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USL Louisville City FC

Lancaster Hits his Stride in Breakout LouCity Win Over FC Tulsa

August 5, 2023 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Louisville City FC News Release


Hampered by injuries most of last season, Cameron Lancaster offered a reminder Friday night that he's one of the most prolific scorers in USL Championship history.

Lancaster tallied a goal and an assist in LouCity's 3-0 away win over FC Tulsa on a night the 30-year-old Englishman turned back the clock at ONEOK Field.

The City striker boosted his career goal total to 78 - third on the league's all-time list - and added his first assist since the 2020 season as the boys in purple reasserted themselves in the Eastern Conference race.

"I thought his work rate was excellent," coach Danny Cruz said of Lancaster. "Obviously, the finish there was a great finish. He deserved a goal tonight. For me, it's (key) for him to build on it. You saw Wilson (Harris) come on and get a goal as well. We have a group of players that are capable of scoring a lot of goals in this league."

LouCity (10-7-5, 35 points) made it back-to-back league wins for the first time since April 15, racked up three goals in a game for the first time since May 13 and registered an 11th clean sheet - each with Oliver Semmle in goal, giving him the USL Championship's rookie record for shutouts.

Paired with last weekend's win over rival Indy Eleven, the boys in purple remained fourth on the table but are right back in the overall hunt sitting six points off the league's best record with 12 games to play.

"I'm really grateful to break the record, but it's not only me," Semmle said. "...It's collective. We do it together as a team - everybody on the field. They always count the clean sheets for the keepers, but I think it's a team effort."

LouCity continued to make use of a three-back formation Friday following the acquisition of defender Kyle Adams from San Diego Loyal. Similar to the Indy win, City conceded most of the possession while limiting opposing chances and generating its own.

Lancaster was active from the start, appealing for a penalty kick when wiped out at the edge of the FC Tulsa box in the 25th minute. Later, in the 31st, he nutmegged a defender before sending a driven cross in front of the face of goal. Sean Totsch smashed in the opener at the back post for his fourth goal of the year.

Lancaster doubled the lead in the 58th minute thanks to some defensive pressure, helping win the ball back in a scrum near the top of the box. Possession bounced to Elijah Wynder and then to Lancaster, who hammered a grounded shot past the Tulsa goalkeeper. The sequence marked 20-year-old Wynder's first LouCity assist.

"It was, I think, much-needed for me and much-needed for the team," Lancaster said of Friday's result. "It's been a tough year and a half. I'm just happy to be on the pitch and contribute with a goal, an assist and most importantly, the three points."

Tulsa threatened to get back into the game with its best chance of the night in the 66th minute. But a corner headed in toward goal was cleared off the line by LouCity defender Oscar Jimenez.

Harris delivered the exclamation point late when on as a substitute for Lancaster. Played over the top by Amadou Dia, Harris scored an 80th-minute goal on a counterattack, for his first goal since a recent return from injury.

"I have a locker room in there that wants to get better every day - that's absolutely bought in, as we've talked about all year despite all the ups and the downs," Cruz said. "For me, this is a good performance - a solid performance - that we need to make sure we build on."

LouCity, which also led May 24 in its first meeting with FC Tulsa before going on to lose 2-1, avenged that defeat Friday. The boys in purple will look to improve on another result Wednesday when turning around to host the second-place Charleston Battery for an 8 p.m. kickoff at Lynn Family Stadium after the sides played to a draw earlier this season in South Carolina.

Game Summary: FC Tulsa vs. Louisville City FC

Date: Aug. 4, 2023

Venue: ONEOK Field

Kickoff: 8 p.m.

Weather: 94 degrees, partly cloudy

Scoring

FC Tulsa (0, 0, 0)

Louisville City FC (1, 2, 3)

Goals

Louisville City FC:

31' Sean Totsch (Cameron Lancaster)

58' Cameron Lancaster (Elijah Wynder)

80' Wilson Harris (Amadou Dia)

Lineups

FC Tulsa: 24 - Michael Nelson, 21 - Patrick Seagrist, 4 - Ruxi (70' 19 - Siad Haji), 12 - Rashid Tetteh (46' 15 - Keegan Hughes), 3 - Justin Malou, 48 - Eric Bird, 5 - Tommy McCabe, 7 - Marcus Epps, 10 - Phillip Goodrum (86' 8 - Collin Fernandez), 20 - Milo Yosef (70' 18 - Nate Worth), 77 - Moses Dyer (86' 88 - Christopher Pearson)

Subs not used: 1 - Austin Wormell, 13 - Jorge Luis Corrales

Head coach: Blair Gavin

Louisville City FC: 28 - Oliver Semmle, 32 - Kyle Adams, 6 - Wes Charpie, 4 - Sean Totsch, 19 - Oscar Jimenez (83' 15 - Manny Perez), 13 - Amadou Dia, 12 - Tyler Gibson, 23 - Elijah Wynder (61' 22 - Dylan Mares), 10 - Brian Ownby (83' 7 - Ray Serrano), 5 - Rasmus Thellufsen (61' 11 - Niall McCabe), 17 - Cameron Lancaster (66' 14 - Wilson Harris)

Subs not used: 18 - Danny Faundez, 90 - Maarten Pouwels

Head coach: Danny Cruz

Stats Summary: FC Tulsa / Louisville City FC

Shots: 12 / 10

Shots on Goal: 2 / 4

Possession: 66.6% / 33.4%

Fouls: 15 / 12

Offside: 1 / 1

Corner Kicks: 4 / 4

Discipline Summary

FC Tulsa:

45'+ Ruxi (yellow)

57' Eric Bird (yellow)

68' Moses Dyer (yellow)

Louisville City FC:

41' Sean Totsch (yellow)

45'+ Rasmus Thellufsen (yellow)

68' Wes Charpie (yellow)

Referee: Joshua Encarnacion]

Check out the Louisville City FC Statistics

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