During a decorated first six seasons, Louisville City FC pieced together a number of winning streaks measuring three or more games. But never have the boys in purple managed to tally nine USL Championship points in just more than a week’s time.
That’s the opportunity presented as the club travels to play FC Tulsa at 8 p.m. Saturday on the heels of recent victories over Memphis 901 and Birmingham Legion FC.
In both 2017 (June 7-17) and 2018 (Sept. 19-29), LouCity managed three league wins in 11 days. Should it complete this triple, that would mean maximum points earned in three games over eight days.
To do so, LouCity will have to defeat an opponent that’s both unfamiliar and formidable at its ONEOK Field.
Louisville and Tulsa haven’t met since their debut seasons in 2015, back when Saturday’s host side was known as the Roughnecks. Reinvigorated under new FC Tulsa branding, the club sits third, only a point behind LouCity in the Central Division standings early this season.
Central Division foes will meet four times as they chase a top-four finish and playoff bid. The boys in purple return to Tulsa on July 10 before hosting the series’ final two legs on Aug. 14 and Sept. 3.
Here’s what to watch for Saturday…
Follow along…
• For Starting XI and in-game updates, follow @loucityfc on Twitter and Louisville City FC on Facebook. Also find us at louisvillecityfc on Instagram. Live stats can be found at www.loucity.com/match-center.
• On the WBKI-TV (The CW)/ESPN+ streaming call: Devon Kerr (play by play) and Sam Lloyd (color).
• And for ESPN 680/105.7 on the radio: Jeff Greer and Casey Whitfield.
Notes to know
A look at the table: Sure, it’s too early to be scoreboard watching. But LouCity could be playing for a move to the top of the table Saturday. Birmingham holds the spot as it hosts Austin Bold FC with Legion FC three points up and a +1 goal differential. The boys in purple sport a +6 differential and, in the bigger picture, have two games in hand over the current leader.
A show of depth: Coach Danny Cruz lauded his group following the Birmingham win after making six lineup changes from the Memphis game, among them seeing forward Jimmy McLaughlin make his first start in purple.. This is the most congested LouCity’s schedule has been to date, but it will be common over the back half of a season that consists of 32 games spread across six months.
Some series history: LouCity is 1-0-1 all time against Tulsa with both of those games back in 2015. One of the club’s all-time highlights occurred on a visit to Tulsa, too, when former midfielder Aodhan Quinn banged in a free kick from distance on Aug. 15 of that season that landed at No. 5 on the night’s SportsCenter Top 10.
FC Tulsa today: Since its rebrand, a club formerly known as the Rougnecks has been on the upswing, qualifying for the playoffs in 2020 and looking like a postseason threat this year. Though score lines have been erratic, a consistency has been a threatening attack. Joaquin Rivas (fifth, five goals) and Dario Suarez (11th, four goals) both rank among league leaders in scoring.
From the spot: LouCity’s top striker, Cameron Lancaster, is beginning to hit his scoring stride. The Englishman — back with the club on a long-term contract — has converted penalties in consecutive games to up his goals total to three, also earning his try Wednesday against Birmingham. He also scored a penalty back on a May 22 victory over San Diego Loyal.
A rising star: Enjoy him while he’s here. Defender Jonathan Gomez, who has already trained in recent weeks with the Mexican National Team, was gone for LouCity’s only defeats. He returned for games in which the boys in purple out-scored a pair of opponents 5-0, also earning his first USL Championship assist in the win over Birmingham.
Coming up big: LouCity doesn’t often call upon its goalkeeper. Chris Hubbard has been ready when asked. While he ranks 28th in the league in saves, the Louisville native’s three clean sheets are tied for most across the USL, a testament to Hubbard’s ability to make clutch plays when called upon.
Milestones aplenty: Wednesday night, LouCity — which hasn’t failed to reach an Eastern Conference Final in its existence — hit 100 regular season wins in club history. Additionally, midfielder Niall McCabe played his 150th league game in purple, and recent signing Kyle Greig hit 200 career USL Championship appearances.
Stat stuffers: Two of LouCity’s anchor players continue to rank highly in the USL Championship even as most clubs have played more than the boys in purple. All-League defender Sean Totsch sits second in total passes with 513, while midfielder Corben Bone is tied for second in chances created at 21. Midfielder Niall McCabe’s 43 crosses are fourth-most across the USL.
Injury report
- Oscar Jimenez (out)
- Abdou Thiam (out)
- Elijah Wynder (out)
