Cedar Rapids Rampage keep coming up short against Chicago

CEDAR RAPIDS — After a weekend series with the Chicago Mustangs, it is clear the Cedar Rapids Rampage have some things to clean up.

Four Chicago goals erased a fourth-quarter Cedar Rapids lead as the Rampage fell to the Mustangs for the second time in two days, 9-8, in a Major Arena Soccer League game in front of 2,280 fans Sunday at the U.S. Cellular Center.

'It was a frustrating game because as good as we were offensively … we gave up three or four goals by mistake,' Rampage forward/head coach Hewerton Moreira said. 'Some of the goals were, individually, mistakes that happened last night as well.'

Saturday night at Chicago, the Rampage watched a 6-4 lead in the final frame evaporate into a 7-6 overtime defeat.

The Sunday game was tied at halftime, 3-3, thanks to two Chicago goals that deflected off Rampage players and an errant Cedar Rapids pass that was headed back into the goal.

A pair of third-quarter Moreira goals off free kicks sent Cedar Rapids to the final frame with a 6-5 lead. From there, Chicago scored four unanswered goals.

Six different Rampage players scored a goal, led by two from Moreira and forward Gordy Gurson. Defenders Jonatan Santos and Pablo Da Silva each collected a goal and a game-high three assists.

'We don't rely on one player, we have so many that can score,' Moreira said. 'But we've been missing a lot of chances. If we score half of what we have been creating, we would have put this game away in the third quarter.'

Taylor Bond led Chicago (2-0) with three goals and two assists. Oswaldo Rojas and Efrain Martinez – who scored the overtime game-winner on Friday and tallied six goals in one game at Cedar Rapids last season – also scored twice on Sunday.

Cedar Rapids (1-2) hosts Central Division foe Milwaukee (1-2) this Friday.

'It's players understanding their role, it's players understanding that they have to recover for other players,' Moreira said. 'Working as a team, but really focusing individually on their mark. … If we want to get better, we have to sweat the details.'

AT U.S. CELLULAR CENTER

Chicago 9, Cedar Rapids 8

Chicago 2 1 2 4‑9

Cedar Rapids 2 1 3 2—8

Scoring

First quarter — 1. Cedar Rapids: Joshio Sandoval (Pablo Da Silva), 2:36; 2. Chicago: Efrain Martinez, 3:58; 3. Cedar Rapids: Bobby Hurwitz (Derek Huffman), 5:56; 4. Chicago:

Taylor Bond, 6:44.

Second quarter — 5. Cedar Rapids: Gordy Gurson (Jonatan Santos)5:24; 6. Chicago:

Miguel Vaca, 14:05.

Third quarter — 7. Chicago: Oswaldo Rojas (Taylor Bond, power play), 3:22; 8. Cedar Rapids: Hewerton Moreira (Pablo Da Silva), 5:44; 9. Chicago: Taylor Bond (Alexis Camarena), 6:08; 10. Cedar Rapids: Jonathan Greenfield (Pablo Da Silva, power play); 11. Cedar Rapids:

Hewerton Moreira (Jonatan Santos), 12:37.

Fourth quarter — 12. Chicago: Efrain Martinez (Miguel Vaca), 2:41; 13. Chicago: Douglas Dos Santos (Taylor Bond), 7:09; 14. Chicago: Taylor Bond (Ephraim Beard), 8:42; 15. Chicago: Oswaldo Rojas, 9:07; 16. Cedar Rapids: Gordy Gurson (Jonatan Santos), 10:11; 17. Cedar Rapids:

Pablo Da Silva (Hewerton Moreira), 10:17.

l Comments: douglas.miles@thegazette.com