Monterey Bay Looks to Regain Footing in the Western Conference, Welcomes Phoenix Rising FC to Cardinale Stadium
SEASIDE, California (Friday, July 28, 2023) – Monterey Bay F.C. (7-8-6, 27 points) returns to Seaside on Saturday for a Western Conference battle against Phoenix Rising FC (6-5-8, 26 points) at Cardinale Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. PT in Week 21 of the 2023 USL Championship regular season. Saturday’s match will be broadcast locally via KION on Central Coast CW (35.1 over the air, channel 14 Xfinity), with live streaming available on ESPN+.
The Crisp and Kelp and Rising FC last met back in April this season. The first half came and went scoreless, but Monterey Bay’s Alex Dixon broke the deadlock just after the hour mark with a converted penalty kick to give the Union the lead on the road. It was short lived however, as Kevon Lambert equalized for Phoenix a short four minutes later and the match ended at 1-1. With draws in the previous two meetings between the sides and a win for Phoenix in the Union’s first-ever regular season match, Rising FC has the head-to-head advantage thus far in the matchup. However, only one meeting to date has taken place in Seaside.
Monterey Bay returns home after a quick stop against Detroit City FC and will need a win to stop their current five-game winless slide. Now below the playoff line for the first time all season, the Union will be tasked with getting back on track offensively especially, as the Club has scored just two goals in its last five matches.
Individually, Hugh Roberts II is expected to cross off his second major career milestone in a row. After reaching 20,000 career minutes last weekend, Roberts is now on the cusp of 250 career appearances. He will become just the fifth player in league history to reach the quarter-century mark and will end the night 13 appearances shy of the all-time USL Championship appearance leader, Yann Ekra, though the Tamba Bay goalkeeper is still active and is expected to extend that number. Roberts will however get within a single match of Dane Kelly’s 251 total appearances – currently second in league history – with fellow active players Josh Suggs (NM, 251) and Kenardo Forbes (PIT, 250) expected to remain in the race as well.
Monterey Bay F.C. vs. Phoenix Rising FC
Cardinale Stadium; Seaside, California
Saturday, July 29, 2023; 7:00 p.m. PT
Access MBvPHX Match Notes
The Adobe PDF version of the 2023 Match Guide in advance of Saturday’s contest between Monterey Bay F.C. and Phoenix Rising FC can be found here. Media members looking to receive the document as an attachment or have further questions are asked to please contact Steven Vargo in MBFC Communications via email at steven@montereybayfc.com.
FiveThirtyEight Predictor
MBFC 32%, PHX 41%, Draw 27%
2023 Records
Monterey Bay F.C. (7-8-6, 27 pts, 9th West); Phoenix Rising FC (6-5-8, 26 pts, 10th West)
