After returning to winning ways last week, Louisville City FC steps out of league play for the season’s second taste of the USL Jägermeister Cup on Saturday away to Loudoun United FC. Kickoff at Segra Field in Leesburg, Virginia, is set for 6 p.m. Saturday.
The game pits two of the USL Championship’s top teams with LouCity and Loudoun sitting in second and third place in both the overall league and Eastern Conference standings. However, as a group stage game in the USL Jägermeister Cup, Saturday’s contest will have no implications on the regular season table.
In the club’s first USL Jägermeister Cup game on April 26, LouCity dispatched the Richmond Kickers of USL League One, 4-1, with goals from Manny Perez, Ray Serrano, Sam Gleadle and Adrien Perez.
As it stands, LouCity leads Group Five of the USL Jägermeister Cup and Loudoun sits third, though both teams won their opening game. The World Cup-style tournament will feature a four-game group stage with a knockout round to follow.
Saturday will mark the third time the two sides have already met this year across three competitions. LouCity won the first meeting on March 22, 2-0, in a USL Championship regular season game. The boys in purple then won again, 2-1, on April 15 in the U.S. Open Cup. Both games took place at Lynn Family Stadium.
The boys in purple ended a three-game winless streak last week, topping Monterey Bay FC by a 2-0 score in a dominant display. LouCity put 10 of its 17 shots on target in the win, generating 23 crosses and 13 corner kicks.
This weekend’s trip to Virginia concludes a three-game road swing for LouCity, tied for the longest of the season. The boys in purple will return to Lynn Family Stadium for a test with a longtime Eastern Conference rival, the Tampa Bay Rowdies. The game is Pride Night at Lynn Family Stadium, a celebration of the LGBTQ+ community. For tickets and more information, visit LouCity.com/pride.
Follow Along
• The game will air live locally on MyTV 58 and ESPN Louisville’s AM 680/FM 105.7.
• If streaming, download the free WDRB+ app to watch the local feed in Louisville or ESPN+ for national coverage.
• 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.
Story Lines…
The Prodigal Son returns: This week, LouCity re-acquired forward Cameron Lancaster on a loan deal from Lexington SC. The 32-year-old is the club’s all-time leading goalscorer with 88 goals across all competitions. With 80 career USL Championship regular season goals between Louisville and Nashville, Lancaster is also the league’s active leading scorer. It’s his third stint with LouCity: He played from 2015 to 2018 as the club first launched, then again from 2020 to 2023. He joins Niall McCabe as the only two players from LouCity’s inaugural roster still at the club.
Team of the Week: LouCity’s Sean Totsch and Taylor Davila were named to the USL Championship Team of the Week after their performances last Saturday against Monterey Bay. Totsch won 5 of 5 tackles and 12 of 17 duels while numbering two blocked shots, five clearances and two interceptions. Davila recorded one assist, four created chances, two shots and seven defensive recoveries. It’s Totsch’s second appearance on a Team of the Week this year, Davila’s third, and the second time this season LouCity has had multiple players named to the team. Additionally, Davila made Team of the Round after April’s USL Jägermeister Cup opener.
Lights out Las: Last weekend, Damiam Las recorded his fifth clean sheet of the season, shutting out Monterey Bay with two saves. The 23-year-old Austin FC loanee is now tied with Raiko Arozarena of Las Vegas and Alex Tambakis of New Mexico for the most clean sheets in the league. With Las between the sticks, LouCity’s five goals allowed are the fewest in the league.
He’s the Man-ny: Against Monterey Bay, LouCity wingback Manny Perez scored his third goal of the season across all competitions and second in regular season league play, both career highs. “(It’s) a new role for me, in this new formation as a wingback,” Perez said. “It gives me more (of) the opportunity to go forward and join the attack.” The 26-year-old had previously scored just once in the USL Championship’s regular season, in 2020 with North Carolina FC.
Loudoun’s breakout star: Abdellatif Aboukoura leads Loudoun with nine goals this season across all competitions. His eight regular season goals are the third-most in the USL Championship. It’s a huge leap for the 20-year-old; he had scored just nine career goals prior to this season since joining Loudoun in 2021 as a 16-year-old. He’s also scored against LouCity this season, finding Loudoun’s lone goal in the U.S. Open Cup loss at Lynn Family Stadium in April.
