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LouCity plays their last game of the regular season at Slugger Field against the Richmond Kickers on Saturday, Oct. 14 at 7:30 p.m ET.

Here’s what to watch for…

Tune In

TV:  WBNA-TV 58 will air the game live and in high definition locally.

Radio: TJ Walker (play-by-play) and Jeff Milby (color commentary) will voice the action on TalkRadio 840 WHAS with pregame coverage starting at 7:15 p.m.

Streaming: Watch at www.loucity.com.

Follow Along

For Starting XI information and in-game updates, check us out on social media. It’s @loucityfc on Twitter, Louisville City FC on Facebook and louisvillecityfc on Instagram. Live stats are available at the USL Match Center. Vote for the Modelo Man of the Match on Twitter starting in the 75th minute.

Links

• Kyle Smith  named to USL Team of the Week
• Halftime reveals importance for LouCity’s success

Notes

Eastern Conference Clinched: Sitting eight points above second-place Charleston, Louisville City has clinched the top seed in the Eastern Conference and shows no signs of slowing down. Charlotte looks to get back into the top four after going on a winless streak and dropping to fifth place. 

Playoff Picture: Louisville City has guaranteed itself hosting privileges throughout the USL playoffs being the top seed in the Eastern Conference. Richmond sits in second to last place in the Eastern Conference, eliminated from playoff contention.  

Scouting Richmond: Goalkeeper Travis Worra was named to the USL Team of the Week after recording his fourth shutout of the season. Richmond has won three of their last five games, looking to end their season on a high note.

Last time against Richmond: Like this weekend, Mark-Anthony Kaye was once again returning from an international stint with Canada the last time the two teams met. This was April 8th in Richmond, Va., when George Davis IV had the winning goal for Louisville City in the 81st minute.

Smith named to Team of the Week: Kyle Smith has now added USL Team of the Week to his list of honors this season. The league honored the USL Midseason Defender of the Year this week for his performance against Charlotte, holding the Independence to just three shots on the left side. 

Full Strength: After being down three players to international duty against Charlotte, LouCity returns to full roster strength against Richmond. Goalkeeper Greg Ranjitsingh and Midfielders Mark-Anthony Kaye and Devon “Speedy” Williams return to the lineup for LouCity after stints with their respective national teams.

Rookie of the Year Nominee: Richard Ballard, a Louisville native, is in the running to be named the USL Rookie of the Year. With just under 1,000 minutes of play for LouCity, the midfielder has accumulated three goals, four assists, and put half of his shots on target in his rookie campaign. 

Coach of the Year Running: James O’Connor, in his third year with the club, has been released as a finalist for the USL’s Head Coach of the Year. O’Connor, one of the youngest coaches in the league, has led the club to playoffs in each of his three seasons. 

Injury/Discipline: Paco Craig has been suspended for yellow card accumulation. Assistant Coach Daniel Byrd has been suspended one game after his ejection against Charlotte. Both will only miss Saturday’s game. 

There are many aspects of a successful team, but often the most overlooked is communication. When on the field, the games can get so frantic that it makes it difficult for even teammates to talk and get on the same page, let alone a coach getting a clear message to them. 

In Saturday’s resilient win against Charlotte, opening scorer for Louisville City FC, George Davis IV, shined a little bit of light on how difficult it can be to get to a teammate playing almost next to you.

“I spoke with Niall at halftime, we got to the end line a bunch of times in the first half and we couldn’t connect. I just had a word with him that if I get to the end line or he gets to the end line, look for the cutback.” Davis IV scored in the 57th minute Saturday. 

Halftime may be the most important part of the game, as that is when Coach James O’Connor has a chance to make sure the boys in purple hear him loud and clear.

Coach preaches perseverance, and it shows that the team has been responding in their last few games. In games that would otherwise end in ties when an opponent comes back and ties the match after being down, LouCity has found a way to push through and get the game-winner before the clock runs out.

After Saturday’s game, coach reiterated what he tells his team. “I think the most pleasing thing from me tonight is the character, the perseverance from the players and the professionalism.” He added, “I think the perseverance and the character showed. I think I love to see that, when you react to that and keep fighting and keep going, trying to win the game.”

While finding time to get a message across can be difficult during a game, Louisville City FC has been finding ways to get it done. The Eastern Conference Champions look to finish their regular season schedule with a win Saturday against the Richmond Kickers. 

Louisville City FC’s defender Kyle Smith was named to USL Team of the Week for Week 29 on Tuesday afternoon. This is Smith’s first Team of the Week honor this season.

This USL Midseason Defender of the Year was awarded his Team of the Week honor for his game-winning goal against Charlotte on Saturday night. He also played a key role on the left side of the field to help limit the opponents attack to just 3 shots in the 2-1 victory. 

