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First came a muscle strain and then a stomach bug for Brian Ownby, leaving one of Louisville City FC’s most electric players out of the starting lineup for more than a month — until Saturday.

The midfielder made an impact in his return and at a key time for LouCity coach James O’Connor, forced to deal with a short bench.

Ownby’s numbers weren’t eye-popping, as he placed his only shot on target and completed 65 percent of his passes. But Ownby certainly earned respect from the Battery in LouCity’s 1-0 victory. The veteran earned three fouls and logged two key passes.

With LouCity then still looking for the game-winning goal, Ownby also got behind the defense in the first half, feeding a cross to Ilija Ilic at the face of goal. The finishing touch wasn’t quite there, but Ownby solidified himself as a threat again in the comeback performance.

Here’s what else we took away from Saturday’s game:

• About that short bench, LouCity made the most of a lineup that didn’t include defender Kyle Smith, who finished the last of his three-game suspension for a red card back on Aug. 20. Both Mark-Anthony Kaye (Canada) and Devon “Speedy” Williams (Jamaica) came on as substitutes in their international friendly played Saturday night in Toronto. Canada won the game 2-0.

• Goalkeeper Greg Ranjitsingh was rarely called into action Saturday, but he made what ended up the play of the game in just the 11th minute. LouCity turned the ball over in its back half, setting up Charleston’s Maikel Chang with a sure look at goal. Ranjitsingh extended, deflecting the shot away with his right hand to maintain the clean sheet.

• LouCity, which saw its three-game winning streak snapped last Saturday with a 3-0 loss to Orlando City B, looked a different team on Saturday. And so a trend continued. The boys in purple have bounced back from all five of their USL losses in 2017 to win next time out.

• Around the league, the Charlotte Independence posted a 3-0 win over the Richmond Kickers to draw even on points with LouCity, the first-place club via a higher goal differential. Charlotte has also played two more games than LouCity, which has eight remaining before the playoffs. In the Western Conference, Real Monarchs on Saturday became the first club to clinch a playoff spot.

Midfielder Guy Abend’s 78th-minute goal — his first of the season — made the difference Saturday as Louisville City FC topped the Charleston Battery by a 1-0 score at Slugger Field.

Abend recovered a botched Charleston clearance and finished to the goalkeeper’s right to keep LouCity in first place in the USL Eastern Conference standings. The Battery, who entered third on the table, played the boys in purple to draws in two previous meetings this year, both in Charleston.

Other than home field advantage, what was different about Saturday’s matchup?

“We finally won,” Abend said.

“The players deserve enormous credit to stay focused and show the type of concentration and quality and to be able to go and win the game,” added coach James O’Connor.

LouCity earned three points with shorthanded squad, as defender Kyle Smith finished a three-game suspension Saturday, while midfielders Mark-Anthony Kaye (Canada) and Devon “Speedy” Williams (Jamaica) were set to square off in an international friendly in Toronto.

The boys in purple were plenty dangerous without a trio of their key players. Midfielder Niall McCabe challenged Charleston keeper Alex Tambakis on two occasions, with a shot from distance in the 26th minute and from a tough angle on the right in the 57th minute.

Between the posts for LouCity, goalkeeper Greg Ranjitsingh posted his sixth clean sheet of the season, coming up with a diving save in the 11th minute to keep the game scoreless.

“The goalkeeper on our team, it’s going to come down to maybe one moment in the game or two moments in the game where you have to come up big and make the save,” Ranjitsingh said. “That’s how it’s been because the rest of the game, they’re going to shut it down for you and keep it clean.”

LouCity continued another telling trend Saturday. The club has rebounded from each of its five defeats this season to win next time out.

O’Connor noted the celebration that followed Abend’s goal, as he joined reserves and substitutes near the home team’s bench.

“It shows the spirit that all the guys have,” the coach said. “When you see that the goal goes in and everyone’s celebrating — that’s something the guys have really bought into this year. The collective spirit has been excellent.”

LouCity doubled Charleston’s total shots (12-6) and triple chances on goal (6-2). With the Battery content to lay back and focus on defense, the boys in purple controlled 56 percent of the possession, which culminated in Abend’s 78th-minute strike.

As the Charleston clearance bounded away from goal, it appeared to deflect off a defender and to Abend before the Battery could further defend it.

“Ilija (Ilic) did a really good job holding that guy, not letting him get to the ball,” Abend said. “I just took a shot, prayed, and it went in.”

