLS Next Pro team, Ventura County, since 2024. He mentioned that the last couple of months weren’t easy for him, making his Oakland debut goal a moment of triumph.
He certainly sounds like he’s come to The Town with a chip on his shoulder and something to prove, not just to the fans and the American soccer world, but to himself.
“Football is an amazing sport; it’s what makes me happiest and brings me the most joy. But it’s a roller coaster; there are ups and downs, there are injuries, wins, losses, playing time, and all these things. Sometimes when you get into the valleys, you have to climb your way out. For me, it was staying disciplined and showing up for myself every day. In the back of my mind, I told myself that when the loan comes through, I need to be prepared,” Lepley said.
Late magic strikes again
For a second straight game, late magic propelled Roots towards a positive result. Last week, it was Peter Wilson landing an equalizing goal at 90+2′ in their 2-2 tie against Loudoun. This time, it was Lepley launching a rocket for the winner.
“It’s good for you guys,” Martin said with a laugh. “I get gray hairs, I feel older when I walk off the field.
Both matches may not have been the prettiest, but they were both signs that Roots can pull something together when they aren’t at their best. The popular saying in sports rings true for successful teams: “You have to win ugly.” If Oakland can do that, they may have magic on their hands.
“You have to. In this league, it’s so hard to get results when you’re not at your best. Last week, we weren’t great and we got a result because we made enough plays to get one. It’s the same type of thing tonight, obviously being up a man helps, but good teams find ways to win when they aren’t at their best. Another good quality this group has shown is resiliency; nothing fazes them, and they fight until the end. Every point matters along the way, the guys are finding ways to get them,” Martin said.
El Paso looked like they were going to take the game to Oakland in the first few minutes of action with a goal disallowed for an offside in the 2nd minute before breaking through just one minute later. However, Roots weathered the storm, even before El Paso’s red card.
“Regardless of the red card, we were finding momentum. We got Wolfy in behind to get the red card; it’s not dissimilar to Hackshaw’s situation [against FC Tulsa]. When you put teams in difficult moments, it asks a lot of questions of them. Nothing seems to faze this group; they always respond,” Martin said.
Attacking options & Peter Wilson
The attacking options are vast for Oakland Roots. By the end of the match, Roots had seven players with a background as attackers, including Peter Wilson, Jackson Kiil, Lepley, Valot, Prentice, Trejo, and even Tyler Gibson at one point in his career. Throw in Bertin Jacquesson and Faysal Bettache to the matter, and it’s a sign that Martin has a seemingly endless list of combinations he can put into the front line.
Wilson is at the front of that as the lead striker, now notching his fifth goal in the last three games.
“In terms of our culture, every day matters, and every day is an opportunity to get better. We will hold them to a high level in training. When you have one of your hardest workers, Peter Wilson, it makes it a lot easier for me. He, Florian, Tommy, and Tyler are all incredibly hard-working players,” Martin said.
The attacking depth means Martin will have difficult choices to make each week. On Saturday, that meant Bettache getting the nod over Trejo in the starting 11.
“We’ll make sure we’re holding them accountable in training, what the standard is, and how they do it. We’ll track in terms of finishing and try to put them in positions where they can excel. We’ll choose based on certain matchups and who we think can have the most success, and then we’ll do it based on who is performing, willing to get into the box, and create chances. It’s a good problem to have; I’ve never had this problem,” Martin said.
Jesus de Vicente locking down LB?
Jesus de Vicente logged his second consecutive game with an assist, sending a great low cross to Wilson for his goal at 45+5′ to go into halftime tied 1-1. In 77 minutes, he finished with one assist, created three scoring chances, one big scoring chance, five passes into the final third, and took 79 total touches.
De Vicente has proven to be Martin’s guy for nearly every corner when he’s on the field, and with Julian Bravo still recovering, his surge up the depth chart has come at an opportune time.
When asked if he has tough decisions ahead, Martin responded that it’s all up to de Vicente to keep proving himself.
