Louisville City FC defeated the Charlotte Independence, 0-3, following a resounding performance that saw forward Cameron Lancaster bag a brace with fellow attacker Luke Spencer finding the back of the net in just his second appearance since recovering from injury.
What Happened?
No more than two minutes into Wednesday’s match between Louisville City and the Charlotte Independence, a trio of Cameron Lancaster, George Davis IV and Niall McCabe created disruptions for the hosts’ backline with a combination of quality passing and sly runs behind the defenders.
Twelve minutes in, persistence paid off as City drew a penalty on ‘keeper Andrew Dykstra. Stepping up to the spot, Cameron Lancaster made no mistake despite Dykstra’s correct guess and the visitors held an early advantage, 0-1. The goal was Lancaster’s 14th in league play, elevating him to T-1 in the USL Golden Boot race.
Independence midfielder Jake Areman’s 28th minute free kick presented his club’s first shot on target. The attempt would be snuffed short by City goalkeeper Greg Ranjitsingh whose height would prove useful on the crossbar-level strike.
Just one minute later as the “Boys in Purple” developed a counter attack, Lancaster struck another beautiful ball with a shot far-post around Charlotte’s Owundi and out of the reach of Dykstra. His brace makes him the league’s leading goal scorer heading into the weekend.
Looking for yet another hat trick, Lancaster saw a chance to record the night’s third goal in the 53rd minute off a through-ball from George Davis IV. Having created space on his run, Lancaster floated one over the head of Dykstra only to be denied by the cross bar. A left-footed follow up shot from team captain Paolo DelPiccolo would sail over the net and ending the opportunity for the visitors.
Following several attempts from a depleted Independence side, one of City’s latest signs in James Sands recorded his first assist with his new club as veteran Luke Spencer scored his first goal since returning from knee surgery and giving the visitors the 3-0 lead.
Neither side would add to the scoring sheet the rest of the evening as Ranjitsingh recorded his eighth clean sheet on the year.
Louisville City FC face a quick turnaround with a weekend trip to Richmond to take on the Kickers at City Stadium on Saturday night. Returning to Louisville, Los Morados face Toronto FC II on Tuesday, August 28 as part of Kids Night at Slugger Field. Tickets for that contest and all remaining 5+ are available for as low as $16 by calling (502) 384-8799, option 2, or online at www.loucity.com.
The Key Points:
- Cameron Lancaster’s 29th minute strike makes him the USL’s sole leader in goals scored heading into Saturday’s match against the Richmond Kickers.
- Newcomer James Sands recorded his first assist as a member of the Louisville City roster with a 65th minute pass to Luke Spencer who scored his first goal since his return from knee surgery.
- Head coach John Hackworth noted his first win as coach of the “Boys in Purple” (43 points), who are tied for third in the Eastern Conference with the Charleston Battery entering the weekend.
Injury Report:
OUT – Brian Ownby
OUT – Magnus Rasmussen
Charlotte Independence 0 : 3 Louisville City FC
Wednesday, August 22, 2018
Sportsplex at Matthews | Charlotte, NC
80 degrees / sunny
Scoring Summary:
LOU – Cameron Lancaster (p) 13’
LOU – Cameron Lancaster (Kyle Smith) 29’
LOU – Luke Spencer (James Sands) 65’
Disciplinary Summary:
LOU – Cameron Lancaster 42’
CLT – Mutaya Mwape 90’
Starting XI (4-3-3): Greg Ranjitsingh (GK); Kyle Smith, Paco Craig, Sean Totsch, Oscar Jimenez; James Sands, Paolo DelPiccolo (c), Devon “Speedy” Williams; Niall McCabe (Shaun Francis 72’), Cameron Lancaster (Luke Spencer 62’), George Davis IV (Pat McMahon 81’)
Bench: Tim Dobrowolski, Alexis Souahy, Richard Ballard, Ilija Ilic
