Louisville City FC rolled out the same lineup over its past three games and took points from each of them. Next, schedule congestion figures to force the boys in purple into maintaining their momentum amid some changes.
That’s because LouCity faces a quick turnaround from a midweek draw to host Rio Grande Valley FC, with kickoff set for 8 p.m. Saturday at Lynn Family Stadium.
City (10-7-6, 36 points) has featured a familiar starting 11 since acquiring defender Kyle Adams on transfer last month from San Diego Loyal FC. The center back’s arrival allowed for a shift to a three-back formation that simultaneously ended a slump for the boys in purple.
They entered a July 29 rivalry game against Indy Eleven on only the second-ever three-game losing skid for the club. Since then, LouCity is 2-0-1 and boasts a +5 goal differential, marking the first time this year the squad registered consecutive multi-goal games.
It’s not just tired legs that will lead to lineup decisions this weekend for coach Danny Cruz. Regular starters Amadou Dia and Brian Ownby were both substituted in the 54th minute of a 1-1 draw Wednesday versus the Charleston Battery with injury concerns.
LouCity’s fourth in the Eastern Conference, while Rio Grande Valley FC (6-7-9, 27 points) is 11th of 12 in the West, though it’s only a game out from a playoff spot on a tight table. RGV will be making its first visit to Louisville with City a 1-0 winner of the teams’ only prior meeting last season.
If the boys in purple take points again Saturday, they’ll match their longest USL Championship unbeaten streak of the season — four games — spanning from June 17 to July 12.
Follow along
• The game will air live locally on WBKI/The CW and ESPN Louisville’s 680/105.7.
• If streaming, download the free WDRB Now app to watch the local feed in Louisville. ESPN+ also streams the home feed of all USL Championship games not selected for national TV.
• For Starting XI and in-game updates, follow @loucityfc on Twitter. Also find the club at louisvillecityfc on Instagram and Louisville City FC on Facebook.
Player availability report
Owen Damm (out)
Amadou Dia (questionable)
Jorge Gonzalez (questionable)
Kyle Morton (out)
Brian Ownby (questionable)
Jordan Scarlett (out)
Story lines…
Scoreboard watching: Fourth-place LouCity goes into the weekend eight points off the Eastern Conference lead with 11 games remaining to make up the deficit. A climb all the way to the top could prove impossible, as City has already played its fourth combined games against first-place Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC and second-place Charleston. The boys in purple do still have their whole series to go against the third-place Tampa Bay Rowdies.
SuperKid night: A year after signing cancer survivor “Super Drew” Esposito to a one-game contract in partnership with Norton Children’s, LouCity is expecting to have another special guest in its locker room Saturday as part of “SuperKid Night.” Norton Children’s will give away 2,000 headbands to children entering the stadium in honor of kiddos that find ways to live life to the fullest in spite of obstacles in their way.
Climbing the list: With his goal Wednesday against Charleston, Cameron Lancaster made it 79 for his career in USL Championship regular season games. That ties Hadji Barry for second all-time in the league. Dane Kelly’s 106 goals top the list. Lancaster has scored 80 LouCity goals combining the regular season and USL Championship Playoffs.
Scoring streak: Lancaster netted a goal in LouCity’s last three games, something he has done multiple times in purple, most recently in 2021. On Saturday he’ll seek his first four-game regular season scoring streak — accomplished previously by only Chandler Hoffman (2016) and Wilson Harris (2022). Lancaster does have a four-game scoring streak to his name across competitions, hitting the back of the net in the final three regular season games of 2018 as well as the playoff opener.
Strong starts: Even after conceding a goal in its midweek game, LouCity continues to lead the USL Championship with 11 clean sheets. That mark has been born of strong opening halves. City, for instance, allowed Charleston just one shot attempt in the first 45 minutes Wednesday. The boys in purple now boast 16 halftime shutouts in 23 games, also a league-high.
Milestone men: Though their time with LouCity has been relatively brief, league veterans Amadou Dia (150 regular season appearances) and Dylan Mares (100) both hit landmark numbers Wednesday for their USL Championship careers. Next for City, Paolo DelPiccolo is approaching 250 regular season appearances, now sitting on 247.
