Sports stats

USL Louisville City FC

LouCity Takes Unbeaten Streak on the Road to Charleston

April 22, 2022 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Louisville City FC News Release


Louisville City FC forward Brian Ownby
Louisville City FC forward Brian Ownby
(Louisville City FC, Credit: EM Dash Photography)

Unbeaten Louisville City FC hits the road for its fourth consecutive USL Championship road game, with a 5 p.m. Saturday tilt at Charleston Battery.

City (5-0-2) is the only remaining USL Championship side without a defeat, posting five shutouts and carrying a league-best plus-10 goal differential. The boys in purple stand atop the Eastern Conference standings, four points ahead of second-place Pittsburgh with a league-most 17 points.

Danny Cruz's squad advanced to the round of 32 in the U.S. Open Cup on Wednesday, defeating St. Louis CITY SC, 9-8, in a penalty shootout after a 0-0 draw through 120 minutes.

This is the first matchup between LouCity and Charleston since August 2019, when City won, 2-1, in South Carolina. The teams used to play at least twice a season in City's first five years of existence. Louisville City is 7-4-2 all-time against Charleston, including two wins in the Eastern Conference semifinals of the USL Championship playoffs.

Charleston (1-4) started the 2022 campaign with a win, but the Battery has lost four consecutive matches since then, including a 4-1 defeat on April 9 against San Diego Loyal in its last time out.

Follow along

Saturday's game will air live on WBKI and stream via ESPN+ and WDRB Now, with ESPN Louisville carrying the radio broadcast on 680 AM/105.7 FM. For Starting XI and in-game updates, follow @loucityfc on Twitter and Louisville City FC on Facebook. Also find the club at louisvillecityfc on Instagram.

Story lines

Can't beat City: With wins over San Diego Loyal SC last weekend and St. Louis CITY SC on Wednesday in the U.S. Open Cup, the boys in purple are now undefeated in nine matches, a club-record start to a season. At 5-0-2 in USL Championship play, City now sits atop the Eastern Conference standings with a league-best 17 points and is the last unbeaten team.

Goals aplenty: In the battle of the league's two conference leaders, LouCity piled on the goals. Wilson Harris struck first, with Wes Charpie, Sean Totsch, Niall McCabe and Brian Ownby later adding to the tally. The five goals were a season-high for City, which led the league in most big chances missed before the match.

No advantage given: LouCity's situational defense was top-notch Saturday night, even playing a man down because of a red card issued to defender Sean Totsch in the second half. Coach Danny Cruz shifted his side into a low block that only allowed a 33% shot accuracy in the final 45 minutes. That backline also made 22 tackles and 19 interceptions while only committing nine fouls to San Diego's 16. This is the second time City has played a man down this year. The boys in purple forced a scoreless draw at Birmingham Legion FC while playing with 10 men on April 2.

At the spot: LouCity converted its first two penalties of the USL Championship season in the win at San Diego. The effort recalled images of last year, when City converted 8 of 9 chances from the penalty spot. Totsch scored the first penalty in the 51st minute, drilling home his finish after a handball in the box. McCabe converted his penalty in the 83rd minute.

Fear the Beard: Ownby once again led the line with his team down to 10 men, putting in a shift atop LouCity's formation. He drew the 83rd-minute penalty that McCabe scored and scored City's fifth of the match in stoppage time. The 31-year-old also totaled 10 duels won and gained possession six times, a repeat of his performance at forward against Birmingham Legion.

Charpie it: Defender Wes Charpie scored for the first time this season, taking advantage of San Diego's keeper coming well off his goal line on a corner kick. The goal in the last seconds of the first gave City a lead it wouldn't relinquish.

He's back: After missing the start to the season because of a non-COVID related illness, midfielder Niall McCabe earned his first significant league minutes in Saturday's win, coming on as a sub in the 63rd minute. The only member of LouCity's squad to have played in all eight of the club's seasons, the veteran Irishman made the most of his time, scoring his first goal since 2019.

Check out the Louisville City FC Statistics




Images from this story

Louisville City FC forward Brian Ownby
Louisville City FC forward Brian Ownby
(EM Dash Photography)		   



United Soccer League Championship Stories from April 22, 2022


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.

Other Recent Louisville City FC Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central