By Chris Mattingly
Friday night’s win at FC Tulsa came with some extra significance to Louisville City FC goalkeeper Oliver Semmle.
In his first season with the club, the 6-foot-3 shot stopper recorded his 11th clean sheet, good for the USL Championship’s rookie shutout record as he surpassed the 10 totaled by John McCarthy in 2014 for the Rochester Rhinos.
Always a team-oriented player in his interviews, Semmle said, “I’m really grateful to break the record, but it’s not only me. It’s collective. We do it together as a team – everybody on the field. They always count the clean sheets for the keeper, but I think it’s a team effort.”
The stats back that up, too. Oakland Roots SC goalkeeper Paul Blanchette ranks second in the league this season with nine shutouts. Blanchette has made 81 saves. Semmle sits on 36.
Two games back, Semmle didn’t face a shot on target in City’s victory over Indy Eleven. On Friday, the boys in purple conceded only two tries on frame while defeating FC Tulsa, 3-0. Semmle tipped a fifth-minute Moses Dyer shot over the bar, but it was Oscar Jimenez who cleared a Tulsa set piece off the line in the 66th minute.
Of course, Semmle’s responsibilities extend beyond counting saves. Goalkeepers take on responsibilities organizing their defenses, and LouCity has thrived in its last two games while switching to a three-back formation.
Coach Danny Cruz said Semmle — a native of Germany who won an NCAA title at Marshall University — had been on his staff’s radar for quite some time before his signing.
“We had been scouting him obviously before this season started,” Cruz said. “He goes in with Colorado (Rapids on trial). I think in his time here he’s done everything we’ve asked of him. He’s growing. He’s learning. He’s still improving, and when you look at the record that he has, he deserves it.
“I think he will be the first to tell you that the players in front of him play a big role in that.”
Semmle will need 16 clean sheets — five more in LouCity’s final 12 games — to set a new single-season USL Championship record. The mark is jointly held at 15 shutouts apiece by Maxime Crepeau, formerly of Ottawa Fury, and San Antonio FC’s Jordan Farr.
“I think as a group we are defending collectively,” Cruz said, “and (Semmle’s) made some big saves this year no question about it. He has a lot to be proud of as well.”