The victory moved LouCity clear of the Charlotte Independence atop the USL Eastern Conference, and that’s with two games in hand. The first of the club’s final eight regular-season games is set for Saturday, Sept. 9, away against the Pittsburgh Riverhounds.

Game Summary

Match: Louisville City FC vs. Charleston Battery

Date: Sept. 2, 2017

Venue: Louisville Slugger Field

Kickoff: 5:05 p.m.

Weather: 68 degrees, partly cloudy

Attendance: 7612

LouCity Man of the Match: Sean Reynolds

Scoring

Louisville City FC (0,1,1)

Charleston Battery (0,0,0)

Goals

Louisville City FC:
Guy Abend (78’)

Lineups

Louisville City: 1 Greg Ranjitsingh, 4 Sean Totsch, 15 Sean Reynolds, 18 Paco Craig, 19 Oscar Jimenez, 36 Paolo DelPiccolo, 8 Guy Abend, 22 George Davis IV (6 Tarek Morad), 10 Brian Ownby (12 Luke Spencer), 14 Ilija Ilic, 11 Niall McCabe (23 Richard Ballard)

Subs not used: 28 Tim Dobrowolski, 13 Micah Bledsoe, 9 Cameron Lancaster

Head Coach: James O’Connor

Charleston Battery: 1 Alex Tambakis, 6 Skylar Thomas, 4 Taylor Mueller, 29 Miles Robinson, 5 Jarad van Schaik (13 Patrick Okonkwo), 21 Maikel Chang, 20 Justin Portillo, 8 Neveal Hackshaw, 25 Kotaro Higashi (24 Nico Rittmeyer), 10 Ataullah Guerra, 16 Heviel Cordoves (3 Forrest Lasso)
Subs not used: 23 Odisnell Cooper, 2 Laurent Kissiedou, 22 Tah Anunga, 17 Ricky Garbanzo

Head Coach: Mike Anhaueser

Discipline

Charleston Battery:

Neveal Hackshaw, yellow (76’)
Taylor Mueller, yellow (80’)
Justin Portillo, yellow (87’)

Stats

Louisville City/Charleston Battery 

Shots: 12/6
Shots on target: 6/2
Possession: 56.7/43.3
Passes: 587/437
Corners: 3/1
Fouls: 5/12

Officials

REF: Malik Badawi
AR1: Jeffrey Swartzel
AR2: Matthew Fotia
4TH: Johann Pedolzky

It’s a massive USL Eastern Conference matchup — No. 1 Louisville City FC vs. No. 3 Charleston Battery — and we’re looking to pack Slugger Field for a 5 p.m. Saturday start.

On “Salute to Heroes” night, first responders and military members get in free with their IDs. All other tickets start at $15 and are available by calling (502) 384-8799 or at www.loucity.com/tickets.

Here’s what to watch for…

Tune In

TV: WBNA TV-21 will air the game live and in high definition locally with Mike Watts, voice of the USL, on the call alongside Lee Godfrey.

Radio: None.

Streaming: Watch live via the USL Match Center or 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. Vote for the Modelo Man of the Match on Twitter starting in the 75th minute.

Links

• “Salute to Heroes” a cause close to Spencer’s heart
• Videos: O’Connor, players preview Saturday’s game
• With renewed confidence, Jimenez hitting his stride
• Concentration key for LouCity, even in top form

Notes

Atop the Eastern Conference: LouCity (13-5-5, 44 points) still holds the top spot off a loss to Orlando City B, as the second-place Charlotte Independence and Charleston Battery (11-6-8, 41 points) also dropped points last weekend. The boys in purple have won five of their last seven games while the Battery, who led the standings through the first half of the season, have one victory in their last nine. 

The season series: LouCity and Charleston have twice played to draws this season — both in South Carolina — ahead of Saturday’s series finale at Slugger. Last time they met, the teams played to a 1-1 result on July 8. Their June 3 clash was far more dramatic, as LouCity trailed by two goals at three different points before rallying for a 4-4 draw.

Scouting Charleston: The Battery, as with LouCity, are into double digits as far as players to score this season. But much of the production comes from forward Romario Williams, who has spent significant time this summer with the Jamaica National Team — and will be out for that reason Saturday. After Williams’ 15 goals, Forrest Lasso and Justin Portillo have six apiece. Goalkeeper Odisnel Cooper has a 73.7 percent save success rate with 56 stops and seven clean sheets.

