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USL Louisville City FC

LouCity Travels to Indy for First-Ever USL Meeting at Lucas Oil Stadium

May 3, 2018 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Louisville City FC News Release


Louisville City FC has managed six straight unbeaten to open the 2018 season, the club's best-ever start, following a 3-1 thrashing of Bethlehem Steel FC last Saturday evening.

A flurry of goals all within the opening 22 minutes put LouCity three to the good. Forward Cameron Lancaster got the party started in the 13th minute, Ilija Ilic continued it with his first of the year in the 17th minute, and Lancaster added the team's third in the 22nd minute.

Lancaster's tallies saw him move up the charts to T-2 all-time with Chandler Hoffman (16) on the LouCity scoring charts, while Ilija Ilic became the seventh (!) player to score a goal through six games, another record-breaking moment for the club.

When & Where

Coach James O'Connor's men move onto an early afternoon encounter against Indy Eleven on Saturday, with a noon kickoff slated at Lucas Oil Stadium this Saturday. A different edition of "Derby Day," the match represents the first-ever I-65 drive in the USL between the two clubs (more below). WDRB will show the afternoon clash local to Louisville while 790 KRD carries the action over the airwaves. Fans can also follow the match live on Twitter & Instagram.

TV: WDRB RADIO: 790 KRD STREAM: ESPN+ DOWNLOAD: LouCity app for iOS | LouCity app for Android

Last Time Out

Louisville City FC downed Bethlehem Steel FC, 3-1, in front of 7,876 at Slugger Field thanks to goals from Cameron Lancaster (2) and Ilija Ilic all inside the opening half hour of play.

Dominating the opening minutes of play, LouCity pounced on early chances as forward Cameron Lancaster netted his 3rd goal of the season just 13 minutes in. As the visitors failed to clear a chance in their penalty area, Lancaster made sure to get a solid foot on what seemed a half chance and saw the ball fly past Steel FC 'keeper Jake McGuire to open the scoring.

Three minutes later, the "Boys in Purple" capitalized on another chance just outside the Steel FC 18-yard box. As solid buildup play came to fruition, midfielder Kyle Smith ended up dinking a perfectly-weighted pass over the defense to find forward Ilija Ilic. Swinging at it on the first time of asking, Ilic got enough on the effort to beat McGuire and double the advantage.

Before Bethlehem could catch their breath, LouCity added a third again through the feet of Lancaster. Ilic turned scorer to provider as he slipped in the forward, and a snapshot from the Englishman ricocheted off the far post and nestled in the back of the net.

The visitors would strike back just before halftime as midfielder Marcus Epps turned on a LouCity defender and found the far post, beating LouCity 'keeper Greg Ranjitsingh for the first time. At the break, the hosts held a strong 3-1 advantage.

The second 45 minutes yielded significantly fewer chances for both sides, but the injection of midfielder Brian Ownby and forward Luke Spencer after the break gave the "Boys in Purple" the legs they needed to close out the match. Conceding just one goal, the team's defensive efforts were just impressive as their attacking output in the end.

The result saw the reigning champions stay atop the table (5W-0L-1D) with 16 points as the unbeaten streak is extended to six this season so far.

PHOTOS: LouCity trains ahead of IND trip

Rewind against INDY ELEVEN

One of few times we can say this in 2018, but Saturday afternoon's contest in Indy will be the first time Indy Eleven and LouCity will go head-to-head in USL competition. The pairs met twice previously in the U.S. Open Cup, with LouCity winning 2-0 (a.e.t) in 2015 before Indy got its revenge with a 2-1 win in 2016.

James O'Connor's pre-match press conference: On facing Indy for the first time: "It'll be interesting to see. They had a great start - their best start in club history - so we're expecting a very tough game."

On Lucas Oil Stadium: "It'll also be interesting to see what the turf is like. The actual stadium looks incredible and the facility looks fabulous. Great credit to [Indianapolis] for allowing Indy Eleven to play there. It's a venue that we're certainly looking forward to playing in."

On Paco Craig and injuries: "We have a lot of concerns, Paco included. At this point, it's easier to say who isn't carrying a little something right now!"

Check out the Louisville City FC Statistics



United Soccer League Championship Stories from May 3, 2018


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