With Saturday’s goal, Smith now totals four for the season and is third on the team for minutes played at 2,339. 

Back in September, Smith came back from a red card suspension by scoring in back-to-back games to make up for his lost time on the pitch. Prior to his suspension he lead the team in minutes played.

Smith will be back on the pitch to bring the USL regular season to a close on Saturday Oct. 14th at 7:30 p.m at Slugger Field. 

USL Team of the Week

GK – Travis Worra, Richmond Kickers: Worra recorded a four-save shutout, as the Kickers earned a 1-0 victory on the road against Saint Louis FC on Saturday night.

D – Josh Suggs, Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC: Suggs helped limit Sacramento Republic FC to one shot on goal and also provided the assist on the game-winning goal in the Switchbacks’ 1-0 victory on Saturday.

D – Jimmy Ockford, Reno 1868 FC: Ockford scored the opening goal of the game and also completed 53 of 57 passes and recorded nine clearances in Reno’s 4-1 win against Orange County SC.

D – Kyle Smith, Louisville City FC: Smith scored the game-winning goal and put in a strong shift down the right side to help limit Charlotte’s attack to three shots on goal in a 2-1 victory.

M – Santi Moar, Bethlehem Steel FC: Moar had two goals and one assist and created two other scoring chances, as Bethlehem took control of its playoff destiny with a 4-2 victory against Toronto FC II on Friday night.

M – Marcel Schäfer, Tampa Bay Rowdies: Schäfer had two goals and an assist to lead the Rowdies to a 3-2 victory against New York on Wednesday night. He also helped set up the side’s only goal in a 1-1 draw away against San Antonio.

M – Florian Valot, New York Red Bulls II: Valot scored twice, created another scoring chance and completed 31 of 38 passes to help New York take a 6-5 victory against Orlando City B on Saturday.

M – Carl Haworth, Ottawa Fury FC: Haworth notched his first two goals of the season to lead Fury FC to a comprehensive 4-0 victory against FC Cincinnati in the club’s home finale on Sunday.

F – Jose Angulo, OKC Energy FC: Angulo notched a pair of goals and one assist, as Energy FC clinched a place in the USL Cup Playoffs for a third successive season with a 4-1 victory against the Swope Park Rangers on Sunday.

F – Jason Johnson, Phoenix Rising FC: Johnson scored three goals in two games, including both game-winners, as Phoenix took a pair of victories against Tulsa Roughnecks FC and Rio Grande Valley FC over the course of the week.

F – Stefano Bonomo, New York Red Bulls II: Bonomo recorded four goals in two games, including a hat trick in the Red Bulls II’s 6-5 victory against Orlando City B on Saturday night that moved the side back into playoff position.

Bench: Odisnel Cooper (CHS), Christian Thierjung (TUL), Chris Wehan (RNO), Jerry van Ewijk (OC), Heviel Cordoves (CHS), Didier Drogba (PHX), Jochen Graf (ROC)

After five games over a period of just fifteen days, the boys in purple returned home to wrap up the 2017 regular season having already clinched the number on seed in the Eastern Conference – though the club never missed a beat.

Having a full week of training to prepare for Mike Jeffries and the fourth-ranked Independence, Louisville City moved back on track after a winless three-game stretch on the road.

“It was a tough road trip for us, but I thought we learned a lot from it,” said midfielder George Davis IV, who recorded the game’s first goal Saturday. “Built some character, strengthened our mentality, and even though we didn’t get the points that we wanted we took a lot from that trip.”

From kickoff until the final whistle blew, a game involving nine yellow cards previewed a potential playoff match at Slugger Field just weeks ahead.

Entering the half with four cards, Louisville City showed a side that left Coach O’Connor proud of his club.

“I think the most pleasing thing from me tonight is the character, the perseverance from the players and the professionalism,” said O’Connor. “There are a lot of things out there I was hoping we would do correctly, and that’s how to be professional.”

Midfielder Brian Ownby, who recorded his first goal since July 1, closed the scoring with a 77th minute strike to take a late 2-1 lead.

“I think the way we helped out with the pressure today showed good perseverance,” said Ownby. “And to come out with that win is huge at this point of the season.”

Here’s more from the match…

–          The game’s nine yellow cards were the most involving Louisville City in franchise history, though the players focused on what they could control.

“I think that’s something everyone’s learning how to deal with,” added Ownby. “Referees are outside of what you can handle.”

–          George Davis IV’s 57th minute strike was his 7th of the year, 2 more than his total a year ago. Davis netted a game-winner in the 2016 playoffs against his former club, the Richmond Kickers.

