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For the first time since August, Louisville City FC is squaring off with a new opponent. 

That’s enough to add extra pressure in any scenario, much less with the Eastern Conference trophy and right to host the Nov. 1 USL Cup Championship on the line.

Saturday’s 7:30 p.m. showdown at Lynn Family Stadium featuring LouCity and Tampa Bay will mark the first meeting between the two in 2020, the product of regionalized scheduling to limit travel amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The  boys in purple — now playing in their sixth Eastern Conference Finals in six years as a club –  will be competing with a 13-game unbeaten and an eight-game winning streak on the line in their new home. The Rowdies meanwhile edged out their last playoff opponent with a 1-0 win thanks to a goal from former LouCity forward Lucky Mkosona against the Charleston Battery.

Here’s how to follow along, with a full Louisville City-Tampa Bay preview also available.

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

On the WBKI-TV (The CW)/ESPN+ streaming call: Mike Watts (play by play) and Devon Kerr (color).

And for AM 840 WHAS on the radio: Clay Ables (play by play) and Jeff Greer (color).

Louisville City FC has been synonymous with making the USL Championship’s Eastern Conference Final since the franchise launched, advancing to the national semifinal round in all six of its seasons.

Lately, the boys in purple have also made habit of taking the East’s trophy.

They’re looking to make it an unprecedented fourth in a row at 7:30 p.m. Saturday when the Tampa Bay Rowdies visit Lynn Family Stadium amid streaks of 13 games unbeaten and seven straight wins for the home side.

Both clubs went into the playoffs as No. 1 seeds from their regionalized regular-season pods. To get to this point, LouCity then knocked off Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC and Saint Louis FC by 2-0 scores. Tampa Bay, meanwhile  dispatched Birmingham Legion FC by a 4-2 score before a 1-0 win over the Charleston Battery.

These squads are familiar with one another having met three times in 2019, including a rain-soaked playoff game at LouCity’s former home, Louisville Slugger Field. But the 2020 competition structure makes this their first matchup of the current season, offering both sides the rare chance to scout a new opponent.

Winner reserves the right to host the USL Championship Final — the league’s first game to be broadcast by ESPN — on Nov. 1.

Coach John Hackworth says…

“In terms of what we are doing on the field we have a process. We have a periodization that we go through, so we are pretty dialed in that way. We try and make the objectives for each session based on what we see in our upcoming opponent. We’ve had to look at a lot of tape on Tampa and feel that we have a good idea about them, but it’s been a lot of work in the film room this week.”

“…Same coach (for the Rowdies), and Neill Collins do a really good job. He does an excellent job with his team and I think the game sets up to be a classic Eastern Conference Final. They have added a few pieces that I think compliment what Neill is looking for in his team, so he should feel confident. They are in good form, we’re in good form, and I think you’re finding the two best teams in the east to reach the final and play for an opportunity to go to the USL Championship Final.”

Follow along

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

On the WBKI-TV (The CW)/ESPN+ streaming call: Mike Watts (play by play) and Devon Kerr (color).

And for AM 790 WKRD on the radio: Clay Ables (play by play) and Jeff Greer (color).

Notes to know

Our time: Since beginning play in 2015, LouCity’s postseason success is unparalleled within the USL Championship. The boys in purple have reached a sixth straight trip to the Eastern Conference Final, having never fallen short of the league’s national final four. Now they’re bidding to play in a fourth straight USL Cup Final. In both 2017 and 2018, LouCity added stars above its crest as the league’s champion.

Hosting scenarios: As of Tuesday, with Phoenix Rising FC relinquishing its right to host the USL Championship Final, the winner of Saturday’s Eastern Conference Finals game will welcome the winner of the Western Conference Final between Phoenix-El Paso Locomotive FC Western Conference Finals showdown. LouCity has previously played at Louisville Slugger Field (2017) and the University of Louisville’s Lynn Stadium (2018, 2019) in the final.

