SAN ANTONIO – After the high of the four-game winning streak that moved San Antonio FC into the playoff positions in the Western Conference, a three-game slide that continued on Wednesday night in a 4-0 loss on the road to Phoenix Rising FC has pushed SAFC right back into the middle of the race for the playoffs.

And with the Swope Park Rangers coming to Toyota Field on Saturday night (8:30 p.m. ET | Match Center | ESPN+) level on points with their hosts and in a similar predicament as the season enters the final stretch, San Antonio’s players know the side needs to produce a serious turnaround to steady the ship.

“The best thing we can do is put this behind us,” said SAFC defender Greg Cochrane on Wednesday night. “We had chances to score early and didn’t take our chances, and they punished us for it multiple times. We switched off as a group and we need to be better top-to-bottom.”

One thing that should help San Antonio in its turnaround is a return to home turf, with the side having won its last three outings at Toyota Field and seven of its nine wins overall this season. The side will also be able to call upon both midfielders Mikey Lopez and Pecka, both of whom were suspended for Wednesday night’s contest for caution accumulation, and Lance Laing, who was officially announced as the newest member of the squad on loan from FC Cincinnati on Thursday.

With Lopez in particular having been a central figure to the side this season in the heart of midfield, SAFC Head Coach Darren Powell is hopeful the energy provided by the club’s support can help engineer what would be an important victory.

“We always love being at Toyota Field,” said Powell. “The players respond well to our supporters’ energy, so we’re looking forward to our fans rallying behind the team as we prepare for another quick turnaround.”

“That was one of those games that it looked like everything was going our way, then in the last couple of minutes, it changed,” said OKC midfielder Jose Barril. “I think we created lots of opportunities during that game that we just didn’t take advantage of. If we can keep playing like we have, we will be a tough team to beat.”

Energy FC’s form has been far different of late with the side taking its third consecutive victory last Saturday night against Rio Grande Valley FC to keep its hopes of a fourth consecutive trip to the USL Cup Playoffs alive. OKC’s attack has come alive in recent weeks, scoring 10 goals in the past three games, which has closed the gap to the playoff places to only two points with eight games to go in the regular season.

“In recent games, you look at Jose Barril being a real threat in and around the penalty area,” said Energy FC Head Coach Steve Cooke. “You look at the running and the goal scoring from Christian Volesky and Alex Dixon. Then, you look at the competitiveness of Adam Jahn and his ability to score. The front four have been fantastic the last three games.

“What we have to make sure of is that we keep doing the right things all the time. Not only in the games, but during the training sessions as well. The players should be full of confidence and know that if they play the way they can, they can pick up three points against any team in the league.”

“We know they are one of the best teams in the league and we had to play one of our best games to beat them earlier this year,” said RGVFC midfielder Todd Wharton. “At this point, we really don’t have anything to lose and they are fighting for a top playoff spot, so we can play freely and maybe catch them looking passed us. It’ll be tough on the road, but we played well last night so hopefully we can carry over the good play.”

Rio Grande Valley picked up a 1-1 draw with the LA Galaxy II in the first game of its trip to Southern California on Wednesday night as Jesus Enriquez’s fourth goal of the season opened the scoring before Los Dos equalized with 13 minutes to go. Finding a way to close out games has been a weakness for the Toros this season, the club leads the league with 12 draws this season, but Head Coach Gerson Echeverry has been pleased with the way his side has approached road contests recently.

“I think that we’ve played very well on the road the past two games,” said Echeverry. “Unfortunately, getting the result has not been the case but these are games that we’ve had the lead and unfortunately, we have not been able to keep it. So, we feel confident in what we are capable of doing, it’s just the matter of being able to close games and when we have those mental lapses hopefully we can minimize [them], we will be able to get away with three points.”

AROUND THE WEST: Saint Louis FC’s Sam Fink was pleased to be named to the USL Team of the Week on Tuesday but is more concerned about helping his side bounce back from its first defeat in August when the side hosts Tulsa Roughnecks FC on Saturday. “Individual awards are nice but the focus from the beginning for me has always been the team first.,” said Fink. “We went on a great winning streak to get ourselves into the playoff picture, but everyone is disappointed with the loss to Fresno and we need to continue to stay focused for the remainder of the season.” … Real Monarchs SLC has claimed victory in 10 consecutive outings at Zions Bank Stadium, but with Orange County SC taking victory on Wednesday night to move level on points with the Western Conference-leader the importance of keeping that streak going against the LA Galaxy II on Saturday has been a point of emphasis for Head Coach Jamison Olave this week. “I’ve said it before, we have to win in our home,” said Olave. “We need to pick up our points at home and do the same on the road. These games are very important before the playoffs.”