INDIANAPOLIS – Indy Eleven got its mojo back at home, using connections between forwards Nicky Law and Manuel Arteaga to post a 2-1 win over OKC Energy FC in front of an appreciative crowd at IUPUI Carroll Stadium.
The much-needed three points not only bumped Indiana’s Team off a six-game winless spell at “The Mike,” it also bumped the Eleven up the Central Division standings. The Boys in Blue now sit on 22 points, even with Energy FC and FC Tulsa in a crowded middle of the Central table, with Tulsa currently holding the tiebreaker on wins.
“The important thing was the reaction, and we played at home for the fans. That was good obviously, to go a goal up – and not great to concede in the first half – but at halftime the boys remained focused and started the second half in great fashion with the second goal,” said Indy Eleven Interim Head Coach Max Rogers. “Pleased with it, but it’s just one little step. We’ve got some big games coming up mid-week and next Sunday, so we have to switch our focus to that.”
A fast pace in the first 10 minutes settled in soon after, the first true gasp of the match coming in the 17th minute when a cross found OKC’s Zachary Ellis-Hayden in the right side of the area. However, a quick-closing Ayoze blocked his shot out for a corner before it could threaten the frame of Jordan Farr, the Eleven goalkeeper making his return to the lineup after missing two months of action.
As Indy started to gain more of a foothold in the middle of the half, its efforts on the ball paid off with a tidy go-ahead goal straight up the middle of the field in the 26th minute. After accepting Ayoze’s pass 30 yards from goal, forward Manuel Arteaga touched and turned before neatly slipping Law behind the Energy FC backline. After a touch of his own, the Englishman stayed patient before chipping OKC netminder C.J. Cochran from eight yards to net his second of the season – and open the night’s scoring – with a touch of class.
However, the lead was short-lived as OKC leveled off a corner kick 10 minutes later. Towering Energy FC center back Lamar Batista used all of his 6’5” frame to win a header at the top of the six, his powerful nod of Deklan Wynne’s inswinger beating Farr to even the proceedings. From there the first half played out evenly and without many threats on goal, indicative of the first 45 minutes on the whole that saw both squads put a pair of shots on frame each on nine combined shots.
It was a defensive play that stood out to start the second half, A.J. Cochran’s last-gasp poke away from Jaime Chavez in the 50th minute in the heart of the area taking away a clear chance for the visitors. Two minutes later the pair that linked up for Indy’s first reversed their roles for its second, as Arteaga crashed the six to nod home Law’s back-post cross on a near-angle. The Venezuelan’s fourth of the season tied him with Jordan Hamilton for the team’s scoring lead and put the Boys in Blue back in front at 2-1 early in the second half.
Indy managed the aftermath of the second go-ahead tally well, thanks in part to Farr’s biggest save of the evening in the 66th minute, his quick decision to dart off his line and cut off Seyi Adekoya’s angle from close range paying dividends. Two minutes later it was Arteaga putting plenty of pace on an effort sent right at CJ Cochran, who could only parry away for a corner.
From there, the Indy defense clamped down on Energy FC, allowing just one shot over the next 20 minutes that Farr was able to easily save. Meanwhile, the Boys in Blue kept searching for their third, Arteaga’s header off a Wild dead ball service in the 87th minute again sent right to the OKC ‘keeper on his line.
Energy FC would have one final threat as the match entered four minutes of stoppage time, but Farr collected Tucker Stephenson’s chipped ball to the right of his goal, extinguishing the final chance of the evening and putting the Eleven back on the winning end at Carroll Stadium. The three points at “The Mike” to kick off the second half of Indy’s USL Championship campaign marked only the second win in nine home outings, joining the 2-0 result over Sporting KC II on May 22, and the first home win for Rogers as the interim manager.
“I’m obviously delighted for the lads because they worked so hard in that game and sorted it out, which was brilliant. It’s a credit to them and they deserve all the praise for how they played in that game and responded,” explained Rogers. “It’s obviously great for them to connect with the fans again, and I said that to them. You know, go and milk it in a sense because the fans had maybe not had that connection because of the way things were going … hopefully that can build a sort of momentum and spirit again for the next home game and obviously, the next game.”
Next up, Indiana’s Team will take its second Wednesday-Sunday road trip of August beginning with a midweek match against Loudoun United FC at Segra Field in suburban Washington D.C. (7:00 p.m. kickoff, live on ESPN+). From there, the Boys in Blue head west for its second meeting of the season at Children’s Mercy Park against Sporting KC II (5:00 p.m. kickoff, live on ESPN+).