Playing percentages: Still favoring the boys in purple, the computers at FiveThirtyEight.com give LouCity a 36% chance of hoisting its third USL Cup in four years. That number jumped from 26% following the club’s 2-0 Eastern Conference Semifinal win over Saint Louis FC last weekend. It’s close in determining a league favorite with Phoenix Rising checking in just one point behind at 35%.

The streak(s) continue: As USL play-by-play announcer Mike Watts unearthed last week, LouCity’s 13-game unbeaten and 8-game winning streaks are the longest of any professional soccer league in the United States in 2020. After going 1-3 upon the league’s restart, LouCity hasn’t lost since the calendar turned to August, rising from the bottom of its regular-season Group E table to earn a No. 1 playoff seed.

Scouting the Rowdies: Saturday will mark the first time LouCity and Tampa Bay have met in 2020 given the USL’s regionalized scheduling. The Rowdies are expected to line up in a familiar 3-5-2 formation that has proved formidable defensively, conceding just 44 total shots on target. Tampa Bay, Group H’s top seed, advanced after playoff wins over the Birmingham Legion (4-2) and Charleston Battery (1-0).

‘Lucky’ Moments: Former LouCity forward Lucky Mkosana, traded to the Rowdies in 2019, has been incredibly efficient off the bench in the postseason. He bagged a 79th-minute, game-winning header for the Rowdies to defeat Charleston a week after also scoring in the Birmingham victory. Mkosana has scored four goals in all in his first full season for Tampa Bay.

An even trade: The move that sent Mkosana to Florida has also paid off for LouCity, who received Antoine Hoppenot. The midfielder/forward scored a pivotal goal in last year’s Eastern Conference Final, equalizing with the Indy Eleven late, and this season has gone on to lead the boys in purple with seven assists, good for fourth in the league. Just last week, his cross to Cameron Lancaster led to an 18th-minute game-winner over Saint Louis FC.

Lundt comes up large: LouCity goalkeeper Ben Lundt notched his league-leading ninth clean sheet overall — and third this season against Saint Louis — in last Saturday’s victory. The FC Cincinnati loanee has consistently come up in clutch moments for the club but was called upon much more often in the conference semifinal, making a season-high nine saves, including when he smothered an early penalty kick to keep the game scoreless.

Cam’s still the man: It seems Cameron Lancaster, the 2018 Golden Boot winner, just won’t be stopped. His goal against Saint Louis FC marked the Englishman’s seventh in as many games, boosting his season total to 12, just two off the league lead. Lancaster continues to be the most efficient scorer in the USL, getting a goal every 109.2 minutes he’s on the pitch. 

A home fortress: Thirteen of LouCity’s 18 games this season have been played on its home turf, Lynn Family Stadium, where the boys in purple currently boast an eight-game winning streak. Current capacity is in the range of 4,900 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, or roughly 30% of the facility’s maximum capacity of 15,304, but coach John Hackworth has spoken frequently of the environment a dedicated group of supporters has created.

Pesky penalty: Defender Sean Totsch’s 11th-minute foul, plus subsequent yellow card, marked the first penalty kick LouCity has either been awarded or conceded in the club’s 18 games this season — a statistical anomaly in a crazy year. Ben Lundt could partially thank timing for saving it. In the playoffs, goalkeepers are already preparing to face penalties in the event of a draw after regulation and a pair of 15-minute extra time periods.

When a late-season trade from the Tampa Bay Rowdies landed Antoine Hoppenot with Louisville City FC last year, all he wanted to do was make an impact. 

And boy, did he deliver. 

Trailing in 1-0 in the 90th minute of the 2019 Eastern Conference Final, the boys in purple were doing everything they could to keep their season alive for one more game. 

Stoppage time ticking away, Oscar Jimenez set up a corner kick that was only halfway cleared by Indy Eleven. Hoppenot wound up bagging the equalizer in an eventual 3-1 victory that sent LouCity to its third straight USL Championship Final.

“That was a big moment for us as a team,” Hoppenot said. “Getting traded mid-season, you want to make sure that you do something memorable.”