–          With the win, the boys in purple have 59 points entering the season finale. Louisville City wraps up with the Richmond Kickers at Slugger Field. Kickoff is set for Saturday at 7:30 p.m.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (October 9, 2017) – Louisville City FC has opened season ticket sales for their 2018 United Soccer League campaign, introducing a new two-year membership plan where supporters will be able to freeze their seat pricing for two seasons and spread payment for their tickets, interest-free, over 20 months.

Season tickets are available for all 17 of LouCity’s scheduled 2018 USL season home matches with ticket prices starting at just $12 per seat, per match.

Supporters will have several new options and benefits available to them, as they consider renewing or purchasing their LouCity season tickets which provide the best choice of seats and best value to fans.

New options and benefits include:

• A new two-season, 34-match membership plan that allows fans to lock in the price seat of their seats for the 2018 and 2019 seasons, and provides an easy monthly pay option where they can spread the cost of their tickets for up to 20 months, interest-free. Supporters who decide to back the club with the two-year membership will also receive the first opportunity to purchase seats in the planned new stadium at the start of the 2020 season
• A one-year, 17-match season ticket option which comes with up to a nine-month, interest-free payment plan

Both season options include the following season ticket owner benefits:

• The lowest guaranteed pricing (up to a 30% savings compared to day of game pricing)
• 20% off team merchandise
• Special pricing on additional seat purchases
• The ability to forward or re-sell tickets electronically
• Pre-sale opportunities for preseason, postseason and U.S. Open Cup matches
• An opportunity to claim additional complimentary seats for LouCity’s 2018 USL home opener
• Access to a ticket exchange program
• Invitations to special season ticket member only events

Current 2017 LouCity season ticket owners are being encouraged to renew their seats for the 2018 season, and also have the option of switching to the two-season membership program. They can renew online at louisvillecity.com/tickets and then elect the MyAccount option.

For full season ticket pricing and benefits for the 2018 season, fans should visit http://www.louisvillecityfc.com/2018seasontickets  or call (502) 384-8799.

We’ve seen it before.

Louisville City FC has conceded a goal, or a lead, and hasn’t been able to rebound. 

But something’s been different recently. 

The boys in purple battled back to a 2-2 draw with the Bethlehem Steel at home. During a five-games in 15-day stretch, the team lost just once, and even then, with 11 second half shots, Louisville City nearly equalized. 

On Saturday against the Charlotte Independence, Louisville City’s improved perseverance under duress and pressure was once again on display. After conceding eight minutes following the opening goal, Louisville City continued to push and substitute Brian Ownby, with a kind redirection off Kyle Smith, found the back of the net to give Louisville City a crucial 2-1 win. 

“I think the perseverance and the character,” Louisville City coach James O’Connor said of the comeback. “I love to see that, when you react to that and keep fighting and keep going, trying to win the game. That’s something we pride ourselves on. We try to win every game, so that’s great to see that kind of commitment and that kind of quality.”

The last time Charlotte and Louisville City met on August 5, Louisville City dominated possession but found themselves on the losing end, allowing a pair of breakaway counter-attack goals and an Enzo Martinez hat-trick. 

Later in August, Louisville City couldn’t overcome an early Orlando City B goal, falling 3-0 for the team’s first home defeat in a calendar year. 

But on Saturday, and during the last few weeks, the team hasn’t let the frustration take over after allowing a goal. Instead, they’ve gotten back to work, and have reaped the rewards of the attacking style by which they play. 

After Caleb Calvert’s blast tied the score in the 66th minute, Louisville City responded quickly with three straight corner kicks. A few minutes later Ownby had a strike outside of the box go wide. But a minute later in the 77th minute, Louisville City got back on top, thanks to a long speculative ball that Ownby chased down to create the beginning of the goal-scoring opportunity. 

“I thought we didn’t put our heads down like maybe we had done in the past,” Ownby said. “ (We) kept our heads up, knew we would get another chance, We peppered them in the second half, had to keep going, and we got one.”

With one regular season match remaining before the start of the 2017 United Soccer League playoffs, this is the time of the year for a team to show its mettle, that when they go down, they can battle back. 

And considering the point in the season, and all the character-building situations the team has been through this season, they are entering the playoffs with an added boost of confidence should an opponent find the back of the net, or even take a lead. 

“It speaks to our resilience, perseverance, something we speak about in the locker room,” goalscorer George Davis IV said. “We know in the next couple weeks it’s going to really come down to our mentality and us being able to persevere, so it’s good to see signs of that now. We just have to keep it going.”

Opinions expressed in this piece were not subject to club approval. For more insights on LouCity, follow former Courier-Journal reporter Dan Karell on Twitter: @DanKarellPreps.