International appeal: Midfielder Devon “Speedy” Williams this week received his second call up to the Jamaica National Team for a 7 p.m. Saturday friendly against Canada. The game will be played in LouCity teammate Mark-Anthony Kaye’s hometown of Toronto, with Kaye also representing his country in the game. Williams last earned a cap in 2010, then as a high schooler, while Kaye most recently appeared for Canada in the CONCACAF Gold Cup.

Dominant, except on the scoreboard: LouCity owned more possession, out-shot Orlando City B and played more of those attempts on goal. But as with other recent losses, the opposition capitalized on a few chances, while the boys in purple couldn’t find the back of the net. LouCity held 60.8 percent possession July 15 against FC Cincinnati, out-shot the, 12-6 but lost 3-2. Similarly, the boys in purple controlled 58 percent of possession Aug. 5 at Charlotte, out-shot the Independence 13-7 and fell 3-1

Bounce-back trend: LouCity will put its record on the line Saturday of avoiding consecutive losses that dates back to July 30, 2016. This season, the club’s four previous defeats were all followed by a victory: May 20 at Pittsburgh, July 1 vs. Ottawa, July 22 at Saint Louis FC and Aug. 12 vs. FC Cincinnati. The Battery, though, present the stiffest challenge yet off a loss for LouCity.

Home field advantage: In years past, LouCity has posted a better record away, thriving on larger pitches. But the boys in purple have figured out how to make Slugger Field friendly confines this season as well, with their record there 7-2-2. Strong fan support helps. An average 8,959 fans have attended the club’s 11 home games, including a record 13,812 Aug. 12 when the boys in purple hosted FC Cincinnati.

The battle in goal: Coach James O’Connor tends to change goalkeepers after a loss. Greg Ranjitsingh has earned recent starts between the posts, sporting 26 saves, five clean sheets and just 14 goals allowed in 13 appearances. His competition: Tim Dobrowolski, who has totaled 22 saves, three shutouts and 10 goals conceded. Dobrowolski (68.8 percent) and Ranjitsingh (65 percent) nearly mirror in save success rate.

Kaye recognized: Mark-Anthony Kaye was named to USL Team of the Week on Tuesday thanks to his contributions in a 5-0 win Aug. 23 over the Harrisburg City Islanders. Kaye not only scored LouCity’s first goal of the night, an 11th-minute strike from the right side, but he was able to complete 17 of his 20 passes. The attacking midfielder also created two other scoring chances.

Injuries/discipline: Defender Kyle Smith will sit out the last of three games Saturday, the end of his suspension for a stoppage time red card received for a shove Aug. 20 in LouCity’s win at Bethlehem Steel FC. While shorthanded with Smith, Mark-Anthony Kaye and Speedy Williams unavailable against Charleston, all others on the roster are healthy.

Louisville City FC coach James O’Connor didn’t view the signing of Luke Spencer as a risk, though Spencer played little as a United Soccer League rookie and wasn’t long removed from multiple knee injuries.

O’Connor instead saw a player who’s “very coachable, listens, has a lot of hunger, a lot of desire to get better” — all traits Spencer credits in part to his upbringing. The forward was born on a military base in Augsburg, Germany, and both his father and grandfather served in the U.S. Army.

“It built and provided security in my family for a long time and I’m able to reap the rewards for that, so it’s definitely very important to me and my family,” said Spencer, who holds close to his heart Saturday’s LouCity game theme.

As part of the club’s “Salute to Heroes” at Slugger Field, military and first responders with ID get in free to Slugger Field a 5 p.m. game against the Charleston Battery. Service members will perform, the Army will feature a halftime enlistment ceremony, and the club will recognize a hometown hero before kickoff.

Spencer will be there amid a season when he’s broken out to lead LouCity in scoring with eight goals — that after clocking just 64 minutes all of last season for FC Cincinnati.

“Someone that not just myself and the coaching staff, but everybody — all the players — have such tremendous respect for him because of the way he handles himself,” O’Connor said.

At 6-foot-3, Spencer scored his seventh and eighth goals of the season June 20 in a win over Bethlehem Steel FC. Rested for a midweek contest against the Harrisburg City Islanders, the big man returned in a 3-0 loss last Saturday to Orlando City B, going without a shot but serving as a key holdup player near the goal,

“Every season has its ups and downs,” Spencer said. “You’re going to go through some times when you’re hurt, injured and it’s just being mentally tough, battling through it Taking the wins and the losses is part of it.