Indy Eleven comes back home again on August 28, with the first of four straight Saturday nights at Carroll Stadium against Real Monarchs SLC. First kick on Bob Ross Night at “The Mike” is set for 7:00 p.m., and the limited number of tickets remaining can be secured by visiting https://sportsengine-staging.go-vip.net/indyeleven/tickets or by calling 371-685-1100 during regular business hours. For full details surrounding the evening’s event, visit https://sportsengine-staging.go-vip.net/indyeleven/promotions.
USL Championship Regular Season
Indy Eleven 2 : 1 OKC Energy FC
Saturday, August 14, 2021
IUPUI Michael A. Carroll Stadium – Indianapolis, Ind.
Indy Eleven: 6W-7L-4D, 22 pts.; 5th place in Central Division
OKC Energy FC: 5W-7L-7D, 22 pts.; 6th place in Central Division
Scoring Summary
IND – Nicky Law (Manuel Arteaga) 26’
OKC – Lamar Batista (Deklan Wynne) 36’
IND – Manuel Arteaga (Nicky Law) 53’
Discipline Summary
IND – Aboubacar Sissoko (yellow card) 10’
OKC – Seyi Adekoya 45’ (yellow card) 45’
IND – Manuel Arteaga (yellow card) 90+3’
IND – Gordon Wild (yellow card) 90+4’
Indy Eleven line-up (4-3-3): Jordan Farr; Neveal Hackshaw, A.J. Cochran, Karl Ouimette, Rece Buckmaster; Ayoze (captain) (Patrick Seagrist 72’), Jeremiah Gutjahr, Aboubacar Sissoko (Peter-Lee Vassell 72’); Gordon Wild, Manuel Arteaga, Nicky Law
IND substitutions: Eric Dick (GK), Nedeljko Malić, Aidan Liu, Jordan Hamilton, Ecris Revolorio
OKC Energy FC line-up (3-4-3): C.J. Cochran; Lamar Batista (Tucker Stephenson 76’), Conor Donovan (captain), Mitch Osmond; Deklan Wynne, Brad Dunwell (Irakoze Donasiyano 76’), Hiroki Kurimoto, Zachary Ellis-Hayden; Villyan Bijev (Kodai Iida 56’), Jaime Chavez (Frank Lopez 55’), Seyi Adekoya (Jonathan Brown 83’)
OKC substitutions: Kyle Ihn (GK), Muengnenshime Goshit
INDIANAPOLIS – Indy Eleven got its mojo back at home, using connections between forwards Nicky Law and Manuel Arteaga to post a 2-1 win over OKC Energy FC in front of an appreciative crowd at IUPUI Carroll Stadium.
The much-needed three points not only bumped Indiana’s Team off a six-game winless spell at “The Mike,” it also bumped the Eleven up the Central Division standings. The Boys in Blue now sit on 22 points, even with Energy FC and FC Tulsa in a crowded middle of the Central table, with Tulsa currently holding the tiebreaker on wins.
“The important thing was the reaction, and we played at home for the fans. That was good obviously, to go a goal up – and not great to concede in the first half – but at halftime the boys remained focused and started the second half in great fashion with the second goal,” said Indy Eleven Interim Head Coach Max Rogers. “Pleased with it, but it’s just one little step. We’ve got some big games coming up mid-week and next Sunday, so we have to switch our focus to that.”
A fast pace in the first 10 minutes settled in soon after, the first true gasp of the match coming in the 17th minute when a cross found OKC’s Zachary Ellis-Hayden in the right side of the area. However, a quick-closing Ayoze blocked his shot out for a corner before it could threaten the frame of Jordan Farr, the Eleven goalkeeper making his return to the lineup after missing two months of action.
As Indy started to gain more of a foothold in the middle of the half, its efforts on the ball paid off with a tidy go-ahead goal straight up the middle of the field in the 26th minute. After accepting Ayoze’s pass 30 yards from goal, forward Manuel Arteaga touched and turned before neatly slipping Law behind the Energy FC backline. After a touch of his own, the Englishman stayed patient before chipping OKC netminder C.J. Cochran from eight yards to net his second of the season – and open the night’s scoring – with a touch of class.
However, the lead was short-lived as OKC leveled off a corner kick 10 minutes later. Towering Energy FC center back Lamar Batista used all of his 6’5” frame to win a header at the top of the six, his powerful nod of Deklan Wynne’s inswinger beating Farr to even the proceedings. From there the first half played out evenly and without many threats on goal, indicative of the first 45 minutes on the whole that saw both squads put a pair of shots on frame each on nine combined shots.
