Louisville City FC continued to gain momentum when it counts most — toward the end of the USL Championship season — with a second straight victory Saturday.
LouCity headed in a pair of corner kicks en route to defeating host Colorado Springs Switcbacks SC by a 3-2 score at its Weidner Field, where the boys in purple took away points for a sixth time in their last seven games.
The win solidified a fourth-place Eastern Conference standing for City (12-8-7, 43 points) and came against a Western Conference club in Colorado Springs (11-13-3, 36 points) that holds a playoff position as well.
“I was really proud of the fight and mentality for sure for 90-plus,” said LouCity coach Danny Cruz. “Late in the first half there, we’re under it. We get to halftime, make some adjustments and then obviously get the third goal.”
LouCity Academy graduate Carlos Moguel Jr. set up both corners Saturday to mark his first assists in purple. He served up a 22nd-minute ball to Jorge Gonzalez before Elijah Wynder converted another in the 49th minute.
In between, Colorado Springs applied plenty of pressure, breaking through in the 41st minute when Romario Williams hit the back of the net for the hosts. LouCity largely bent but didn’t break the rest of the way through the run of play as goalkeeper Oliver Semmle numbered 5 saves.
The game wasn’t without some late drama. City forward Maarten Pouwels scored his first club goal in the 88th minute, seconds after subbing on. But Colorado Springs followed up by earning a penalty on the ensuing possession, and Williams converted from the spot to make it a brace.
City blocked a shot in the box and staved off a pair of Switchbacks corners through stoppage time to cement the result.
“I think we fought the whole game,” Gonzalez said. “Like Danny says, when we have the right mentality, with our quality, that’s the job. They were a great team. They did really good things. But we fought, and we got the three points. That’s what matters.”
City’s top Eastern Conference rivals, the first-place Pittsburgh Riverhounds and second-place Tampa Bay Rowdies, both clinched playoff spots Saturday night. However, the boys in purple have seven games left to continue climbing the table, including both of its matchups against Tampa Bay.
Cruz’s side has maintained solid form since the club suffered through just its second-ever three-game losing streak in early July. LouCity’s only loss since then came away to Birmingham Legion FC on Aug. 19 — a result City responded with by netting its game winner against Oakland Roots SC last weekend in the 98th minute.
The boys in purple had a victory wrapped up earlier, albeit not by much, in Colorado Springs even coping with the altitude. At roughly 6,035 feet, the Switchbacks’ home was built at the highest elevation of any pro soccer stadium in the country.
“For sure it’s something you feel,” Gonzalez said of the mountain air. “You feel it in your chest. You feel it in your head. I had a little headache at the end, but you just try to do what it takes to get the three points — leave everything you have out there.”
Cruz elected for just one change at Colorado Springs, seeing defender Kyle Adams enter in relief of Wes Charpie, who missed the game with an excused absence.
Moguel Jr. overcame a fourth-minute yellow card to register his goal contributions, while Gonzalez scored for the first time since May 24, still on the return from an injury. Wynder has netted all three of his goals this season in City’s last seven games. At 6-foot-7, Pouwels is the tallest field player to ever feature in purple.
“It was hard to breathe because of the altitude,” Moguel Jr, said. “Other than the yellow card, it was fighting through that, but once I got the yellow I knew I had to be a little bit smart throughout the game. Honestly, when it comes to getting the assists, I didn’t think about it too much. It was more that we needed to just go, go, go.”
Defensively, LouCity conceded 22 shots, and the Switchbacks racked up an even 3 expected goals, according to Stats Perform. But while playing from a winning position, City allowed only 2 of Colorado Springs’s 11 second half attempts to land on frame.
Louisville continues a road-heavy month of September — playing all but one of its six games this month away from Lynn Family Stadium — next Saturday when traveling to play Tampa Bay.
“The group’s obviously in good spirits. The confidence is good, and it starts there,” Cruz said. “But then it’s making sure that you continue to have the mentality week to week that we’ve had the last two weeks.”
Game Summary: Colorado Springs Switchbacks SC vs. Louisville City FC
Date: Sept. 2, 2023
Venue: Weidner Field
Kickoff: 9 p.m.
Weather: 83 degrees, partly cloudy
Scoring
Colorado Springs Switchbacks SC (1, 1, 2)
Louisville City FC (1, 2, 3)
Goals
Colorado Springs Switchbacks SC:
41’ Romario Williams (Juan Tejada)
90’ Romario Williams
Louisville City FC:
22’ Jorge Gonzalez (Carlos Moguel Jr.)
49’ Elijah Wynder (Carlos Moguel Jr.)
88’ Maarten Pouwels (Brian Ownby)
Lineups
Colorado Springs Switchbacks SC: 33 — Joe Kuzminsky, 14 — Duke Lacroix, 23 — Oskar Agren, 12 — Drew Skundrich, 8 — Jay Chapman (80’ 44 — Marco Rios), 7 — Tyreek Magee, 80 — Devon “Speedy” Williams, 11 — Deshane Beckford (86’ 21 — Aaron Wheeler), 27 — Juan Tejada, 9 — Romario Williams, 17 — Jairo Henriquez
Subs not used: 1 — Christian Herrera, 13 — Steven Echevarria, 22 — Dennis Erdmann, 46 — Dillon Clarke, 77 — Caden Hickox
Head coach: Stephen Hogan
Louisville City FC: 28 — Oliver Semmle, 19 — Oscar Jimenez, 32 — Kyle Adams, 4 — Sean Totsch, 15 — Manny Perez, 8 — Carlos Moguel Jr. (63’ 12 — Tyler Gibson), 36 — Paolo DelPiccolo (63’ 11 — Niall McCabe), 23 — Elijah Wynder, 9 — Jorge Gonzalez (63’ 10 — Brian Ownby), 7 — Ray Serrano (87’ 90 — Maarten Pouwels), 14 — Wilson Harris (80’ 17 — Cameron Lancaster)
Subs not used: 18 — Danny Faundez, 5 — Rasmus Thellufsen
Head coach: Danny Cruz
Stats Summary: Colorado Springs Switchbacks SC / Louisville City FC
Shots: 22 / 14
Shots on Goal: 7 / 6
Possession: 63.3% / 36.7%
Fouls: 12 / 10
Offside: 0 / 1
Corner Kicks: 10 / 5
Discipline Summary
Colorado Springs Switchbacks SC:
59’ Romario Williams (yellow)
65’ James Chambers (red)
73’ Deshane Beckford (yellow)
79’ Drew Skundrich (yellow)
86’ Stephen Hogan (yellow)
Louisville City FC:
4’ Carlos Moguel Jr. (yellow)
41’ Paolo DelPiccolo (yellow)
62’ Ray Serrano (yellow)
90’+2 Cameron Lancaster (yellow)
Referee: Gerald Flores
