Mukwelle Akale and Zach Duncan scored, while Danny Faundez made five saves, as Louisville City FC defeated Phoenix Rising FC 2-0 on Wednesday night at Phoenix Rising Stadium in Arizona.
The victory ends a five-game winless run in league play for Louisville City, tied for the longest streak in club history. It also lifts Louisville (6-5-2, 20 points) to second place in the USL Championship’s Eastern Conference and third in the league overall.
The boys in purple won it with clinical finishing in front of goal combined with a stout defensive performance, buoyed by Faundez’s play in goal.
By shutting out Phoenix, Louisville also kept a clean sheet for the first time since a 1-0 win over Sporting JAX on April 18, coincidentally the last league victory for Louisville.
Many of the statistics favored Phoenix on the night — the hosts finished more shots than Louisville (17-10) and a sizable possession advantage (69.4% to 30.6%) — but Louisville was lethal in front of goal, particularly in the second half. Louisville’s goals came on its only two shots of the second period.
After a very even first half, Louisville won the game in the second period. Mukwelle Akale opened the scoring in the 53rd minute, slotting home a left footed finish, finding the bottom corner at the near post on a shot that benefited from a deflection.
Duncan, who assisted Akale’s goal, finished off a break that came directly from a throw-in in the 67th minute.
Faundez’s performance proved key to the win. Among his five saves were some eye-catching stops, including a first-half flying denial of Phoenix’s Ihsan Sacko, the leading scorer in the USL Championship.
The clean sheet was the first of the season for Faundez, the third in league play this season for LouCity as a team and fifth in all competitions.
From here, there is little time to celebrate for Louisville. The boys in purple will spend Thursday traveling back home — a six-hour travel day, all told — before a one-day lead-in to a home game on Saturday versus Brooklyn FC.
The game will be Louisville City’s annual Pride Night, a celebration of the LGBTQ+ community and the welcoming environment that surrounds the beautiful game. Promotions include a complimentary Pride bandana to the first 2,000 fans, courtesy of U.S. Bank.
Kickoff is set for 8 p.m. on Saturday night at Lynn Family Stadium. For tickets and more information, visit LouCity.com/pride.
Game Summary: Phoenix Rising FC vs. Louisville City FC
Date: June 10, 2026
Venue: Phoenix Rising Stadium — Phoenix, Ariz.
Kickoff: 10:30 p.m. ET
Weather: 94 degrees, clear
Scoring
Phoenix Rising FC (0, 0, 0)
Louisville City FC (0, 2, 0)
Goals
Louisville City FC:
53′ Mukwelle Akale (Zach Duncan)
67′ Zach Duncan (Chris Donovan)
Lineups
Phoenix Rising FC: 1 – Patrick Rakovsky, 6 – Aleksandar Vukovic (63′ 87 – Daniel Flores), 17 – John Scearce, 4 – Pape Boye, 20 – Luke Biasi, 2 – Collin Smith, 37 – Gilberto Rivera (76′ 91 – Eziah Ramirez), 13 – Jean Moursou (85′ 38 – Cyrus Kowall), 8 – Diego Gómez (76′ 44 – Jamison Ping), 19 – Damián Rivera (64′ 11 – Gunnar Studenhofft), 7 – Ihsan Sacko
Unused substitutes: 14 – Chituru Odunze; 24 – Adrián Pelayo, 33 – Jackson Gaydon, 47 – Noah Cross
Head coach: Pa-Modou Kah
Louisville City FC: 12 – Danny Faundez, 2 – Aiden McFadden (89′ 21 – Quenzi Huerman), 32 – Kyle Adams (c),5 – Brandon Dayes (65′ 25 – Jansen Wilson), 4 – Sean Totsch,13 – Amadou Dia, 8 – Taylor Davila, 6 – Zach Duncan (83′ 16 – Carlos Moguel Jr.), 47 – Mukwelle Akale, 9 – Chris Donovan (83′ 14 – Tola Showunmi), 27 – Evan Davila (65′ 7 – Ray Serrano)
Unused substitutes: 1 – Hugo Fauroux; 3 – Jake Morris, 97 – Thomas Weinrich
Interim Head Coach: Simon Bird
Stats Summary: Phoenix Rising FC / Louisville City FC
Shots: 18 / 12
Shots on Goal: 5 / 5
Expected goals: 1.18 / 1.09
Possession: 69.4% / 30.6%
Fouls: 15 / 10
Offside: 0 / 2
Corner Kicks: 7 / 4
Discipline Summary:
Phoenix Rising FC:
6′ Luke Biasi (yellow)
27′ Jean Moursou (yellow)
34′ Pape Boye (yellow)
58′ Aleksandar Vukovic (yellow)
84′ Daniel Flores (yellow)
Louisville City FC
68′ Amadou Dia (yellow)
Referee: Rodrigo Albuquerque
