Real Salt Lake’s 14th season in Major League Soccer came to an end in the Western Conference Semifinal against Sporting Kansas City after falling 5-3 on aggregate in a two-leg series on Sunday afternoon. The club posted impressive numbers over the course of the 2018 season to make a run into this year’s playoffs.
Here are just a few of the notable numbers reached by RSL this season:
1. Real Salt Lake saw its first-ever Rookie of the Year Award go to former RSL Academy product Corey Baird as he scored eight goals and provided five assists in his first season as a professional.
9. With its appearance in the 2018 Audi MLS Cup Playoffs, RSL has now featured in the postseason 9 times, only missing the postseason on five occasions in the club’s 14-year history.
11. Jefferson Savarino led the team in assists in 2018, playing provider on 11 occasions to pair with his seven goals on the year.
12. RSL became the first team in MLS history to score six goals in back-to-back games to total 12 goals in two outings when it toppled Colorado Rapids 6-0 and LA Galaxy 6-2 on August 25 and September 1 respectively.
15. In his first season with Real Salt Lake, Damir Kreilach scored 15 goals through the regular season and post season. Kreilach notched 12 goals during the regular season to earn the club’s Golden Boot honor before notching three goals in the 2018 Audi MLS Cup Playoffs.
22. Captain Kyle Beckerman became the 22nd player in MLS history to reach 40 goals and 50 assists in his career. There are five former Real Salt Lake players that Beckerman joins on that list as he joins Jason Kreis, Jeff Cunningham, Chris Klein, Javier Morales and Clint Mathis.
26.4. The average age of Real Salt Lake’s roster during the 2018 season, making the group one of the youngest to compete in the MLS Cup Playoffs.
33. Defender Justen Glad led RSL in games started with 33 in 2018. The 21-year-old centerback solidified himself as a staple on RSL’s backline for the second consecutive season. Glad was also recognized on MLS’s 22Under22 List at #9 for his performance on the field.
108. Adding seven more shutouts in 2018 to his illustrious career in Major League Soccer, goalkeeper Nick Rimando now owns 108 shutouts for RSL, bringing his grand total to 144 shutouts from 19 seasons in MLS.
210. Throughout the 2018 regular season and postseason, RSL landed 210 shots on goal from 499 shots attempted, scoring 61 total goals in 2018.
11,536. The total minutes played by Real Salt Lake Homegrown products in the 2018 season.
21,363. The record-setting number of fans at Rio Tinto Stadium who on September 1, saw RSL dismantle Zlatan Ibrahimovic and the LA Galaxy 6-2. The match was the highest attended match in Rio Tinto Stadium history.
