HERRIMAN, Utah (Sunday, Mar. 22, 2026) — Real Monarchs (2-0-2, 10 pts, 3rd West) earned a hard-fought three points at home against Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 (1-2-1, 4 pts, 9th West) on Sunday afternoon at Zions Bank Stadium, powered by an impressive performance from Lineker Rodrigues, who recorded a two-goal “brace.”
Real Monarchs Head Coach Mark Lowry fielded an adjusted lineup following the Club’s home shootout victory over LAFC 2 last Sunday, maintaining the same formation while introducing changes to the starting XI. Defender Wes Charpie, midfielders Izzy Amparo and Liam O’Gara and forward Marcos Zambrano were all inserted into the lineup, with Zambrano leading the attack as he looks to build momentum in his 2026 campaign.
Real Monarchs opened the match aggressively, looking to strike first early on. In the sixth minute, Chilean midfielder Antonio Riquelme tested his luck from outside the box, but his effort sailed over the bar, an early sign of attacking intent.
The breakthrough came in the 11th minute, when Riquelme picked out Brazilian forward Rodrigues making a run toward the top of the box, delivering a perfectly-weighted pass. Rodrigues calmly slotted it past the Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 goalkeeper to give the Monarchs a 1-0 lead.
The hosts continued to push forward, and in the 36th minute, fullback Gio Villa tried his chances from distance, but his shot went over the bar, keeping the score at 1-0.
Just before halftime, in the 42nd minute, Villa delivered a dangerous cross across the face of goal, where Rodrigues met it with a clean volley, firing it past the goalkeeper to secure his brace and double the Monarchs’ advantage.
Real Monarchs entered halftime with confidence and momentum, holding a 2-0 lead after a strong first-half performance at home.
Coming out of the locker room, Real Monarchs continued their attacking momentum in search of another goal. In the 54th minute, midfielder Riquelme pounced on a rebound outside the 18-yard box and fired a shot, but the Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 goalkeeper tipped it over the crossbar for a corner.
Just three minutes later, Riquelme combined well with Villa before sending a dangerous ball across the face of goal. Forward Zambrano met it first time, but his effort struck the right post, denying the Monarchs a third.
Zambrano’s breakthrough came in the 60th minute, when midfielder Izzy Amparo delivered a perfectly-weighted long ball over the top from the Monarchs’ half. Zambrano beat his defender with pace, got in behind the backline, and calmly slotted the ball past the goalkeeper to extend the lead to 3-0.
In the 67th minute, Academy man and Utah native Linkon Ream entered the match, making both his professional and Real Monarchs debut, in place of Villa.
Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 responded in the 77th minute after earning a penalty, where Liam Mackenzie converted with a shot into the bottom right corner to make it 3-1. The visitors continued to apply pressure, but in the 84th minute, Monarchs goalkeeper Max Kerkvliet came up with a big save to preserve the two-goal advantage, pushing the ball out for a corner.
In second-half stoppage time, center back Prince Amponsah found Ryder Sewell in the middle of the field. Sewell drove forward, dribbled past the Monarchs’ defensive line, and fired a shot past Kerkvliet to cut the visiting deficit to 3-2.
Despite late pressure from Vancouver in search of an equalizer, the Monarchs’ defense remained organized, and Kerkvliet continued his strong performance between the posts. The back line held firm to secure the 3-2 victory at home.
The Monarchs will enjoy some time off before hitting the road on Sunday, April 12, traveling to Thousand Oaks, California to face Ventura County at William Rolland Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. MT, with the match available to stream on OneFootball.com.
SLC 3 : 2 VAN 2
GOAL-SCORING SUMMARY:
SLC: Lineker Rodrigues (Antonio Riquelme) 11’ — In the 11th minute, Chilean midfielder Antonio Riquelme picked out Brazilian forward Lineker Rodrigues making a run to the top of the box, delivering a perfectly weighted pass. Rodrigues calmly slotted it past the Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 goalkeeper to give Real Monarchs a 1-0 lead.
SLC: Lineker Rodrigues (Gio Villa) 42’ — In the 42nd minute, fullback Gio Villa delivered a perfectly placed cross across the face of goal, where forward Lineker Rodrigues met it with a clean volley, firing past the goalkeeper to secure his brace and extend Real Monarchs’ lead to 2-0.
SLC: Marcos Zambrano (Izzy Amparo) 60’ — In the 60th minute, midfielder Izzy Amparo delivered a perfectly weighted long ball over the top from the Monarchs’ half. Marcos Zambrano beat his defender with pace, got in behind the Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 backline, and calmly slotted the ball past the goalkeeper to extend the Monarchs’ lead to 3-0.
VAN 2: Liam Mackenzie (Penalty) 77’ — In the 77th minute, Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 earned a penalty. Midfielder Liam Mackenzie stepped up and placed his shot into the bottom right corner, pulling one back and making the score 3-1.
VAN 2: Ryder Sewell (Prince Amponsah) 90+2’ — In second-half stoppage time, center back Prince Amponsah found midfielder Ryder Sewell in the middle of the field. Sewell drove forward, dribbled past the Monarchs’ defensive line, and fired a shot past goalkeeper Kerkvliet to pull the visitors within one, making the score 3-2.
LINEUPS:
Real Monarchs (5-3-2): Max Kerkvliet; Ruben Mesalles, Luis Rivera (Felix Ewald 45’), Wes Charpie, Michael Wentzel ©, Gio Villa (Linkon Ream 67’); Izzy Amparo, Liam O’Gara (Omar Marquez 72’), Antonio Riquelme (Owen Anderson 72’); Marcos Zambrano, Lineker Rodrigues (Gio Calderon 89’)
Subs not used: Trace Alphin, Van Parker, Lionel Djiro, Dylan Kropp
Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 (4-2-3-1): Issac Francoeur; Micaah Garnette, Trevor Wright ©, Immanuel Mathe, Nikola Djordjevic; Ryder Sewell, Liam Mackenxie; Yeider Zuluaga (Anyole Peter 62’), Carson Rassak (Tyler Brown 73’), Sahil Deo (Prince Amponsah 45’); Marko Popovic (Daniel Ittycheria 62’)
Subs not used: Jesse Peace, Sam Rogers
Stats Summary: SLC / VAN 2
Shots: 14 / 10
Shots on Goal: 5 / 4
Saves: 2 / 2
Corner Kicks: 3 / 1
Fouls: 18 / 8
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY:
SLC: Gio Villa (Yellow Card, 51’)
SLC: Felix Ewald (Yellow Card, 81’)
SLC: Izzy Amparo (Yellow Card, 82’)
VAN 2: Trevor Wright (Yellow Card 90 +1’)