Nearly a year out from that moment, they’re still talking about Hoppenot’s strike with LouCity in the cusp of a similar opportunity, hosting, of all teams, his former side Tampa Bay at 7:30 p.m. Saturday inside Lynn Family Stadium for another national semifinal.

“I’ll never forget Antoine’s goal up in Indy, and that was at the very end of the game off a corner kick,” LouCity coach John Hackworth said. “I had this feeling that we would score.”

LouCity — 6-for-6 making the Eastern Conference Final since beginning play in 2015 — saw Hoppenot come up big for the boys in purple last weekend, too. The forward placed a beautiful cross to striker Cameron Lancaster, who settled and scored an early game winner against Saint Louis FC in the conference semifinal.

It’s plays like that one that have cemented Hoppenot – he currently leads the club with seven assists – as a key component of Louisville’s offensive attack. The native of France is currently playing at the top of his game and that hasn’t gone unnoticed by LouCity’s coaching staff. 

“Having him for the second year now, he feels that much more a part of our culture, what we do, and he really enjoys it,” Hackwork said. “I said it earlier that when a player is enjoying their football, you see the best things out of them, and Antoine epitomizes that.”

The Rowdies half of last year’s trade has also proven beneficial. Forward Lucky Mkosana has provided crucial minutes for Tampa Bay off the bench in recent weeks, coming in as a sub to score in both the club’s playoff wins thus far.

On Saturday, Hoppenot and Mkosana will meet their former sides, now as more permanent fixtures.

Should we expect more Hoppenot heroics?

“This year,” he said, “I think just try and do the same thing and winning the championship is the goal.”

Following a meeting Tuesday morning with leadership from the United Soccer League, Phoenix Rising Football Club formally requested to relinquish its hosting rights for the 2020 USL Championship Final. The request was made out of respect for the LGBTQ community and recognition that hosting the Final after having been awarded three points following San Diego Loyal SC’s forfeiture due to the use of a homophobic slur by a Phoenix Rising player, was not appropriate and inconsistent with club values. 

As such, the winner of the Eastern Conference Final between Louisville City FC and the Tampa Bay Rowdies will host the 2020 Championship Final. 

LouCity and Tampa Bay, both No. 1 seeds exiting their respective regular-season groups, kick off at 7:30 p.m. Saturday inside Lynn Family Stadium. This represents a sixth straight conference final appearance for the boys in purple, who are also vying for their fourth consecutive trip to the league final with cups raised in 2017 and 2018.

The USL Championship Final is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 1. It will be the first-ever USL game broadcast on ESPN’s main network.

In the coming weeks, USL HQ will work with its clubs and the USLPA on ways to strengthen its policies around in-match verbal abuse ahead of the 2021 season, including reevaluating suspension length, the awarding of match outcomes and individual award eligibility for those found to have used foul and abusive language.

With the support of the USL Player’s Association and the USL Black Player’s Alliance, the United Soccer League announced earlier this month a partnership with The Institute for Sport and Social Justice which will see The Institute implement league-wide sensitivity training and education for all staff and players ahead of the 2021 season. 

In addition, the league will continue to work with all of its clubs on the development of educational programs and inclusivity initiatives intended to make our sport, our league, and our communities better, more compassionate places.

For Louisville City FC head coach John Hackworth, reaching another Eastern Conference Final is an expectation. But that hasn’t diminished just how special Saturday’s game against the Tampa Bay Rowdies will be. 

“You can never take that for granted,” said Hackworth, whose club has made it to the league’s national semifinal six straight seasons, when speaking to reporters to open the week. “You have to appreciate these days and know that when you get down to a final four it’s special.”

And he’s right: Consecutive trips to the conference final is impressive. This year, it comes as part of streaks measuring eight (winning) and 13 (unbeaten) games.

Also not lost on LouCity’s locker room is how important Saturday’s game is to its community. In a year of headlines dominated by a pandemic and social unrest, Hackworth said his team has a chance to uplift Louisville.

