Louisville City FC has the chance to finish a busy stretch in its schedule strong at 7:30 p.m. Saturday as the boys in purple welcome Orlando City B to Slugger Field.
Already, LouCity’s on a three-game winning streak, with two of those victories on Sunday and Wednesday of this week. The run has the club back in first place.
Tickets to Saturday’s game start at just $15 and are available by calling (502) 384-8799 or at www.loucity.com/tickets.
Here’s what to watch for…
Tune In
TV: WBNA TV-21 will air the game live and in high definition locally.
Radio: TJ Walker (play-by-play) and Jeff Milby (color commentary) have the call on NewsRadio 840 WHAS, with pregame coverage starting at 7:15 p.m.
Streaming: Watch live via the USL Match Center or at www.loucity.com.
Follow Along
For Starting XI information and in-game updates, check us out on social media. It’s @loucityfc on Twitter, Louisville City FC on Facebook and louisvillecityfc on Instagram. Vote for the Modelo Man of the Match on Twitter starting in the 75th minute.
Links
• Five score as LouCity routs Harrisburg, returns to first
• A year after surgery, McCabe hitting his stride again
• LouCity maintains focus during attacking surge
• Column: O’Connor’s offense on a historic run
• Offensive fireworks continue for the boys in purple
Notes
Atop the Eastern Conference: LouCity (13-4-5, 44 points) took back the first-place Eastern Conference spot on goal differential following Wednesday’s 5-0 home win over the Harrisburg City Islanders. On a three-game winning streak — and having won five of their last six games — the boys in purple host Orlando City B (7-6-11, 32 points). The Lions head into the weekend holding the crucial eighth spot on the table, the playoff cutoff.
LouCity’s recent surge: The boys in purple have out-scored their last three opponents by a combined score of 13-1 and have tallied 20 goals in six games, the most offense by the club in such a span in its history. LouCity’s goal differential on the season of plus-23 is second-best overall in the USL.
Diversified scoring: Continuing a season-long trend, LouCity has continued to feature a variety of goal scorers rather than a single striker as in years past. Nine players have scored in the last three games, with defender Sean Reynolds, defender Sean Totsch and midfielder Paolo DelPiccolo nabbing their first of the season. In all, 14 LouCity players have goals this year.
Last time they met: LouCity followed up a scoreless draw in its 2017 opener with a much more satisfying result at the new Orlando City Stadium, posting a 3-1 win over Orlando City B. Scorers were Cameron Lancaster, George Davis IV and Luke Spencer, who hit the back of the net March 30 for the first time as a professional. LouCity only conceded an own goal.
Scouting the Lions: Forward Hadji Barry, the reigning USL Player of the Week, enters having scored three goals in Orlando’s last two games. He leads his side with eight total goals this season. Nine of his teammates have also scored. Keeper Earl Edward Jr. has nine clean sheets to keep the Lions in playoff contention. OCB is coached by Anthony Pulis, a former teammate of LouCity’s James O’Connor.
Home field advantage: In years past, LouCity has posted a better record away, thriving on larger pitches. But the boys in purple have figured out how to make Slugger Field friendly confines this season as well, improving their record there to 7-1-2 on Wednesday. Strong fan support helps. An average 9,029 fans have attended the club’s 10 home games, including a record 13,812 Aug. 12 when the boys in purple hosted FC Cincinnati.
Fully healthy: Midfielder George Davis IV returned to the pitch Wednesday, making his first appearance since July 15, and assisted Mark-Anthony Kaye’s first half goal in his first game back from a minor knee injury. In the second half, another attacking midfielder, Brian Ownby, out for four games with a muscle strain and stomach bug, also logged minutes as a substitute.
Spencer’s breakout season: With LouCity amid three games in seven days, striker Luke Spencer earned a rest Wednesday, three days after he registered a first half brace in a 3-1 win at Bethlehem Steel FC. Spencer’s eight goals lead LouCity, and his strong holdup play produced a pair of assists as well Aug. 12 against FC Cincinnati. The former first-round MLS SuperDraft selection is playing true to form.
Set piece specialist: With three assists in LouCity’s last three games, defender Oscar Jimenez has taken the team lead in that category at five on the season. Two of his connections came on set pieces involving Luke Spencer, and another was off a free kick to Cameron Lancaster, who replaced Spencer in the second half of the Bethlehem win. LouCity produced 15 scoring chances last time out, with Jimenez starting seven of those. While not credited with an assist, two of the five goals started with him playing a ball into the box.
Ranjitsingh stands tall in goal: Following a clean sheet Aug. 12 against FC Cincinnati — Greg Ranjitsingh’s first start in nearly a month — the goalkeeper willed LouCity to another win Sunday. He recorded four saves on an afternoon Steel FC tallied eight shots in the box. Ranjitsingh wasn’t pressed Wednesday against Harrisburg, as the City Islanders didn’t manage a shot on goal, resulting in his fifth clean sheet of the year. Counterpart Tim Dobrowolski has three shutout performances as well.
Injuries/discipline: The USL on Wednesday announced a three-game suspension for LouCity defender Kyle Smith — the team’s leader in minutes played — for a stoppage time incident in Bethlehem that saw him sent off for a shove outside the run of play. Aside from Smith, LouCity’s entire roster is available for selection Saturday against Orlando.
