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Louisville City FC midfielder George Davis IV’s second half heroics against the Pittsburgh Riverhounds earned him a spot on the USL’s Team of the Week announced Tuesday by the league.

The midfielder out of the University of Kentucky scored both goals in a 2-1 road win Friday over the Riverhounds, helping LouCity return to first place in the Eastern Conference in the process.

Davis converted in the 56th minute, finishing through disruption by a defender to equalize Louisville with Pittsburgh. In the 82nd minute, he hit the game-winner on an assist from team captain Aodhan Quinn.

It made for a happy 29th birthday for the Ohio native, who now ranks second in scoring on LouCity’s roster this season at five goals.

Tuesday’s nod marked Davis’ second Team of the Week appearance of 2016. The veteran winger has had a number of others while playing previously for the USL’s Orange County Blues, Orlando City and Richmond Kickers.

Independent media covering the USL voted Arizona United SC forward Chris Cortez, who scored a pair of game-winners, their Player of the Week.

USL Team of the Week

GK – Kendall McIntosh, Portland Timbers 2: McIntosh set a franchise record with 10 saves as T2 rallied to earn a 1-1 draw with Colorado Springs last Wednesday.

D – Dominic Samuel, Rochester Rhinos: Samuel put in two solid performances as the Rhinos split a pair of games, including a 2-0 win against Wilmington.

D – Kevin Garcia, Rio Grande Valley FC: Garcia led the Toros’ defense to its fifth consecutive shutout, and was also a threat in the attacking end against OKC.

D – James Kiffe, Sacramento Republic FC: Kiffe scored the game-winning goal in Republic FC’s victory against OKC, and earned a late penalty kick in a 1-1 draw with San Antonio.

M – Yudai Imura, Richmond Kickers: Imura scored the game-winner in both games as Richmond’s winning streak reached six with victories in Rochester and Montreal.

M – George Davis IV, Louisville City FC: Davis scored both goals as Louisville rallied to take a 2-1 victory against Pittsburgh on Friday night.

M – Villyan Bijev, Portland Timbers 2: Bijev had two goals and two assists in two games, with both goals coming in T2’s thrilling 4-3 comeback win against the LA Galaxy II.

M – Luke Rooney, Arizona United SC: Rooney scored twice in Arizona’s comeback win against Vancouver, and added an assist in its victory against Orange County on Sunday.

F – Sean Okoli, FC Cincinnati: Okoli scored both goals as Cincinnati took a 2-0 win against Montreal last Wednesday.

F – Myron Samuel, Seattle Sounders FC 2: Samuel scored a pair of goals as S2 romped to a 4-1 win against Real Monarchs SLC last Monday night.

F – Chris Cortez, Arizona United SC: Cortez scored the game-winning goal in both of United’s wins as it took victories at home against Vancouver and on the road against Orange County.

Bench: Matt Turner (RIC), Ryan Richter (BST), Vincent Bezecourt (NY), Cesar Elizondo (SA), Darwin Jones (SEA), Ariel Lassiter (LA), Long Tan (AZ)

Back to first place in the USL’s Eastern Conference, Louisville City FC can extend its lead Wednesday when hosting a club near the bottom of the table, the Harrisburg City Islanders. 

Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. at Slugger Field. Here’s what to watch for…

Team Records

LouCity: 13-3-6 (45 points) in 22 matches; 1st in the USL’s Eastern Conference standings.

Harrisburg City Islanders: 6-14-3 (21 points) in 23 matches; 12th in the USL’s East.

Follow Along

Wednesday’s game will air, as with other LouCity games, live on Youtube, with play-by-play from Jim Wombwell and color commentary by Bob Valvano.

For Starting XI and in-game updates, follow @loucityfc on Twitter and Louisville City FC on Facebook. Find us at louisvillecityfc on Instagram.

Vote for LouCity’s Modelo Man of the Match starting at the 75th minute of Sunday’s game on Twitter.

Links

• ‘A lot of work to be done’ as Islanders visit
• Know the foe: Harrisburg City Islanders
• Video: O’Connor previews Wednesday’s game
• Videos: LouCity players Davis IV and Abend
• ‘A great professional,’ Davis IV steps up

Notes

Scoreboard watching: LouCity edged back atop the Eastern Conference table Friday thanks to a rallying, 2-1 win over the Pittsburgh Riverhounds. The club now sits a point ahead of the New York Red Bulls II and four up on FC Cincinnati. Both teams chasing Louisville have a game in hand. LouCity travels to play New York on Aug. 19 in a key late season matchup.

What’s at stake: The top eight teams from both USL conferences advance to single-elimination playoffs, up from six a year ago. The stronger the regular-season record, the higher chance of hosting postseason games. Better-seeded teams get priority during their run, meaning a first-place LouCity could play as many as four extra games at Slugger.

Stats leaders: USL Midseason MVP Chandler Hoffman (14 goals) and Midseason Rookie of the Year Kyle Smith (6 assists) are both one off the league lead in their respective categories. Hoffman is chasing the LA Galaxy II’s Jack McBean, who has 15 goals, while the right back Smith is one assist from equaling Sacramento Republic FC’s Daniel Barrera.

Davis IV hits stride: Midfielder George Davis IV, who scored six goals in 23 appearances last season for the Richmond Kickers, is one away from equaling that output at LouCity. The University of Kentucky product scored both goals in Pittsburgh, raising his season tally to five. Dating back to 2011, Davis IV scored seven goals in a season for the Dayton Dutch Lions.

Attendance trending up: A season after LouCity drew some of the USL’s largest crowds, the club ranks third of 29 teams in the league in average attendance. Entering Wednesday, Louisville’s 7,388 per game trails only FC Cincinnati (16,957) and the Sacramento Republic (11,486). Through the same number of home games last year, LouCity’s average was 5,688.

