Having edged a 1-0 win at Sacramento Republic FC on Saturday in California, the Colorado Rapids will tonight tackle the new kids on the USL block as they start their Desert Diamond Cup campaign and continue their preseason with a game against Swope Park Rangers KC (5:30 p.m MT).

Rangers are the new USL affiliate of Sporting Kansas City, founded as recently as October 2015. Their squad includes players with MLS experience. Among them is Kris Tyrpak, who scored the winning goal against the Rapids in October, 2014, just 22 seconds after coming on as a substitute for Chivas USA.

Under the guidance of head coach Marc Dos Santos, newly-formed Rangers are building toward their first-ever competitive match, at home to Portland Timbers 2 on Saturday, March 26. Their preseason roster contains players from Mali, Jamaica, Cape Verde, Brazil, El Salvador, Bosnia & Herzegovina and Nigeria, as well as Steamboat Springs-born goalkeeper Zac Lubin.

The Rapids finished runners-up to Real Salt Lake in last year’s Desert Diamond Cup. This year, they will again play four matches - their final four warm-up games before the 2016 MLS season starts at San Jose Earthquakes on March 6.

Following the opener against Rangers, the Rapids then face Houston Dynamo (2/20) and Sporting Kansas City (2/24), before wrapping-up their preseason program against an as-yet unknown opponent on February 27.

Offseason signings Micheal Azira, Zach Pfeffer and Mekeil Williams saw some minutes in Saturday’s success over Sacramento. At some stage over the next four games in Tucson, fans should be allowed a glimpse of new Designated Player Shkëlzen Gashi, as well as other acquisitions Marco Pappa, Conor Doyle and Eric Miller.

Tonight’s match will be streamed live from 5:30 p.m MT on ColoradoRapids.com, or via the club’s YouTube channel.

The Rapids season starts on Sunday, March 6 at 1 p.m. MT on the road against San Jose Earthquakes, with the Home Opener at Dick's Sporting Goods Park against LA Galaxy on Saturday, March 12 at 5 p.m. MT. For more information or to purchase season tickets, click HERE, or call 303-825-GOAL.