SPOKANE, Wash. – The Spokane Velocity’s USL Cup run ends in the quarterfinals with a 1-1 draw followed by a 5-4 penalty shootout loss to USL Championship side Colorado Springs Switchbacks.
Spokane scored the opener with a Luis Gil strike in the 14th minute, followed by a Jonas Fjellberg reply in the 30th.
After a scoreless second half, the teams went head-to-head in a penalty shootout, both sides scoring their first four attempts.
Ibrahim Janis Covi missed the final shot of the evening with a chip high and over the goal, ending the night for Spokane.
The Velocity entered tonight not playing a match in 18 days because of the Spokane-area wildfires and smoke, plus a game in Chattanooga canceled due to inclement weather.
“For us to not be able to train the past couple of weeks because of the fires is really no excuse,” head coach Leigh Veidman said. “You saw guys out there really, really pushing and trying to get something across the line for this community to give them something to be happy about and smile about. And you saw that from the guys tonight. So I’m super proud for the work they put in in such difficult circumstances.”
Gil, the team’s captain, spoke on the effort as well, citing the squad’s strength in adversity.
“It came down to the wire again,” Gil said. “So it’s like, you know, we can push each other. We can have that resilience and have that fight for us for 90-plus minutes against a championship team we know we can compete with.”
Spokane returns to league play against Corpus Christi FC this Saturday at 6:00 p.m.
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