Hartford Begin Three-Game Road Trip in Tulsa on Saturday
October 18, 2024 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Hartford Athletic News Release
Date: Saturday, October 19th, 2024
Time: 6:00 PM ET
Location: ONEOK Field, Tulsa, Oklahoma
Watch: MyTV9, wtnh.com, ESPN+
Three matches remain on Hartford Athletic's 2024 schedule, all of them coming on the road. A victory in each match will put them in the playoffs, and the final push begins with a matchup with FC Tulsa tomorrow night.
SETTING THE SCENE
Hartford begin the first of their three-game away stretch this Saturday at ONEOK Field in Tulsa, and they sit two points out of the playoffs in 11th place. North Carolina, Pittsburgh, Loudoun, and Birmingham sit in places seven through ten, respectively, and are all tied for 42 points. Hartford have the second-worst away record in the league at 2-3-9, and last won on the road at Miami FC 3-0 on September 14th. The Green and Blue are coming off a thrilling 4-3 victory in their home finale last Saturday against North Carolina, which featured a stellar two-goal, one-assist performance by Danny Barrera, earning him USL Championship Player of the Week. Head Coach Brendan Burke is out this match after receiving his eighth yellow card of the season last Saturday and a subsequent one-game suspension.
MATCHUP HISTORY
Hartford Athletic are 2-2 vs FC Tulsa in their four previous matchups. The last time the two sides faced each other was in Hartford's last match and home finale of the 2023 season, resulting in a 5-2 victory for Tulsa. Both sides are 1-1 on the road and at home in this matchup. In each of the four prior matchups, the team leading at half has won. There has been an average of five goals scored per contest between the two sides, with 2+ goals scored in the second half of each matchup. Hartford won the first matchup between the two sides, in a 2-1 victory at ONEOK Field in Tulsa.
PAINTING THE PLAYOFF PICTURE
Five points separate eighth place Birmingham Legion (42 points) and 11th place Hartford Athletic (37 points). North Carolina and Hartford have an edge on Birmingham, ninth place Loudoun United, and 10th place Pittsburgh, as both clubs hold an extra match on their schedule. Hartford's magic number is nine, meaning that if they can win all three of their remaining matches and collect nine points, they will get into the USL Championship playoffs.
SECOND HALF TURNAROUND
Marlon Hairston has had a quality second half of the season, making just his sixth start of the year against Las Vegas on August 17th and staying in the starting 11 in each match since then. Hartford has lost in just one of those nine matches, and Hairston has recorded two assists and a goal. Both assists came to Danny Barrera in last Saturday's win, earning Hairston a Team of the Week selection. The 30 year old nearly scored last week, ringing a long-distance shot from outside the box off the crossbar. The ball fell over the goal line, but was ruled no goal.
RECEIVING REINFORCEMENTS
The cavalry has come for Hartford Athletic, as Emmanuel Samadia (Sierra Leone), Thomas Vancaeyezeele (French Guiana), Triston Hodge (Trinidad and Tobago), and Kyle Edwards (St. Vincent and the Grenadines) return to the Green and Blue roster after serving national team duty with their respective countries and missing last week's match. The four of them have been key pieces for Hartford this season: Hodge and Vancaeyezeele are top five on the team in clearances, interceptions, and tackles. Samadia has emerged as a masterful distributor, with three assists and 23 chances created, while Edwards has added a goal and an assist as well.
BETWEEN THE POSTS
Hartford Athletic: Renan Ribeiro #40
Renan Ribeiro came up in a big spot for his team yet again last Saturday, halting the North Carolina comeback effort with an excellent kick save in the dying minutes of the match. He sprung off his line to deny Evan Conway in the first minute of stoppage time, who had broken through Hartford's back line with his sites set on a late equalizer. The 34 year old Brazilian has solidified himself as a top keeper in the Championship, ranking second in the league in saves (94). Through 24 appearances in this year's campaign, he's recorded seven clean sheets, and conceded just 27 goals on 131 shots, which is good for a second-best-in-the-league 79.1% save success rate (minimum 15 matches played). Ribeiro is looking to break Jeff Caldwell's single-season record for saves set in 2021 with 108 saves. Ribeiro's 94 saves are five less than Caldwell had at this point in the season (99), but with Ribeiro tallying five-plus saves in seven games this season, the record is not out of reach.
FC Tulsa: Johan Peñaranda #99
On the other side of the pitch, Johan Peñaranda stands in goal for FC Tulsa. The 24-year-old goalkeeper stacks up well against Ribeiro, holding the only save percentage higher than Hartford's keeper in the league (79.8%).In 20 appearances this season, Peñaranda has racked up 80 saves (10th in the league), seven clean sheets (T-12th most in the league), and allowed just 21 goals conceded on 101 shots faced. The Miami, Florida native played college soccer at the University of Pittsburgh and Florida International University before making his professional debut with Northern Colorado Hailstorm in USL League One in the 2022 campaign. He made 20 appearances across two seasons with the side, recording 1,689 minutes of playing time, posting five clean sheets and 53 saves with a save percentage of 68.4%. Peñaranda won the Save of the Year award in 2022 and came in second for the Gold Glove award.
ABOUT THE OPPONENT
FC Tulsa come into this matchup with a record of 8-13-11, sitting in 10th place in the Western Conference and four points out of playoff contention with two matches left to play. They have been struggling as of late, posting a 1-3-1 record in their last five. Tulsa are one of the very few teams in the Championship that have a better record on the road than at home, posting a 3-5-7 record at ONEOK Field (third worst in the league).e. In fact, FC Tulsa have not won a home match in nearly three months, dating back to July 20th when they defeated Memphis 901 FC 1-0. Tulsa's record is not reflective of their stats, ranking bottom five in goals scored, goal differential, and shots. On the other hand, they rank in the top three in the league in fouls conceded and yellow cards, with defender Harvey St. Clair tied for the second-most yellow cards in the league with 11.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Hartford Athletic: Mamadou Dieng #33 (FW)
The 20-year-old Senegalese striker entered the double-digits in goals in Hartford's last outing, scoring for the first time since Athletic's 3-0 victory against Miami FC on September 14th. Dieng's ten goals lead Hartford this season, tying him for twelfth in the league in that category. Dieng also leads the team in shots on target and minutes per goal and is second in shots, conversion rate, and crossing accuracy. He signed a long-term deal with Hartford ahead of the 2024 campaign after spending years in youth development in Senegal with Sahel Academy.
FC Tulsa: Aaron Bibout #29 (FW)
The 20-year-old, six-foot-four striker from Yaoundé, Cameroon was acquired by FC Tulsa on loan from LA Galaxy on August 15th, and he's tallied four goals (T-team leading), taken 22 shots (third on the team), and ten shots on target in just 11 appearances this season. Bibout began his professional career in March 2023, joining Ventura County FC ahead of their first season as a part of MLS Next Pro. He had had previously played as part of the Kadji Sports Academy in Cameroon, as well as the Los Angeles FC SoCal Academy. With Ventura County, he appeared in 48 matches, scored 22 goals, and added nine assists across nearly two full seasons. During the 2023 campaign, he played in two matches for the LA Galaxy and was loaned to USL Championship side Detroit City FC for five games. This February, LA Galaxy signed Bibout to a two-year deal through the 2025 MLS Season with two club option years through 2027.
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