With the top playoff seed clinched in the USL Championship Eastern Conference, Louisville City FC’s regular-season finale against Hartford Athletic still holds value as the club ramps up for the postseason.
LouCity and Hartford Athletic kick off at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Lynn Family Stadium, where City has 12 wins and two draws in 16 matches this season. The match serves as the only live game LouCity (21-6-6, 69 points) will play between its Oct. 5 win over Detroit City FC and Oct. 29 playoff opener.
Hartford (10-17-6, 36 points), on the other hand, has been eliminated from postseason contention. The visitors lost their last match by a 3-1 score to the Oakland Roots, but the Athletic are 5-2-1 over their last eight games.
Here’s more of what to watch for on Saturday…
Follow along
- The game will air live locally on WBKI and ESPN Louisville’s 680/105.7, with streaming via ESPN+ and the WDRB Now app.
- For Starting XI and in-game updates, follow @loucityfc on Twitter and Louisville City FC on Facebook. Also find the club at louisvillecityfc on Instagram.
Injury report
- Jorge Gonzalez (Out)
- Niall McCabe (Out)
- Kyle Morton (Out)
Story lines…
No 1: Along with top playoff seeds comes a bye from the conference quarterfinal round to the conference semifinals. LouCity will enter the elimination postseason needing three victories for a league title. An opponent and kickoff time for the Oct. 29 match at Lynn Family Stadium will be determined later.
Next up: LouCity will see a different Hartford Athletic side from the one it beat in Connecticut on June 25. Following City’s victory that day, coach Harry Watling resigned. Hartford is now led by former U.S. national team star Tab Ramos, who played in three World Cups and was the 1994 Concacaf player of the year. Ramos is 3-2-0 early in his tenure at Hartford.
Record year: LouCity, amid its first-ever 20-win season, also surpassed its previous high point total for a campaign of 66 thanks to the recent victory over Detroit. The prior record was held by the club’s 2018 squad, which became the first in league history to win back-to-back USL Championship titles.
Comeback City: LouCity rallied to top Detroit, 2-1, last out in marking its fourth come-from-behind win of the season — all from 1-0 deficits. The result also marked the first time in which City claimed a win after trailing at halftime since 2019.
Can’t stop Wils: Leading LouCity goal scorer Wilson Harris is on a hot streak at the right time, scoring four goals in as many games to bring his tally to a career-high 15 for the year. Harris completed a give-and-go exchange with Enoch Mushagalusa in the Detroit game that finished with an equalizer from the edge of the penalty area.
Wynder’s winner: U.S. youth international center back Josh Wynder added on another goal after Harris’ strike to ensure a three-point night against Detroit. Wynder out-leaped his competition for a headed goal off the foot of Ray Serrano for his second league goal of the year.
In good hands: Regular starting goalkeeper Kyle Morton will miss Saturday’s game while resting a muscle injury, opening an opportunity for backup Danny Faundez between the posts. City fans could also see Alex Kron, the St. Xavier High School standout who’s on a USL Academy contract, on the team sheet.
Other injuries: Forward Jorge Gonzalez recently joined midfielder Niall McCabe with a season-ending injury. Gonzalez is recovering from a knee injury after netting three goals and two assists. Announced last month, McCabe is recuperating from a foot ailment.