“To be honest, it’s his decision on how he performs, trains, and works. He’s on a tremendous path with what he’s brought to us and has made tremendous strides since his first game. He’s become a better 1-v-1 defender, he’s more reliable, and more consistent. His service is a special quality, so our ask is how many times can we get him in good positions to create danger. He’ll play a big role, and his job now with Bravo coming back is to keep it. When you have guys competing for positions, it makes everyone around them better,” Martin said.
Starting Lineups
- Oakland Roots
Just one change for Oakland Roots from its last match: Faysal Bettache gets the nod over Danny Trejo. Other than that, no changes. Tommy McCabe and Bobosi Byaruhanga split the midfield duties, Wolfgang Prentice and Bertin Jacquesson provide the width in the left and right winger spots, Keegan Tingey gets another start at right back, Jesus de Vicente on the opposite side, while the CB rotation remains Michael Edwards and Neveal Hackshaw.
- El Paso Locomotive
Timeline
El Paso goal wiped for offside – 2′
Shot on the volley by Moreno
El Paso goal – 3′
Not gud. Really bad start for Oakland.
Quick buildup down the right side. Feed from Mendez to Quezada, centering pass to Rubin in front of the net for the tap in.
Quezada shot on target – 6′
All El Paso
Wilson called offside on a play in behind, I think he was on – 13′
Good buildup with Wolf leads to nothing – 15′
Wolfy drew free kick on edge of the box, El Paso Red Card – 19′
El Paso’s CB Ortiz gets booted. Big moment.
Free Kick – 20′
7 yards above the box left of center.
De Vicente pass into the wall.
De Vicente crosses through the box to Juaquesson, he lasers a pass across the face but it finds no one – 24′
El Paso hail mary shot – 26′
Hackshaw shot blocked outside the box – 27′
Wilson jusssst misses a header – 30′
Corner – 37′
McCabe sails on a shot – 43′
McCabes rolls a low, slow on wide – 45+3′
ROOTS GOAL!!!!!!!!!!! -45+5′
Oakland’s first real chance after going up a man. Great buildup from Hackshaw to De Vicente, he sends a low cross to Peter Wilson–who takes a touch and then catches the ball out of the air for a goal
First Half:
It’s tied with a late goal by Wilson. Roots have had a man advantage for about 31 minutes, but aso sitting compact as they look for counters. Oakland didn’t do much with it before Wilson’s goal. They’ve dominated possession for 70% of the ball, logged 7 shots with Wilson’s goal their only attempt on target. El Paso with 3 shots, 2 on target
Flo on for Jauqesson – 46′
De Vicente draws a foul on left side of box about four yards outside the elbow area – 50′
Leads to nothing
Wilson called offside – 52′
Great pass from Tingey to Wilson on the doorstep, but Wilson was called off. Would’ve been a shot on target to lead to a corner.
Bobosi being checked out, Tucker Lepley makes his debut – 55′
Bettache sails on a left-footed shot – 56′
Lepley draws a free kick – 59′
10 yards above box. Flo ball cleared out.
Tingey sends a shot very high – 60′
Roots final third entries 87 to 28 – 62′
Roots with 275 passes in opponent’s half, El Paso has 66
Trejo on for Bettache – 65′
Corner – 69′
Nice pass from Wolfy, batted by the GK and a CB sends it out the back.
Corner – 70′
Trejo sends a shot high – 76′
Gibson and Kiil on for Tingey and De Vicente – 77′
Trejo gets a ball into the box, takes a shot as he’s falling. Kick save and a beauty – 79′
Corner – 81′
Leads to nothing
TUCKER LEPLY CHANNELS JEREMY DOKU – 83′
Dribbles atop the box on the right side, he curls it into the top bin
El Paso free kick on right side – 87′
Nice counter, leads to an extra touch by Wolfy in the box. Would’ve liked to see him pull a shot with his right – 88′
Corner – 88′
El Paso free kick – 90+4′
El Paso corner – 90+5′
Might be the last play.
GK is up.