After a stretch of four games in two weeks, Louisville City FC settles back into a regular rotation of USL games starting Saturday night against the Pittsburgh Riverhounds at Slugger Field.
Tickets remain available. Call (502) 384-8799 or email tickets@louisvillecityfc.com.
Here’s what to watch for…
Tune In
TV: WBNA TV-21 will air the game live and in high definition locally with Mike Watts, voice of the USL, on the call along with Leigh Godfrey.
Radio: TJ Walker (play-by-play) and Jeff Milby (color commentary) will voice the action from Slugger on NewsRadio 840 WHAS, with pregame coverage starting at 7:15 p.m.
Streaming: Watch live via the USL Match Center or at www.loucity.com.
Follow Along
For Starting XI information and in-game updates, check us out on social media. It’s @loucityfc on Twitter, Louisville City FC on Facebook and louisvillecityfc on Instagram. Vote for the Modelo Man of the Match on Twitter starting in the 75th minute.
Links
• LouCity leaning on defense at one-third mark
• Watch: O’Connor, players preview the game
• ‘It’s very early’ to have focus on the standings
Notes
The standings: A 3-0 road win over the New York Red Bulls II vaulted Louisville City (6-1-4, 22 points) to third in the Eastern Conference standings. With two games in hand, the club sits five points behind the first-place Charleston Battery and one behind the Tampa Bay Rowdies. Winless since May 13, Pittsburgh is 10th with 16 points, though the Riverhounds are tied with four other clubs just outside of a playoff position entering Week 13.
Attendance trending up: Through its first four home games, LouCity posted an average attendance of 5,147 in 2015 and 6,607 in 2016. Through as many games this year, an average of 7,879 have filled Louisville Slugger Field. A crowd of 8,000 can be expected Saturday as the club hosts its first Saturday night home game since April 29 — and just third overall of the season.
Ranjitsingh’s return: Goalkeeper Greg Ranjitsingh has posted a pair of clean sheets in his last two games and made the most recent USL Team of the Week for performances in wins last week. The third-year keeper, who missed time after suffering an injury in the season opener, has come back strong, making nine saves in four games to go with four punch-outs.
Hometown hero: Louisville native Richard Ballard enters Saturday having scored in back-to-back games. His first USL goal came June 7 as the game-winner against the Charlotte Independence. Ballard, a rookie out of Indiana University, added a goal in stoppage time of Sunday’s 3-0 win over Red Bulls II as well. He made Team of the Week along with Ranjitsingh.
Kaye’s call up: LouCity midfielder Mark-Anthony Kaye on Tuesday became the club’s first current player to make a senior national team appearance, going on in the 79th minute of Canada’s win over Curacao. The Toronto native returned to training with LouCity on Thursday and is on the 40-man provisional roster of players eligible to compete in the CONCACAF Gold Cup for Canada.
Last time they met: A seventh-minute tap-in by Luke Spencer on a cross from Brian Ownby was all LouCity needed May 20 in a 1-0 win at Pittsburgh. Goalkeeper Tim Dobrowolski posted one of his three clean sheets in the Week 9 clash. Since then, the Riverhounds have tallied three goals in five games; LouCity has racked up eight goals in three games.
Home record rolling: LouCity is unbeaten in its 2017 games at Slugger Field. Thanks to three clean sheets, the side has posted a 2-0-2 record at home, including a win against the second-place Tampa Bay Rowdies back on April 15. In 2015, the club opened its season by playing five straight games unbeaten at home.
Injury report: Forward Luke Spencer is available for a return to the pitch after tweaking his hamstring May 31 in a U.S. Open Cup game at FC Cincinnati. Spencer missed the following two games before returning to the bench last Sunday, though he didn’t appear. LouCity is not dealing with other injuries.
