KC Comets update: Kansas City responds to rare home defeat with road blowout win

A turbulent weekend for the Kansas City Comets featured both a home setback and an emphatic road response to conclude a challenging first three weeks of the season.

The Comets saw a five-year home unbeaten run against the Milwaukee Wave come to an end on Dec. 12, falling 9-6 at Cable Dahmer Arena in a rivalry matchup that swung dramatically after letting a two-goal lead slip away.

The Comets led 3-1 midway through the second quarter, but a decisive 7-1 Milwaukee run spanning the final minutes of the first half and the early stages of the fourth quarter proved too much to overcome.

Kansas City struck first when Zach Reget picked out Nacho Flores for the opener, and the intensity of the rivalry escalated early in the second quarter when Milwaukee’s Derek Huffman was issued a red card for throwing Christian Anderaos head-first into the boards. Despite later finding themselves short-handed, the Comets capitalized through Rian Marques before Reget added a goal of his own to provide the Comets with a two-goal cushion.

Milwaukee flipped the match, extending its lead to as many as four. Late goals from Leo Acosta and Francis cut the deficit, but an empty-net effort from Milwaukee sealed the result in the final minute.

“Right now, my thoughts are we’re not there yet,” Comets head coach Stefan Stokic said. “Our decision-making and quality — we’re making too many mistakes, both offensively and defensively. We’re not executing when we have the chance.”

Two days later, the Comets delivered a resounding answer on the road, overwhelming Utica City FC 11-5 on Dec. 14 in New York. Reget led the offensive explosion with his first hat trick of the season while goalkeeper Julio Coronado earned his first career win, making 13 saves and adding an assist in just his second professional start.

The Comets trailed twice early before taking control midway through the second quarter, scoring six consecutive goals to break the game open. Christian Anderaos scored on each side of halftime, and Marcel Berry added two late empty-netters as the Comets closed out a third road win of the season.

After three consecutive two-game weekends to start the season, the Comets finally have an opportunity to focus on a single matchup this coming week when they begin a four-game set with the St. Louis Ambush on Dec. 21. They return home for an I-70 Series clash on Dec. 27.