Aug. 18, 2025

2025 Match Recap: Sacramento Republic FC 3, Oakland Roots SC 3

2025 Match Recap: Sacramento Republic FC 3, Oakland Roots SC 3

Keep the rivalry matches coming. Sacramento welcomed another HellaCup rival with Oakland Roots making a visit up to the capital.And thanks to goals from Rodrigo Lopez, Cristian Parano, and Russell Cicerone the Republic were able to put three goals in the Roots' net. But Oakland came up with three goals of their own, including a stoppage time equalizer, resulting in the points being shared between the rivals.

Since the last time we saw the Roots, they've made a couple of changes. They let go of manager Gavin Glinton and replaced him with former USMNT player Benny Feilharber. In the nine matches since Feilharber's takeover, the Roots have won four of them. On the other hand, they lost four other matches in that same span. The Roots were coming into this match on a two game losing skid with those losses coming at the hands of Orange County and Colorado Springs. And their most recent addition was the signing of striker Danny Trejo in the week leading up to this match. Trejo lit the league on fire in 2023 coming one goal short of winning the Golden Boot for Phoenix Rising, notching a tally of 19 goals. Afterwards he had a stint in Poland before coming back to the league this season with the Birmingham Legion. He wasn't been able to find that goalscoring form with the Legion, getting 3 goals in 15 appearance. Trejo and the Roots will be hoping that a change of scenery will bring back that form. Oakland were sitting below the playoff line in 11th place, but only 5 points away from the final playoff berth.

Sacramento seems unstoppable with the form they've been in lately. The purple patch that they're in was extended to 6 games after getting a win against Monterey in their last game out. In that match Sacramento came out with a dominant first half that resulted in a goal from Rodrigo Lopez. In the second half, their defense was on display only allowing one shot on target from the visiting Monterey. 5 wins out of this 6 has propelled the side up the standings and into second place heading into this matchweek. 

Coach Benny Feilharber had this setup for Oakland:

Coach Neill Collins made this selection for Sacramento:

Starting XI for this evening #SACvsOAK

[image or embed]

— Sacramento Republic FC (@sacrepublicfc.com) August 16, 2025 at 7:21 PM

Coach Collins was possibly keeping an eye on the busy matchweek ahead making the selections for this one. Chibi Ukaegbu got slotted into the backline in place of Jared Timmer. Collins opted for a mix of youth and experience in the midfield with Blake Willey taking the place of Nick Ross. Willey would be paired with Rodrigo Lopez as the midfield two to start this one. And then at the top of the formation would be Khori Bennett, getting his first ever start for the Republic.

Oakland's Danny Trejo would look to make his first appearance for the Roots coming off the bench.

It was a testy start to the match as both teams wanted to start off hot. And it would be Oakland to get the early lead with the first decent shot of the match in the 10th minute. The Roots were on the counterattack with the Sacramento defense backpeddling. The ball got to Morey Doney wide going down the right-hand channel and he put a cross into the Republic's box. The ball bounced around unti it fell to Daniel Gomez in the middle. Gomez caught Danny Vitiello rooted to his spot as his shot fell into the back of the net.

Republic were looking for a response and they got it in the 17th minute. A free kick opportunity was won by Khori Bennett a couple yards outside of the Roots' box. And who else but Rodrigo Lopez to be the one to step up and take the chance. He placed his shot just out of the reach of Kendall McIntosh to where the keeper got a hand on the ball, but was unable to keep it out of his net.

Oakland got a chance to take the lead in the 25th minute. A looping ball was put into the box with center defender Gagi Margvelashvili making the run in. He rose above his mark and headed the ball down into the ground but Danny Vitiello was there and made the save.

But it would be the Republic to grab the lead in the 34th minute. Pressure was building around the Oakland box as Blake Willey was on the ball. He was closed down but not before getting his pass off to Cristian Parano waltzing behind the Oakland defense. With only Kendall McIntosh to beat, Parano put the shot out of the reach of the keeper and in to give the home side the advantage.

Oakland were looking to get back into the match just before the halftime break. In the 40th minute they got a corner kick that recycled out to Morey Doner just outside the Republic box. His rifled effort got through all the players still in the box but not past Danny Vitiello.

And the Roots found their equalizer in the 45th minute. Faysal Bettache played in the ball to a streaking Peter Wilson. The striker chested the ball to get control and with one touch. And from an absurd angle he put it across the face of goal and into the opposite upper corner.

Oh man was a fiery first half. But it's what you want to see in these rivalry matches where anything can happen. Both teams brought their shooting boots to this one as they entered the half tied with two goals a piece. As we enter the second half it would be a question as to which defense can show up. Both defenses have been broken down, now which one can stop the leak? It's a rare sight to see the Sacramento defense give up a goal, let alone multiple of them. One positive is the passing, not necessarily the accuracy but the creativity on display. You could tell both teams really wanted to win this one and they're bringing their best to do just that.

