Ocean State club returns home to host Brooklyn FC on Saturday, July 11
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (July 8, 2026) – In a tense, physical battle on the West Coast, Rhode Island FC’s three-game unbeaten streak came to an end on Wednesday in a 2-1 loss to Sacramento Republic FC at Heart Health Park. Although Hugo Bacharach scored for a second-straight game to come back from an early 1-0 deficit, Sacramento put home the go-ahead goal just before halftime that ultimately gave the hosts all three points.
The first real chance of the game for Sacramento Republic FC (4W-5L-4T) came in the 13th minute, when Kyle Edwards broke into a one-on-one position down the left wing. Rhode Island FC (5W-4L-4T) goalkeeper Koke Vegas was up to the task, however, sprinting off of his line to cut down the angle and deny the chance to keep the game scoreless.
Holding more than 70 percent possession in the opening 15 minutes, the hosts struggled to make it count until the 19th minute, when Edwards narrowly snuck the ball over the line with a heads-up play. Vegas came out to claim Mark-Anthony Kaye’s cross from outside the box, but Edwards snuck his head under the ball, doing just enough to pop the ball up and over the line just before Vegas could corral the cross. Although the Spaniard recovered quickly and swatted the ball away before it hit the net, he could not do so before it crossed the goal line, giving Sacramento the 1-0 lead.
Despite the early momentum, the lead was short-lived. The Ocean State club responded just five minutes later when Amos Shapiro-Thompson won the ball in the midfield, bending in a dangerous cross to the back post. Bacharach met the ball at the back post with a diving header, nodding in his second goal in as many games to level the score at 1-1.
With less than two minutes until the halftime whistle, Sacramento struck again to re-take the lead with just their second shot of the game. Mayele Malango produced the moment of magic for the hosts, picking the ball up at the top of the box and quickly curling a powerful shot past Vegas, whose full-stretch dive was not enough to keep the ball from nestling into the far-side netting.
Through the majority of the second half, Rhode Island FC’s defensive structure held strong as it sustained increased pressure from the Sacramento attack. The hosts’ best chance of the half came in the 67th minute when Malango got on the end of a long ball down the left wing. Taking the ball down and moving into the final third, Malango found Memo Rodríguez with a low cross in the box. Unmarked at the top of the six-yard box, Rodríguez met the dangerous cross with a first-time shot, but Vegas denied the effort with a fantastic close-range save to keep the deficit at one.
Six minutes later, Forster Ajago got on the end of a well-weighted pass and once again broke into a close-range, one-on-one position vs. Vegas, but this time Frank Nodarse came charging in with a physical challenge to knock Ajago off course as the game remained in a one-goal balance.
RIFC had one final chance to find the equalizer in the third minute of second-half stoppage time when second-half substitute Kevin Vang’s high ball fell to Augustín “Pity” Rodríguez in the box, but Sacramento goalkeeper Danny Vitiello came off his line to deny the effort with his body. The save was enough to see out a gritty 2-1 win for Sacramento, ending Rhode Island FC’s three-game unbeaten streak.
Up next, RIFC will close out the Prinx Tires USL Cup group stage when it welcomes Brooklyn FC to Centreville Bank Stadium for Pride Night on Saturday, July 11, at 7:30 p.m. It will return to regular-season action one week later when it completes its two-game homestand vs. regional rival Hartford Athletic on Saturday, July 18, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets to the next home games are available now at rhodeislandfc.com/tickets.
GOAL SCORING RUNDOWN
SAC – Kyle Edwards (Mark-Anthony Kaye), 19th minute: Edwards meets Anthony Kaye’s cross in the box, sneaking a header just over the line. SAC 1, RI 0
RI – Hugo Bacharach (Amos Shapiro-Thompson), 24th minute: Bacharach drives in Shapiro-Thompson’s cross at the back post with a diving header. SAC 1, RI 1
SAC – Mayele Malango (Mark-Anthony Kaye), 44th minute: Malango buries a curling shot from the top of the box. SAC 2, RI 1
ADDITIONAL NOTES
- Aldair Sanchez made his 100th career USL Championship regular-season appearance.
- Hugo Bacharach scored his second goal of the season. He has scored in back-to-back games after heading home the lone goal in RIFC’s 1-1 tie vs. Orange County SC on July 4.
- Bacharach has recorded a goal contribution in three-straight games for Rhode Island FC (2 goals, 1 assist).
- Amos Shapiro-Thompson assisted his fourth goal of the season across all competitions for Rhode Island FC. All four of his assists have come in RIFC’s last six games.
- Shapiro-Thomspon has assisted Bacharach in back-to-back games for Rhode Island FC.
- Midfielder Kevin Vang and defender Dani Rovira made their 2026 USL Championship debuts, coming in as second-half substitutes in the 83rd minute.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Hugo Bacharach
Game stats and information available here.
For Rhode Island FC news and updates, visit rhodeislandfc.com, subscribe to RIFC’s monthly newsletter, follow the club on Instagram, Facebook, Tik Tok, X and LinkedIn, and download the official team app.
