Louisville City FC set the pace early, smashing in three goals in 10 minutes, then hung on for the ride, outlasting Tulsa, 3-2, in a thrilling USL Championship affair Saturday night in northeastern Oklahoma. The boys in purple got two goals from Cameron Lancaster and a third from teen sensation Jonathan Gomez, climbing into first place in the Central Division with a game in hand on Birmingham.
Here’s what we learned from the adventure at ONEOK Field, where Lou City (5-2-1) claimed its first away win of the season:
Crack, boom, another boom
LouCity’s goal output against expected goals per game didn’t quite match to open this season. But the club is seemingly dead set on evening up those figures. Eight goals in three games is a big statement, and three in 10 minutes Saturday night is a thrown gauntlet. That they did so in such different ways — from a corner, counter and penalty — that made the finishing touch that much more impressive. The funny thing is, LouCity felt like it could score even more in the past three, and that’s a good sign that the execution in front of goal is headed in the right direction.
And he can finish, too
Watching Gomez progress game by game is a treat on its own, and the improvement is more than incremental. The 17-year-old is blowing up right in front of our eyes, and he added goalscoring to his arsenal on Saturday night. We know the Texas native can make runs down the flank. We know he can get into dangerous positions where he deftly picks out passes. At Tulsa, he sprinted into the counterattack, received Pat McMahon’s excellent ball ahead, carried into the area and thumped home a confident finish, his first as a pro. As fullbacks play higher and higher up the lines, they’re scoring more goals at the highest levels, and Gomez showed he can get there. That was a big moment for Gomez, one that felt as though it was due.
Building from the back a work in progress
LouCity’s passing out of the defensive half didn’t quite connect Saturday, leaving goalkeeper Chris Hubbard exposed on a few occasions too many. High presses are so common now that City has to be prepared to navigate them. The Tulsa match illustrated the work ahead as LouCity’s spacing seemed off at times, with zero or just one option through the middle and little chance to break through to get a numerical advantage into the attacking half. The distance between teammates once Tyler Gibson received the ball deep in the central midfield hung him out to dry, and the execution of the second and third passes after Hubbard’s restarts put City under some difficult defensive pressure. The team improved at this last season after a shaky start, so we assume the same will come this year. But City is fortunate more goals haven’t come from these breakdowns in possession.
Seeing three points out
Saturday’s match showed LouCity’s resolve in completing a win, with Tulsa banging on the door and the visitors tidying up defensively as the game grew. The big breakthrough came when Wes Charpie scored off a corner — we all know the ball crossed Tulsa’s goal line — and should have pushed City back up two goals. Alas, goal-line technology hasn’t reached the USL Championship yet. LouCity kept its cool and used organization and patience to see off Tulsa. Winning rollercoaster games is an important experience to have as a playoff team.