Sacramento got the first chance of the second half. Wonderful footwork from Russell Cicerone to touch the ball past two Oakland defenders and give himself a chance at scoring. His shot was right at Kendall McIntosh as the keeper dived straight onto the shot.

A truly incredible strike in the 53rd minute resulted in Sacramento retaking the lead. Rodrigo Lopez got the ball as Sacramento repossessed the ball in the midfield. He played an incredible ball out wide to Russell Cicerone making a break for it down the wing. Cicerone cut back inside and swung at the ball from range. His wonderful effort got past Kendall McIntosh to retake the lead for Sacramento.

Coach Collins made a pair of substitutions in the 67th minute. Rodrigo Lopez and Khori Bennett stepped off the pitch to be replaced by Nick Ross and Sebastian Herrera.

Oakland's Danny Trejo would take to the field in the 72nd minute.

Another substitution was made by Neill Collins in the 80th minute. Lewis Jamieson replaced Cristian Parano. And as Parano was leaving the match he got a yellow card for arguing with the referee.

Danny Trejo was looking to make his presence felt in the 85th minute. He got the ball past Chibi Ukaegbu and dribbled in towards the Republic goal. Freddy Kleeman stepped up and deflected Trejo's shot before it could reach Danny Vitiello.

Oakland equalized the match in the 87th minute. From a corner kick, the ball was put into the box by Panos Armenakas. Jurgen Damm rose to the cross and headed it down to sneak the shot past Danny Vitiello.

One more substitution was made right after the goal. Ryan Spaulding took the place of Russell Cicerone.

And the final whistle blew on a crazy match in Sacramento. Crazy from start to finish with both sides ending level on three goals a piece. It was good to see the Republic being lethal with the chances given, because outside of the goals scored there weren't too many other opportunities for the Republic. I also have to give the Roots my flowers for showing up and showing out in this one. They came in with a plan and it was successful enough to get a result out of the Republic. A busy week for the Republic is coming, with the midweek match coming in the USL Cup being a road trip out to Loudoun. Onwards!

Key Takeaways:

  • What a bonkers match.
  • These are the matches I live for. The rivalry matches where you throw everything out the window and anything can happen. And that's what happened here. I'll take a point in these kind of matches where it could rapidly swing one way or the other.
  • It's rare to see the Republic defense seem disjointed and it's rarer to see them give up multiple goals. Hopefully, they sync back up with the busy week ahead of them.

Sacramento Republic FC: 3 goals, 5 shots, 4 shots on target, 36.7% possession, 2 corners, 1 offsides, 5 yellow cards, 0 red cards.

Oakland Roots SC: 3 goals, 12 shots, 5 shots on target, 63.3% possession, 6 corners, 1 offsides, 3 yellow cards, 0 red cards.

Republic FC Lineup: Danny Vitiello, Lee Desmond, Chibi Ukaegbu, Freddy Kleeman, Jack Gurr, Michel Benitez, Blake Willey, Rodrigo Lopez (OUT, 67'), Russell Cicerone (OUT, 87'), Khori Bennett (OUT, 67'), Cristian Parano (OUT, 80')

Republic FC Bench: Jared Mazzola, Rayan Djedje, AJ Edwards, Ryan Spaulding (IN, 87'), Dominik Wanner, Justin Portillo, Nick Ross (IN, 67'), Sebastian Herrera (IN, 67'), Lewis Jamieson (IN, 80')

What were your thoughts on the match? Sound off in the comments below!

Follow me on Bluesky (@allisquail.bsky.social) for live match coverage and more!

Check out the stats from this match here!

(Photo thanks to Sacramento Republic FC)

SRFC Match Recaps
Riyan Lacara Profile Photo

Riyan Lacara

All Is Quail Blog Author/Co-Host

The “numbers guy”, Riyan! Riyan is a native of Sacramento and has been following the Republic since day one. He has covered the team across different media outlets including now his own, All is Quail Soccer. Aside from putting numbers in spreadsheets, he has a love of video games and finding a good book to put in his ever growing to-read pile.

2025 Match Recap: Sacramento Republic FC 1, Monterey Bay FC 0

Another HellaCup matchup was on the docket as Monterey paid a visit to Sacramento. And thanks to a dominant first half, it would be Sacramento winning over their California rivals thanks to a goal from Rodrigo Lopez. Monterey started the season off…

2025 Match Recap: San Antonio FC 1, Sacramento Republic FC 3

Sacramento had their eyes on moving towards the top of the table ahead of their clash with San Antonio FC. After a weather delay, it would be Sacramento that walked away from all three points. First ever goals for the Republic came from Lee Desmond …