Locos Return Home Tonight To Face Indy Eleven After Draw in Tulsa

El Paso Locomotive FC wrapped up a two match road trip on Saturday returning to USL Championship play after being eliminated in the Lamar Hunt U. S. Open Cup by an MLS franchise earlier in the week.

Locos fall short in Texas capital

El Paso Locomotive fell to Austin FC at Q2 Stadium last Wednesday by the score of 3-2. Locomotive took an early lead in the state capital scoring twice in the span of 14 minutes. Beto Avila scores both goals to give El Paso the dream start. The two goals were no fluke as the Locos went on to dominate the rest of the first half.

The second half saw the same trend for the first third of the closing half. Then came in the 73rd minute and the six minutes thereafter that saw the home team comeback in roaring fashion to score three times. Brandon Vasquez scored twice (73rd and 80th min.) and Myrto Uzuni scored once (76th min.).

El Paso still had a couple of thorough opportunities on goal but it was not meant to be as the Locos fell short despite playing better than their opponents for all but that seven minute span where the opposing team was able to get all their goal.

The 2025 edition of the U.S. Open Cup has been the best participation the Locomotive have had in club history making it to the third round.

A draw in Tulsa

El Paso then traveled to Oklahoma to face FC Tulsa for the first time this season and played to a 1-1 draw. This was the fourth draw El Paso has had this season, good enough to earn them a point on the road that is always important.

However, some Locomotive fans will say that the Locos will return to the Borderland with two less points than they should have as El Paso gave up the equalizer in the closing minutes of the contest (the 86th minute) after leading since the 32nd minute when Andy Cabrera was able to score on a breakaway for his fourth goal in the previous two league matches.

The point obtained for the draw maintains the Locomotive in fifth place in the western conference standings with 13 points on the season as a result of three wins, draws and two losses. El Paso is only three points behind first place San Antonio FC.

The Locos return home to Southwest University Park on Friday night to host Indy Eleven in an inter-conference matchup. Here is everything you need to know regarding tonight’s match as per John Morgan.

Indy Eleven leads the all-time series with El Paso 1-2-0. The last time these two faced off at Southwest University Park, Locomotive picked up a 2-0 victory back on June 9, 2021. Nick Ross opened the scoring early two minutes in before Diego Luna sealed the win in the 49th minute.

Indy Eleven have struggled defensively this season allowing the second most goals (13) in the Eastern Conference. Their offense has somewhat offset those woes, however, with Elvis Amoh and Aodhan Quin leading the way.

Locomotive are undefeated at home this season (3W-0L-2D). In five home games this season, Los Locos have scored 16 goals, the most in club history. The club has scored four goals in the first 15 minutes, tied for the most in the USL Championship this season.

The following was said earlier in the week during media availability by head coach Wilmer Cabrera and fullback Ricky Ruiz.

HC Wilmer Cabrera on team performance vs. Austin FC:

"It was a positive game for us. We competed and forced them to put in their starters in the second half. That means that we were respected by the opponent, and they had to play all the top guys against a USL Championship side like us. Despite of the result, we played well while showing personality and a strong desire to play."

Cabrera on Open Cup run this season:

"We're sad that we are out of the U.S. Open Cup because the guys gave a good effort, and it was a good run, but now that we're out of the U.S. Open Cup, we have to focus only on the Championship. We're going to use this game against Indy Eleven to start off with a good attitude and mentality and try to make sure that the players are well recovered. It's not going to be easy, but we're motivated because of what we have done lately. The way we have played has been good."

Cabrera on progress from last season to this season:

"We are still growing. We are not a finished product yet. The growth of the team is a positive growth which is what we are looking for. We need to keep improving, but we are showing a more competitive level in all aspects more consistently which is what we want."

Cabrera on coaching his son Andy:

"I've been pushing him hard. I think I push him more than anybody because I know what he is capable of. Sometimes I'm too hard with him, to be honest with you, because I want more and more and more, and I see the potential. It can be tough for him to play for the team because I'm the first one to always come in after him because of something positive or something negative. Hopefully, he continues in a good form."

Ricky Ruiz on result against Austin FC:

"I thought it was a good performance overall and a good experience for us. We left that game on a positive note knowing that we played well and did what we did against an MLS side. We went toe-to-toe with them, and for the most part, I think we were the better team for the majority of the game. Their experience showed late, and that's why the result was what it was, but it definitely gave us a confidence boost moving forward."

Ruiz on recent match congestion:

"I don't think many people understand how difficult it is to have multiple games in a week, but that takes nothing away from us being able to manage games at the end. I think we should have walked out of that Saturday game against Tulsa with three points, but we can't stay focused on that. We just have to learn and move forward to the next game."

Ruiz on what energizes the squad for home matches:
"The fans. I mean, you can see it. There will be moments where we're attacking and it's late in the game and the fans come into the mix and give you that extra motivation to just keep pushing. At the end of the day, that's who makes us finish games through. We're excited for Friday and hope to get a positive result. It's a quick turnaround, but at the same time, nothing beats a home game.”

Kickoff for tonight’s match is scheduled for 7 p.m. MST. It will be televised nationally via streaming on ESPN+ and locally on the CW.