Louisville City FC is looking to extend a four-game unbeaten streak in a rare Friday night game as the boys in purple kick off against Sporting KC II at 8 p.m. from Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kan.
LouCity won three straight before playing to a 3-3 draw last weekend against rival Indy Eleven, picking up its offensive pace along the way with 11 goals scored during the undefeated run.
This recent spurt followed uncharacteristic, back-to-back losses for the club. Head coach Danny Cruz, however, had several key members of his rotation missing and has since welcomed back forward Brian Ownby (suspension) and defenders Jonathan Gomez (international duty) and Wes Charpie (injury). Each have been critical as of late in boosting LouCity to second on the USL Championship’s Central Division table.
Seventh of eight teams in the Central, Sporting KC II enters off a 3-2 victory over Memphis 901 FC. LouCity will face the Paulo Nagamura-led squad at Children’s Mercy Park, also home to the club’s MLS side. A soccer-specific stadium that opened in 2011, the venue holds 18,467.
This trip will mark the first of four meetings between the two with the series continuing in Kansas City on July 28 before games Aug. 7 and Oct. 9 at Lynn Family Stadium.
Here’s what to look for on Friday…
Follow along…
• For Starting XI and in-game updates, follow @loucityfc on Twitter, Louisville City FC on Facebook and louisvillecityfc on Instagram. Live stats can be found at www.loucity.com/match-center, plus don’t forget to download our official app.
• On the WBKI-TV (The CW)/ESPN+ streaming call: Spence Siegel (play by play) and Gary Bailey (color).
• And for ESPN 680/105.7 on the radio: Jeff Greer and Casey Whitfield.
Notes to know
Climb to the top: LouCity earned nine points over three games in just eight days from June 12-19, a run that ended with the boys in purple temporarily atop the Central Division standings. Birmingham Legion FC has since taken that spot back, but LouCity remains second by two points with a game in hand and the Central’s best goal differential of +7. Clubs are chasing a top-four finish this season to make the playoffs.
Goals aplenty: Since last month’s shutout loss at Atlanta, LouCity has been scoring at will. The Indy draw marked the third time in nine games this season the boys in purple have scored three goals in a game. More of those strikes are also coming from the run of play after relying on forward Cameron Lancaster’s set piece prowess. He has scored five times this season, four from tries at the penalty spot in addition to a corner sent straight in June 19 at FC Tulsa.
Series history: A familiar foe, Sporting KC II traveled to Lynn Family Stadium four times last year, choosing to play limited home games amid the COVID-19 pandemic. LouCity won three of those contests, with the only defeat on July 29. After that, the boys in purple began a memorable run of 13 straight games unbeaten up to a return trip to the Eastern Conference Final.
Soaring on the wings: Flanking the right and left side of the pitch, respectively, forward Brian Ownby and defender Jonathan Gomez forced Indy Eleven on its back heel for the majority of last Saturday’s match. The two combined to try 21 crosses and had a role in all three LouCity goals. Ownby assisted twice and Gomez made the most of a try from distance, playing a deflected ball off a defender and in.
League honors: Ownby, who did everything but hit the back of the net himself, was recognized when named to the USL Championship’s Team of the Week. The winger first played a cross to the top of the six-yard box, helping open scoring when Paolo DelPiccolo just had to redirect it on goal. Later, a similar sequence in the 79th minute saw him connect with Corben Bone for a late equalizer.
Offensive-minded: While he’s a left back by trade, the 17-year-old rising star Gomez also possesses the pace to get involved in the attack. He has contributed to goals in every game of the unbeaten streak, scoring in his last two appearances. On the radar for both the U.S. and Mexico national teams, Gomez also ranks second on the roster with 45 crosses tried.
Return to KC: LouCity goalkeeper Parker Siegfried won’t be a stranger to the setup at Children’s Mercy Park. When Sporting KC’s MLS side suffered a bevy of injuries between the posts, Siegfried spent a couple of weeks on loan there, appearing on the bench as the backup keeper for Sporting’s season-opening victory April 17. Siegfried is still new to Louisville, signing out of a successful preseason trial.
Stat stuffers: Even as most other USL Championship clubs hold games in hand on LouCity, a trio of players in purple are at or near the top of the league in statistical categories. Currently, midfielder Niall McCabe leads the Championship in crosses at 60. Meanwhile, 2020 All League-Defender Sean Totsch and midfielder Corben Bone are close to the top spot with Totsch ranking second in passes at 616 and Bone in chances created at 21.
New Digs: LouCity’s players and staff have embarked on the club’s latest landmark move in a series of them, settling in this week at their new $15 million training facility. The building includes a new locker room space, weight room, dining hall and media/film room in addition to the outdoor amenities: a large grass pitch and multiple turf fields to accommodate play rain or shine, day or night. The facility — built by AML Construction and operated by ASM Global — will also house the NWSL expansion side Racing Louisville FC, youth academies and back office staff.
