Sports stats



USL United Soccer League Championship

First Installment of River Cities Cup Commences in Week 4

April 15, 2016 - United Soccer League Championship (USL) News Release


TAMPA, Fla. - The fourth week of the 2016 USL season features 13 games from Friday through Sunday, with the Eastern Conference's regional rivalry beginning between first-year side FC Cincinnati and second-year club Louisville City FC on Saturday in the River Cities Cup.

Week 4 has already featured two midweek matches. Seattle Sounders FC 2 drew visiting Rio Grande Valley FC on Tuesday and the Western Conference-leading LA Galaxy II played visiting San Antonio FC to a 1-1 draw on Wednesday.

Every game of the 2016 USL season will be available on the league's Match Center, with updates from across the league also available via Twitter, Facebook, Vine and Instagram.

GAMES TO WATCH

Saturday, April 16

FC Cincinnati vs. Louisville City FC

7 p.m. ET, Nippert Stadium

In the first installment of the River Cities Cup, both teams head into the match with some strong momentum from Week 3. Louisville (2-1-0, 6 points) is fresh off its best offensive performance of the season, a 4-1 victory against Orlando City B last Saturday at Slugger Field. Cincinnati (2-1-0, 6 points) is coming off a rousing home opener, a 2-1 win against the Charlotte Independence, which drew a crowd of 14,658 - the largest attendance mark thus far this 2016 season - and announced on Friday another five-figure crowd would be on hand for Saturday's game.

FC Cincinnati is also the host site for this weekend's USL Experience, an elite player program that directly connects the Super Y League's top young players with the professional ranks.

Cincinnati and Louisville enter the weekend tied for fourth in the Eastern Conference standings.

Saint Louis FC vs. Tulsa Roughnecks FC

8:30 p.m. ET, World Wide Technology Soccer Park

On Friday, Saint Louis FC (1-2-1, 4 points) announced it will have a sellout crowd for its home opener. The host side garnered four points in its final two games of a four-game road trip to open the season. Tulsa (1-2-0, 3 points) travels away from Oklahoma for the first time this season.

This marks the second meeting between the two organizations. When Saint Louis was in the USL's Eastern Conference last year, the club played a crossover match at ONEOK Field in Tulsa and earned a 2-0 victory against the Roughnecks. It marked Saint Louis' first win in club history.

Sunday, April 17

New York Red Bulls II vs. Rochester Rhinos

4 p.m. ET, Red Bull Arena

The Red Bulls II (2-0-1, 7 points) and defending USL Champion Rhinos (1-1-0, 3 points) square off in the first meeting since the Eastern Conference Semifinals of the 2015 USL Playoffs. Rochester earned a 2-0 win on Oct. 3, 2015, and went on to earn the title.

The Red Bulls II have outscored their opponents 8-2 through three games, with the plus-6 goal differential leading the USL. NYRB II posted its strongest win of the season last week, a 4-0 victory against Bethlehem Steel FC last Sunday. The Rhinos fell 1-0 to the Richmond Kickers last Saturday at City Stadium in just the team's second regular-season game. In 2015, Rochester posted a 19-game unbeaten streak to open the season before finally dropping its one and only game on Aug. 1, 2015, a 4-2 loss to the Charlotte Independence.

MILESTONES

- Real Monarchs SLC holds the league's longest current unbeaten streak at nine games dating back to last season. The Monarchs are 7-0-2 during this stretch and 2-0-1 (7 points) this year. Their last loss was on Aug. 15, 2015, when Real fell 1-0 to OKC Energy FC. The second-year side hosts Arizona United SC on Friday at Clyde Field (9 p.m. ET).

- Swope Park Rangers forward Dane Kelly is the league's all-time leading goal-scorer with 43 during his career. Kelly sits two goals ahead of the Richmond Kickers' Matthew Delicate (41).

OTHER NEWS AND NOTES

- Through three matches, Sacramento Republic FC is the only team in the USL that still has not conceded a goal this season en route to a 2-0-1 (7 points) start to the year. Republic FC's next test is against the Portland Timbers 2 on Sunday at Merlo Field (5 p.m. ET). It will mark Sacramento's third road game in four matches to open the year. The Timbers 2 remain the only Western Conference squad without a point (0-0-3).

- Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC (2-0-0, 6 points) is the last remaining team to win all of its games thus far this season. Switchbacks FC travels to the west coast to face Seattle Sounders FC 2 (0-3-1, 1 point) on Sunday at Starfire Stadium (10 p.m. ET). It is the first meeting between the two sides since Colorado Springs earned a 2-0 win against Seattle on Sept. 25, 2015, in the Western Conference Quarterfinals of the USL Playoffs on goals by Miguel Gonzalez and J.J. Greer.

- San Antonio FC (1-0-2, 5 points) is one of only two unbeaten expansion teams, the other being the Swope Park Rangers (2-0-1, 7 points) who are idle this week. San Antonio visits defending Western Conference regular-season champion Orange County Blues FC (0-2-1, 1 point) on Saturday at Anteater Stadium (10 p.m. ET). SAFC rallied for a 1-1 draw against the LA Galaxy II on Wednesday at StubHub Center, with Carlos Alvarez tallying an 89th-minute equalizer for the visitors.

- Through three weeks, only four Eastern Conference teams are unbeaten this season. The New York Red Bulls II, Richmond Kickers and Charleston Battery are all 2-0-1 (7 points) while Toronto FC II is 1-0-1 (4 points). Charleston visits the Charlotte Independence on Saturday, Richmond travels to Bethlehem, Pa., to take on the Steel on Sunday and TFC II hosts the Pittsburgh Riverhounds on Sunday.

Check out the United Soccer League Championship Statistics

• Discuss this story on the United Soccer League Championship message board...

United Soccer League Championship Stories from April 15, 2016


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.


Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central