If the league was not on alert yet about 2026 Orange County SC then they will be the next couple of weeks. In their much anticipated return home in league play it was the hosts that came away with a clinical 2-0 victory over a mid-table El Paso Locomotive. There was not much done by Orange County that strayed from the norm they have established when they win games. This is a team that does not require a boatload of chances to score goals and does not mind giving up low scoring opportunities.
We might have seen the absolute extremes of this style of play this Saturday. The match was statistically a domination on El Paso’s end. El Paso had 42 touches in Orange County’s penalty area, generated 9 shots on goal from a grand total of 28 shots in the entire game. For reference to how skewed that is Orange County had 14 touches in the El Paso penalty area and only 3 shots on target from 8 total. It was another Alex Rando masterclass where he made a 9-save shutout for his sixth of the season. The offense for Orange County would again see why Ousmane Sylla is the best offensive weapon for Orange County and would see Orange County get another goal from its defensive core.
It is a peculiar situation that Orange County sees itself in. They are first in the West and still on a 9-game league unbeaten run. That 9-game unbeaten run in the league is tied for a club record in both the regular season and overall. This is statistically one of the best Orange County teams and run of form we have ever seen. But there are some underlying metrics that may or may not be issues. The biggest one will be the “bend but don’t break defense” which Alex Rando has saved on a few occasions. But maybe I am being ungrateful.
FIRST HALF
Orange County’s lineup was about what we should expect now. Ryan Doghman would make his first start at left back in a long time (June 13) with Nico Benalcazar going over to right back. The front 6 is unchanged from last week and again I cannot argue against it if it works. El Paso would get the ball for the first 25 minutes and really would hem in Orange County. It is hard to gauge just how Orange County plays in a match when they do not have the ball and spend it defending. But what Orange County does well is scoring when they get the chance. In the 26th minute Chris Hegardt from the left side would carry the ball up the field cut inside and then lay the ball off to a streaking Ousmane Sylla who would similarly cut inside right to the heart of the penalty box. Sylla’s high shot found the back of the net and would mean that Orange County would score the opening goal for a third straight game.
The mayday defense that Orange County employs would need to be called into action later in the first half off an El Paso corner. In the 39th minute a corner to the back post would elude Rando and the header would go across the face of goal but Stephen Kelly would save the day with a goal line clearance. Orange County would get another strong chance of their own in first half stoppage time where a ball would pinball in the box and find Bazini and his shot would hit a defender. The ball would come off the defender's thigh and up into his extended arm. I know the rule about handballs is that they are not called if the ball hits a legal part of the body first. I do not agree with it but the ref was right to not give a penalty if looking at current rule interpretations. Either way Orange County would enter into the half 1-0.
SECOND HALF
The second half was nearly a carbon copy of the first half. Which is a good thing for Orange County. El Paso would continue to hold the ball in the offensive half, Alex Rando was called upon to make a bunch of saves, and Orange County would score within the first 26 minutes of the half. While Bazini saw a goal of his turned into an own goal last week, it was Bazini who would get the assist on this one. From a free kick from far out that was played into the box, Yaniz Bazini would rise up and head the ball on to the back post. This was where center back Garrison Tubbs would head home Orange County’s second goal of the game in the 62nd minute.
This goal was very good insurance for Orange County because this would be the only offense they would get for the rest of the game. The two goals from three shots on target is really a perfect representation to how this team has operated in 2026. Alex Rando would really steal the show in the second half where he would continue to add to his save tally where he would end up with 9 recorded saves after it ended. When you watch the highlights however you will notice that the majority of El Paso’s shots on targets did not require super tough saves. Similar to the win against Monterey Bay where some might argue that more shots means better offense, it is the quality of shots that is better than the quantity of shots. A shot taken from 25 yards out that skies over the bar is meaningless when compared to a shot taken from inside the penalty box. So until teams can actually consistently score from these low chance shots then Orange County is completely fine with giving them up. Having a pure shot stopper like Rando does help too. Do I wish OC would have some more offensive chances created, yes; but to say that more shots means a team is playing better is not always the case.
More importantly for Orange County is the subs that came on in the match did well. Mouhamadou War would get another appearance but more importantly Brandon Cambridge would return to the pitch. Cambridge has proven to be a very good depth option for Orange County on the right wing and it is more players returning from injury. Orange County would end the game with a 2-0 victory.
OVERVIEW
The big picture story for Orange County after the win against El Paso is they remain first in the West. While not entirely in control of their own destiny at the moment for the 1 seed in the West they are closer and closer to getting a playoff spot secured much earlier than what they normally do. The two biggest threats to this 1 seed for Orange County are second place San Antonio who have not been that impressive and 4th place New Mexico who have the points and more importantly the games-in-hand to leap frog Orange County down the line. They are also a team that has been playing well. Orange County have begun a four game home stand but will get two big ones this month. Next week they get first place Tampa Bay Rowdies before getting another top Eastern team in Louisville City. There are a lot of things that Orange County can be proud of and perhaps they will get a chance to put the rest of the league on notice.