USL Week 12: Surprises Sprung in Western Conference

June 8, 2015 - United Soccer League Championship (USL) News Release

TAMPA, Fla. - If there's been a motif for the USL's Western Conference this season, it has been the week-to-week unpredictability of results. That theme continued in Week 12 of the season, as surprise road victories left the standings even tighter that when the week began.

FEATURED GAMES

Tulsa Roughnecks 5, Seattle Sounders FC 2 1

S2 had taken five wins from five in league play entering Friday night's contest, but a pair of goals by rookie Adam Black helped Tulsa record its second win against Seattle this season. After coming back for a 4-3 win at ONEOK Field earlier this season, Tulsa took the lead through Black in the 10th minute, and while S2 hit back with Pablo Rossi's equalizer, goals by Black and Lucas Cordeiro put the Roughnecks up 3-1 at the break. Kidd Nwabueze added a fourth with his first touch of the game after coming on as a substitute, while former Sounder Sammy Ochoa completed the rout with three minutes to play.

LA Galaxy II 2, Orange County Blues FC 1

Los Dos maintained the upper hand in the I-405 Derby as goals by Raul Mendiola and Kainoa Bailey led them to a fifth consecutive win against the Blues. Mendiola scored his third goal of the season in the 29th minute, but Orange County got back on level terms nine minutes into the second half as Christopher Santana set up Chris Cortez to make it 1-1. LA claimed all three points thanks to Bailey's finish with 19 minutes to go, however, as Los Dos took their sixth win in their past seven league contests.

Austin Aztex 1, Sacramento Republic FC 0

Kris Tyrpak scored the only goal as Austin moved back into the top six in the Western Conference standings with victory at a sold out Bonney Field. Sacramento had much of the play and held a 20-4 shot advantage, but was unable to take advantage as it only forced Austin goalkeeper Devin Perales into four saves. The Aztex took the lead early in the second half, as Max Gunderson's cross was put away by Tyrpak for his sixth goal of the season, and a stout defensive effort saw Austin salt away the win.

Richmond Kickers 2, Charlotte Independence 1

The Kickers moved within a point of the top two positions in the Eastern Conference as Jason Yeisley led his side to victory on Sunday at City Stadium. Yeisley made an acrobatic finish to put the Kickers up 1-0 in just the third minute, and then set up Matt Delicate for his sixth goal of the season as Richmond took a two-goal lead inside the opening 25 minutes. Charlotte hit back in the second half as Jorge Herrera found the net just past the hour mark, but the Kickers were able to withstand the Independence's late pressure to take all three points.

QUOTABLE

"That's football. At the moment we're having a tough time putting the ball in the net. We can't find the final touch, the final play. You've got to give Austin a lot of credit. They came here with an idea to defend deep and catch us on a break one time, and that's what happened. We fall asleep for a second, and we pay for it." - Sacramento Republic FC Coach Preki after his side's 1-0 defeat against the Austin Aztex

"To get two goals is something really special for me. It's taken a while for me to get some goals but I'm in a rhythm now, in form." - OKC Energy FC forward Kyle Greig, who had both goals as the Energy took victory against the Portland Timbers 2 on Friday night

"Sometimes ties feel like wins and sometimes they feel like losses. This tie feels like a loss. There's a little bit of Lady Luck that we're looking for, and it's not going our way. Both the goals came off of our foot, so that's disappointing." - Wilmington Hammerheads FC Coach Carson Porter after a late own goal left his side with a 1-1 draw with the Charleston Battery

"We always want to take advantage of the altitude. We have a lot of young guys we like to send along the outside. We know that if we keep pressing we will wear other teams down and the goals will come." - Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC's Martin Maybin after his side took a 3-0 win against Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2

BY THE NUMBERS

54 - Wednesday night meeting between the Richmond Kickers and Charleston Battery will be the 54th in the rivalry's history. The Kickers hold a slight 24-22-7 edge after a 2-2 draw earlier this season.

15 - Rob Vincent's goal against Saint Louis FC on Saturday was his 15th regular-season goal in the USL. He entered the 2015 season with six.

7 - First place and 11th place in the USL's Western Conference are separated by just seven points, with all 11 teams averaging more than one point per game.

2 - Sacramento Republic FC's loss to the Austin Aztex was its second at Bonney Field this season. Republic FC lost just once at Bonney Field in its 2014 championship season.