“(I try to) just kind of stay in the middle — not get too high or too low.”

Awarded USL Player of the Week earlier this month after registering a goal and two assists against Cincinnati, his former club, Spencer has tallied 33 shots this season, with 20 of them on goal. He’s scoring a goal once every 111.5 minutes on the pitch, best on the team.

He could prove key in LouCity’s third meeting with the Battery, who sit third in the USL Eastern Conference standings. Spencer didn’t appear in the two previous meetings, both draws in matchups near the top of the table.

“It may be a special time to recognize what those type of people can do for the community and help out,” said midfielder George Davis IV, whose father is a firefighter. “Much respect to everybody who’s coming and hopefully they can enjoy it and we can put on a good show and respect to those.”

Added O’Connor: “We have huge respect for the armed forces and for the military for the job they do and the discipline they bring, and we’ve referenced the military over the course of the season — some of the things they do. You look at the Navy SEALS, you look at the special forces — you look at the mentality that those people have. I mean, hats off.

“So we’ve got the utmost respect for all the armed forces and equally, when you get somebody like that who’s come from an environment that shows those characteristics, it’s a joy to work with. It really is.”

Beaten Saturday in familiar fashion, Louisville City FC coach James O’Connor sees the trend.

His club can dominate possession, out-shoot an opponent and control most every United Soccer League game it plays. But the boys in purple are often doing so up against opponents that sit back, waiting to jump on the counter attack.

“I think concentration becomes really important,” O’Connor said at his regular weekly press conference. “I think, also, not just that but capitalizing on the opportunities you get — that’s something we need to do as well.”

LouCity hosts the Charleston Battery at 5 p.m. Saturday in the third meeting this season between the teams. The other two, both played in South Carolina, ended in draws.

Romario Williams, the Battery forward who for a time led the USL in scoring, will be gone on international duty, but Charleston has six other multi-goal scorers on its roster. True to form, O’Connor is more concerned about his own club than the visiting team coming off a 3-0 loss to Orlando City B.

While two goals came on nice strikes from forward Michael Cox in the first half,  “The disappointing aspect,” O’Connor said, “was the goal from the corner that’s, from our standpoint, something you want to definitely try and avoid. Equally, when you have as much of the possessions and shots and opportunities — OK, we’ve hit the bar and the inside of the post. We had a couple opportunities that maybe we could have taken advantage of.

“I think it’s a case of both: You need to take your chances, and you need to make sure you’re dialed in concentration-wise and focused when you have the ball as much as when you don’t. Equally, teams will have a capacity to counter and cause you problems.”

Here’s more from O’Connor’s press conference Tuesday:

Initial thoughts on the Battery: “They’re a very good team, and they’ve got a lot of threats. They’re capable of scoring a lot of goals as well. We need to do our homework and make sure we’re prepared. Again, you get to this stage of the season, and everyone in our sort of position on the league table is going to be a good team. You need to make sure that you’re on point and you understand the aspects of what the strengths and weaknesses are. It’ll be a tough game but certainly one we’re looking forward to.”

On Devon “Speedy” Williams’ call up to Jamaica: “I’m absolutely thrilled for Speedy. I really am. You couldn’t meet a nicer, friendlier guy. He’s someone who works really, really hard. So again, for someone like that to get an opportunity on the international stage is really, really pleasing for us, and especially for Speedy. I think everyone is so fond of him and we’re all really, really delighted for Devon.”

Williams will play against teammate Mark-Anthony Kaye: “I was joking with Speedy and Mark earlier, and said just make sure they don’t kick each other. Hopefully we’ll have a good performance ourselves and then go and watch the game and cheer both the guys on.”

Louisville City FC has teamed up with the Kentucky Blood Center for a blood drive Saturday before the boys in purple play host to the Charleston Battery at Slugger Field.

The drive is set for 12-4 p.m. Saturday — ahead  of LouCity versus Charleston at 5 p.m. — in the stadium’s atrium outside the West ticket gate.

Donors will receive a LouCity ticket voucher and a “Summer Lifesaver” T-shirt. Each donor is also entered for a chance to win a signed LouCity jersey and a 2017 Toyota Highlander.

Signups are now open online to reserve an appointment at the blood drive. Donors are asked to bring a photo ID.

The ticket voucher is good for any LouCity home game, including Saturday’s showdown between two of the USL Eastern Conference’s top-three teams. The club has four other home games left with the regular season ending on Oct. 14.