Ocean State club returns to Centreville Bank Stadium vs. Tampa Bay Rowdies on Saturday, May 9 at 7:30 p.m.
PAWTUCKET, R.I. (May 2, 2026) – Rhode Island FC fell short in its Star Wars Night battle vs. Birmingham Legion FC on Saturday in a 3-1 loss at Centreville Bank Stadium. Despite a first-half goal from Leo Afonso level a 1-0 deficit, it was not enough to overcome a pair of second-half goals from the visitors that gave the Ocean State club its first loss at home in 2026.
Birmingham Legion FC (2W-2T-3L) played spoiler to the Star Wars Night crowd early, scoring less than three minutes into the contest when Dawson McCartney tore down the left wing, completing a quick solo dribble with a dangerous cross into the box. Sebastian Tregarthen raced into the box and connected with the cross, side-footing a low shot past RIFC goalkeeper Koke Vegas and into the bottom-left corner.
Rhode Island FC (2W-3T-2L) responded almost instantly, turning up the pressure on the attack just one minute later when JJ Williams lasered Afonso’s cross towards the near post, forcing a sharp diving save from goalkeeper Jassem Koleilat. Down the other way in the 12th minute, Birmingham’s Ronaldo Damus capitalized on a defensive turnover and broke into a one-on-one position, but he dragged a low shot against the woodwork.
RIFC quickly made Birmingham pay for the missed opportunity, which was one of the visitor’s few clear-cut shots in the opening 45 minutes. In an otherwise dominant first-half showing from the Ocean State club’s attack, who peppered the Birmingham goal with six shots on target, the homeside did not take long to find an equalizer. It happened in the 17th minute when Clay Holstad won the ball in the midfield, quickly moving it forward to Afonso. Afonso took a touch in the box, swiftly depositing a right-footed shot past Koleilat and into the back of the net to level the score at 1-1.
RIFC outshot the visitors 11-4 in the first half alone, coming closest to the go-ahead goal when JJ Williams powered a shot from the side of the box in the 24th minute. After his effort was saved, the rebound fell to Jojea Kwizera on the opposite side, who instantly sent another shot on goal that forced a second save from Koleilat in quick succession. Although the homeside continued to push, coming dangerously close to goal on several occasions, Birmingham did enough to keep things level going into halftime.
That resilience proved fruitful for the visitors, who came out swinging in the second half to score the go-ahead goal just three minutes in. McCartney sent in a dangerous free kick that was headed away by the Rhode Island FC defense, but the rebound fell only as far as Phanuel Kavita, who lined a shot into the back of the net from close range to give the Legion a 2-1 advantage.
In the 57th minute, Birmingham struck again to double the lead. Tregarthen was once again involved in the attacking push, playing Damus through into the box. Working from a tight angle, Damus sent a powerful shot across the face of goal and into the far-side netting to take a commanding 3-1 lead.
Despite a spirited late push, the deficit was too much to overcome for RIFC, who fell to its first home loss of the season despite dominating the stat sheet in shots (19-11), crosses (20-14), passes (523-331) and possession (61-39 percent). Up next, Rhode Island FC will return to Centreville Bank Stadium on Saturday, May 9 at 7:30 p.m. when it hosts Tampa Bay Rowdies for Hometown Heroes Night. Tickets for the next home games are available now at rhodeislandfc.com/tickets.
GOAL SCORING RUNDOWN
BHM – Dawson McCartney (Sebastian Tregarthen), 3rd minute: McCartney slots Tregarthen’s cross into the back of the net from close range. RI 0, BHM 1
RI – Leo Afonso (Clay Holstad), 17th minute: Afonso curls a right-footed shot into the back of the net from inside the box. RI 1, BHM 1
BHM – Phanuel Kavita, 48th minute: Kavita takes advantage of a miscued clearance, converting a powerful close-range shot. RI 1, BHM 2
BHM – Ronaldo Damus (Sebastian Tregarthen), 48th minute: Damus lines a powerful shot into the far-side netting from a tight angle. RI 1, BHM 3
ADDITIONAL NOTES
- Leo Afonso scored his second career RIFC goal, and his second in RIFC’s last three regular-season games. The goal was his first at Centreville Bank Stadium.
- Clay Holstad assisted his fourth career goal for Rhode Island FC, picking up his first assist of the season.
- Despite the loss, RIFC dominated the stat sheet in shots (19-11), crosses (20-14), passes (523-331) and possession (61-39 percent). It recorded at least 19 shots for the second-straight game, and the fifth time this season across all competitions. Rhode Island FC has not finished a game with fewer than 10 shots in 2026.
- Goalkeeper Koke Vegas surpassed 10,000 career regular-season minutes in the USL Championship.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Leo Afonso
Match stats and information available here.
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