Back from injury: Winger Andrew Lubahn, who suffered burns on his feet in a July 23 game at FC Cincinnati, returned to the pitch against Pittsburgh, coming on in the 85th minute in his home state. Defender Enrique Montano also re-joined training this week after catching an elbow and suffering a concussion on a late set piece in LouCity’s July 30 game against Orlando City B.

Caution counts: Center midfielder Guy Abend, LouCity’s third-leading scorer, will be available to coach James O’Connor on Wednesday following a one-game suspension due to yellow card accumulation. Defender Sean Reynolds picked up his fifth point against the Riverhounds and will sit out the Harrisburg game. Davis IV is sitting on four cautions.

The streak: LouCity went into its July 23 game at FC Cincinnati riding a string of 17 straight games unbeaten, five off the USL record set by the 2013 Richmond Kickers. While the roll ended, the club has tallied only three losses this season and remains in contention for a USL title. LouCity’s previous franchise-best undefeated streak was six games in 2015.

Smith gets a rest: The rookie out of Lexington, Ky.’s Transylvania University didn’t appear July 30 against Orlando until subbing in for Enrique Montano in stoppage time. It was by design, giving the LouCity player with most minutes on the pitch a rest. Smith returned to play the full 90 in Pittsburgh, raising his season total for minutes to 1,760.

Stalwart returns: Since missing more than a month’s worth of games, midfielder Kadeem Dacres is back to playing significant time on the right side of the field. While the effort hasn’t shown up on the stat sheet — he’s without a goal or assist since April 27 — one of LouCity’s leading scorers from a season ago has led a number of attacks and showcased skill with the ball at his feet.

Louisville City FC coach James O’Connor admits that “for the journalists and reporters,” his mantra is “very boring, because you want to hear something other than me preach, ‘It’s the next game.’

“Unfortunately,” the coach added Monday, “that’s just the way it is.”

Fortunately for LouCity, the approach has the club in first place and looking to extend the lead down the stretch of the United Soccer League’s regular season. Wednesday’s 7:30 p.m. kickoff at Slugger Field against the Harrisburg City Islanders marks the first of three games in 10 days, with the last of them a looming showdown with the second-place New York Red Bulls II.

LouCity regained first place in the USL’s Eastern Conference on Friday, rallying from down a goal at the half top top the Pittsburgh Riverhounds, 2-1. George Davis IV recorded a brace on his 29th birthday and helped his club end a two-game losing streak.

But, Davis said, “There’s still a lot of work to be done.”

One game at a time, of course.

With a 13-3-6 record, LouCity has racked up 45 points, one better than the Red Bulls, who do have a game in hand. So does FC Cincinnati, which sits in third with 41 points.

“It’s natural to go look at the results in the league,” Davis said, “but when you put the ball in your hands and control your own destiny, that’s the better feeling as opposed to worrying about what other teams are doing and what other results are.”

The Islanders enter Wednesday’s game at Slugger near the bottom of the table, in 12th of 14 clubs in the East, though they challenged LouCity in the teams’ previous meeting this season. It took a Mark-Anthony Kaye goal in the 90th minute for Louisville to score a 3-2 win on April 22.

Harrisburg fell 5-0 last time out to Red Bulls II.

“The first half against New York, they had a lot of chances,” O’Connor said. “That result isn’t really indicative of the way that game played out. I think for us, it’s being aware of Harrisburg. They have a lot of pace in their team. They’ve got some great technical players.

“We’ve got to make sure we’re on point for what will be a very difficult game.”

LouCity midfielder Guy Abend, who returns Wednesday from a one-game suspension for yellow card accumulation, said “it’s going to be rough” playing a flurry of games in fewer than two weeks. The Harrisburg game is the last mid-week contest the club has scheduled in 2016.

For O’Connor, the message is simple: “It’s making sure your mindset is correct and focusing on what you can control.”

Louisville City FC will meet the Harrisburg City Islanders for the second time this season and fourth in club history Wednesday, with kickoff at 7:30 p.m. at Slugger Field.

Here’s what to know about the Islanders…

Record: 6-14-3 (21 points) in 23 matches

Conference: Eastern

Standings: 12th

Coach: Bill Becher

History: Founded in 2003, the Islanders have won one USL title and played for two others, all under the highly successful Becher, Harrisburg’s coach from the start. The club previously held an affiliation with the Philadelphia Union before Bethlehem Steel began play this year.

Series with LouCity: Louisville City FC has won each of its meetings with the Islanders, though the most-recent matchup was the closest. After 5-1 and 4-0 drubbings in 2015, Harrisburg nearly played LouCity to a draw April 22. Mark-Anthony Kaye’s 90th-minute header made the difference in a 3-2 game in Pennsylvania.

Current form: Before a 5-0 loss to New York Red Bulls II last time out, the Islanders had pieced together three straight games unbeaten, their longest streak of the season. While two wins came against teams near the bottom of the table, Harrisburg also managed to play the sixth-place Rochester Rhinos to a draw.

Style of play: The Islanders have conceded 44 goals in 2016, one off the USL-high 45 by Toronto FC II. It’s the product of a fast-paced approach that at times pays dividends but also leaves Harrisburg vulnerable to attacks. Against the Red Bulls, the Islanders opened with quality chances before conceding a season-high number of goals.

Player to watch: Brett Jankouskas, a California native who played at Syracuse before finishing up at South Carolina’s Division II Lander University, has come on strong in his first season with the Islanders. The forward has scored Harrisburg’s last two goals over a span of three games, moving his USL total this year to three.