It was a defensive play that stood out to start the second half, A.J. Cochran’s last-gasp poke away from Jaime Chavez in the 50th minute in the heart of the area taking away a clear chance for the visitors. Two minutes later the pair that linked up for Indy’s first reversed their roles for its second, as Arteaga crashed the six to nod home Law’s back-post cross on a near-angle. The Venezuelan’s fourth of the season tied him with Jordan Hamilton for the team’s scoring lead and put the Boys in Blue back in front at 2-1 early in the second half.
Indy managed the aftermath of the second go-ahead tally well, thanks in part to Farr’s biggest save of the evening in the 66th minute, his quick decision to dart off his line and cut off Seyi Adekoya’s angle from close range paying dividends. Two minutes later it was Arteaga putting plenty of pace on an effort sent right at CJ Cochran, who could only parry away for a corner.
From there, the Indy defense clamped down on Energy FC, allowing just one shot over the next 20 minutes that Farr was able to easily save. Meanwhile, the Boys in Blue kept searching for their third, Arteaga’s header off a Wild dead ball service in the 87th minute again sent right to the OKC ‘keeper on his line.
Energy FC would have one final threat as the match entered four minutes of stoppage time, but Farr collected Tucker Stephenson’s chipped ball to the right of his goal, extinguishing the final chance of the evening and putting the Eleven back on the winning end at Carroll Stadium. The three points at “The Mike” to kick off the second half of Indy’s USL Championship campaign marked only the second win in nine home outings, joining the 2-0 result over Sporting KC II on May 22, and the first home win for Rogers as the interim manager.
“I’m obviously delighted for the lads because they worked so hard in that game and sorted it out, which was brilliant. It’s a credit to them and they deserve all the praise for how they played in that game and responded,” explained Rogers. “It’s obviously great for them to connect with the fans again, and I said that to them. You know, go and milk it in a sense because the fans had maybe not had that connection because of the way things were going … hopefully that can build a sort of momentum and spirit again for the next home game and obviously, the next game.”
Next up, Indiana’s Team will take its second Wednesday-Sunday road trip of August beginning with a midweek match against Loudoun United FC at Segra Field in suburban Washington D.C. (7:00 p.m. kickoff, live on ESPN+). From there, the Boys in Blue head west for its second meeting of the season at Children’s Mercy Park against Sporting KC II (5:00 p.m. kickoff, live on ESPN+).
Indy Eleven comes back home again on August 28, with the first of four straight Saturday nights at Carroll Stadium against Real Monarchs SLC. First kick on Bob Ross Night at “The Mike” is set for 7:00 p.m., and the limited number of tickets remaining can be secured by visiting https://sportsengine-staging.go-vip.net/indyeleven/tickets or by calling 371-685-1100 during regular business hours. For full details surrounding the evening’s event, visit https://sportsengine-staging.go-vip.net/indyeleven/promotions.
USL Championship Regular Season
Indy Eleven 2 : 1 OKC Energy FC
Saturday, August 14, 2021
IUPUI Michael A. Carroll Stadium – Indianapolis, Ind.
Indy Eleven: 6W-7L-4D, 22 pts.; 5th place in Central Division
OKC Energy FC: 5W-7L-7D, 22 pts.; 6th place in Central Division
Scoring Summary
IND – Nicky Law (Manuel Arteaga) 26’
OKC – Lamar Batista (Deklan Wynne) 36’
IND – Manuel Arteaga (Nicky Law) 53’
Discipline Summary
IND – Aboubacar Sissoko (yellow card) 10’
OKC – Seyi Adekoya 45’ (yellow card) 45’
IND – Manuel Arteaga (yellow card) 90+3’
IND – Gordon Wild (yellow card) 90+4’
Indy Eleven line-up (4-3-3): Jordan Farr; Neveal Hackshaw, A.J. Cochran, Karl Ouimette, Rece Buckmaster; Ayoze (captain) (Patrick Seagrist 72’), Jeremiah Gutjahr, Aboubacar Sissoko (Peter-Lee Vassell 72’); Gordon Wild, Manuel Arteaga, Nicky Law
IND substitutions: Eric Dick (GK), Nedeljko MaliÄ, Aidan Liu, Jordan Hamilton, Ecris Revolorio
OKC Energy FC line-up (3-4-3): C.J. Cochran; Lamar Batista (Tucker Stephenson 76’), Conor Donovan (captain), Mitch Osmond; Deklan Wynne, Brad Dunwell (Irakoze Donasiyano 76’), Hiroki Kurimoto, Zachary Ellis-Hayden; Villyan Bijev (Kodai Iida 56’), Jaime Chavez (Frank Lopez 55’), Seyi Adekoya (Jonathan Brown 83’)
OKC substitutions: Kyle Ihn (GK), Muengnenshime Goshit