STANDINGS

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Team GP W L T GF GA Pts

Rochester Rhinos 11 7 0 4 14 4 25

Charleston Battery 12 6 1 5 20 13 23

Richmond Kickers 12 6 2 4 21 14 22

Louisville City FC 10 4 1 5 18 8 17

Pittsburgh Riverhounds 11 4 3 4 26 21 16

Harrisburg City Islanders 9 4 3 2 18 16 14

Saint Louis FC 10 3 3 4 12 12 13

New York Red Bulls II 12 3 5 4 17 21 13

Charlotte Independence 9 2 4 3 10 13 9

Toronto FC II 10 2 5 3 9 19 9

Wilmington Hammerheads FC 11 1 6 4 9 19 7

FC Montreal 9 1 7 1 7 16 4

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Team GP W L T GF GA Pts

Seattle Sounders FC 2 12 6 4 2 24 21 20

Sacramento Republic FC 13 6 6 1 21 16 19

LA Galaxy II 11 6 4 1 15 13 19

OKC Energy FC 10 5 2 3 16 13 18

Orange County Blues FC 10 5 4 1 16 10 16

Austin Aztex 12 5 6 1 14 15 16

Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC 10 5 5 0 20 14 15

Portland Timbers 2 11 4 5 2 13 16 14

Tulsa Roughnecks FC 11 4 5 2 14 17 14

Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 12 3 5 4 14 20 13

Arizona United SC 10 4 5 1 11 20 13

Real Monarchs SLC 12 1 6 5 12 20 8

RESULTS

Wednesday, June 3

Real Monarchs SLC 2, Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 2

Friday, June 5

OKC Energy FC 2, Portland Timbers 2 0

Tulsa Roughnecks FC 5, Seattle Sounders FC 2 1

Saturday, June 6

Pittsburgh Riverhounds 1, Saint Louis FC 1

FC Montreal 2, New York Red Bulls II 2

Wilmington Hammerheads FC 1, Charleston Battery 1

Harrisburg City Islanders 0, Toronto FC II 0

Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC 3, Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 0

LA Galaxy II 2, Orange County Blues FC 1

Austin Aztex 2, Sacramento Republic FC 1

Sunday, June 7

Richmond Kickers 2, Charlotte Independence 1

SCHEDULE

Tuesday, June 9

OKC Energy FC vs. Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2, 8 p.m. ET

Wednesday, June 10

FC Montreal vs. Louisville City FC, 6:30 p.m. ET

Charleston Battery vs. Richmond Kickers, 7:30 p.m. ET

Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC vs. Portland Timbers 2, 9 p.m. ET

Thursday, June 11

Seattle Sounders FC 2 vs. LA Galaxy II, 10:30 p.m. ET

Saturday, June 13

Richmond Kickers vs. FC Montreal, 7 p.m. ET

Wilmington Hammerheads FC vs. New York Red Bulls II, 7 p.m. ET

Charlotte Independence vs. Pittsburgh Riverhounds, 7 p.m. ET

Rochester Rhinos vs. Louisville City FC, 7:05 p.m. ET

OKC Energy FC vs. Tulsa Roughnecks FC, 8 p.m. ET

Saint Louis FC vs. Harrisburg City Islanders, 8:30 p.m. ET

Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC vs. Real Monarchs SLC, 9 p.m. ET

Arizona United SC vs. Sacramento Republic FC, 10:30 p.m. ET

Sunday, June 14

Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 vs. LA Galaxy II, 5 p.m. ET

Portland Timbers 2 vs. Austin Aztex, 9 p.m. ET

HOW TO FOLLOW

Every game of the 2015 USL season can be seen live, free and in HD on YouTube (www.Youtube.com/USL), with updates from across the league also available via Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Tulsa Roughnecks vs. Seattle Sounders FC 2

United Soccer League Championship Stories from June 8, 2015

• Rochester Rhinos Hall of Fame Night June 27 - Rochester Rhinos
• June 13 Match Moved to Winthrop University - Charlotte Independence
• LA Galaxy II Play Seattle Sounders FC 2 and Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 on the Road - LA Galaxy II
• USL Week 12: Surprises Sprung in Western Conference - USL
• Match Preview: FC Montreal V Louisville City - Louisville City FC
• Preview: Energy FC vs. Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 - June 9 - OKC Energy FC

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