Trio of goalscorers combine in first-ever win vs. Western Conference club.
PAWTUCKET, R.I. (Aug. 22, 2026) – Rhode Island FC picked up its first ever win over Monterey Bay FC on Saturday, taking down the Western Conference club 3-1 at Centreville Bank Stadium. Three different goalscorers helped elevate the club to their third-straight home win, bringing RIFC within five points of a top-four home playoff spot with two games in hand.
Rhode Island FC (8W-7L-4T) was on the attack early, firing a shot less than one minute into the game. Jojea Kwizera was the first to test the frame just 46 seconds into the game, but his effort was stopped by Monterey Bay FC (4W-14L-4T) goalkeeper Fernando Delgado. Kwizera took four more shots throughout the first half and finished with a game-high of six.
RIFC took advantage of the early pressure, opening the scoring in the fifth minute when Amos Shapiro-Thompson intercepted Zackery Farnsworth’s pass and played the ball to an open Leo Afonso in the box. Afonso took advantage of the one-on-one opportunity vs. Delgado and fired a shot into the low left corner.
Monterey Bay quickly answered back with a goal of their own to knot the game at one apiece. Eleven minutes after RIFC scored the opening goal, Ilijah Paul stopped a cross in front of the goalmouth and passed it backwards to Sebastian Lletget, who snuck the ball in between two RIFC defenders to score the equalizer. Rhode Island FC continued to pepper the goal with shots throughout the first half, but could not find the go-ahead goal despite going into the break with a 10-3 shot advantage.
After a quiet beginning to the second half for both sides, Rhode Island FC’s offensive pressure paid off once again in the 66th minute. Hugo Bacharach converted Yutaro Tsukada’s corner kick with a close-range diving header at the far post, earning Tsukada the first assist of his RIFC career.
Monterey Bay’s offense stalled in the second half, going until the 69th minute without a shot and only recording three shots throughout the final 45 minutes. RIFC took full control of the game in the 84th minute, adding an insurance goal to extend the lead to 3-1. After several deflections in the box, the ball pinballed off of multiple defenders before Grant Stoneman buried a close-range effort, giving the Ocean State club the 3-1 victory.
Up next, Rhode Island FC will travel to FC Tulsa on Saturday, Aug. 29 at 8:30 p.m. ET. RIFC will then return to Centreville Bank Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 5 to host Louisville City FC at 7:30 p.m. ET for Military Appreciation Night. Tickets to the next home game are available now at rhodeislandfc.com/tickets.
GOAL SCORING RUNDOWN
RI – Leo Afonso, 5th minute: Afonso fires a close range shot into the bottom-left corner. RI 1, TBR 0
MB – Sebastian Lletget (Ilijah Paul), 16th minute: Lletget slots a shot between two defenders. RI 1, TB 1
RI – Hugo Bacharach (Yutaro Tsukada), 66th minute: Bacharach gets down low to head in Tsukada’s corner. RI 2, TBR 1
RI – Grant Stoneman, 83rd minute: Stoneman taps in a rebound from close range. RI 3, TBR 1
ADDITIONAL NOTES
- Leo Afonso scored his fourth goal of the regular season and fifth across all competitions in 2026, tying him with Jojea Kwizera for second on the team.
- Afonso’s goal at the 4:11 mark was RIFC’s fastest goal of the season and RIFC’s fastest-ever goal at Centreville Bank Stadium.
- Hugo Bacharach recorded his third goal of the season across all competitions, and the fourth of his Rhode Island FC career.
- Yutaro Tsukada tallied his first career assist for Rhode Island FC. He has one goal and one assist in four appearances for the club.
- Osman Foyo made his debut for Rhode Island FC, coming in as a second-half substitute in the 80th minute.
- Noah Fuson surpassed 7,000 career minutes with RIFC across all competitions, which ranks fifth all-time. Fuson is the club’s all-time leader with 101 career appearances.
- Grant Stoneman scored his first goal of the season across all competitions, and his second career goal for the club. He last scored in RIFC’s 3-0 win vs. Hartford Athletic on Aug. 10, 2024.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Hugo Bacharach
Game stats and information available here.
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