“I would tell you that the first thought that I had when I woke up this morning was how grateful I was that I get to come to work again,” the coach said. “It’s been a tough year for all of us and for us to be a little ray of sunlight for our community, or some hope and something to smile about, I think that’s been important for us.”

Here’s more on Saturday’s game against the Tampa Bay Rowdies…

A new foe…

In a normal year, a postseason matchup wouldn’t have marked the first meeting between LouCity and Tampa Bay.

But due to the USL’s shortened and regionalized schedule for 2020, LouCity has played a bulk of its matches against the same three opponents: Indy Eleven, Sporting KC II and Saint Louis FC. A blessing in disguise, however, is that many of those teams play a similar 3-5-2 formation to Tampa Bay, including last weekend’s opponent, Saint Louis FC. 

“Looking back at our game on Saturday, I would be critical of the way that we managed that,” Hackworth said. “We made it to back and forth and there was too much transition where we should’ve controlled more of the possession. That’s something that we’ll look to do against Tampa and Tampa I’m sure will come here and try to press us to take away those opportunities.”

Hackworth also pointed out that on paper, these are the two sides that should be meeting in the Eastern Conference Finals. LouCity finished the regular season with 35 points, two better than Tampa Bay, with both clubs winning their groups.

“If you look at it, we won the east and Tampa was second, so it’s the two teams statistically that should be in the Eastern Conference Final,” Hackworth said.

Coming up clutch… 

It’s absolutely no secret Cameron Lancaster is one of the biggest offensive threats in the entire USL, currently leading in the league in shots (57), ranking third in goals (12) and a boasting a 2018 golden boot to prove it. 

LouCity fans rejoiced on Saturday night when their leading-scorer played a cross from Antoine Hoppenot off his chest and onto his right foot for the winning goal – his 12th of the season – in just the 18th minute of a conference semifinal against Saint Louis.

“It’s what he’s supposed to do, it’s what he’s always done, and it’s what we expect from him,” Hackworth said. “If we can put Cam in those spots, he is so good.”

Yes, Lancaster’s coach has nothing but praise to offer for his star forward. 

“I’ve said it before that I think he is the best goal scorer in this league hands down and that’s what he does,” Hackworth added. “I’ve been blessed to coach incredible players in my career, and I haven’t come across a better pure goal scorer than Cam.”

On the defensive attack…

All season, LouCity’s defense has been formidable for its opponents. Vital to that unit’s success is four-year LouCity veteran Sean Totsch. 

Leading the team in most every defensive category, Totsch is a fixture on LouCity’s defensive line and has come a long way as player since the beginning of the season.  

“He is maturing as a player right now with making better decisions and keeping things a little bit simpler,” Hackworth said. “He always has a knack at making the big play and winning the critical moment.”

Another large reason for Tostch’s – and LouCity’s entire defense – success is the work all of them have put in being a stronger unit together.

“Him and Alexis (Souahy) have a really good relationship, but even Pat McMahon and Oscar Jimenez all have this relationship,” Hackworth said. “Now behind them with Ben, they have formed a really good unit.”

Louisville City FC has received approval from the USL Championship to shift its kickoff time to 7:30 p.m. ET for Saturday’s Eastern Conference Final against the Tampa Bay Rowdies.

Season ticket members are undergoing an opt-in process to secure their admission to the league’s national semifinal. Remaining tickets will go on sale to the public at 10 a.m. Tuesday at www.loucity.com/tickets or by calling (502) LOU-CITY, option 2.

This weekend’s start time was initially billed as 7 p.m. to avoid any overlap with the respective Western Conference Final. Phoenix Rising FC is set to host El Paso Locomotive FC at 10:30 p.m. ET.

Both USL games Saturday will air nationally on ESPN+. Locally, LouCity-Tampa Bay can also be watched on WBKI/The CW, listened to on AM 790 WKRD and live streamed via the WDRB Now app.

LouCity hasn’t lost since the calendar turned to August, continuing a run of 13 games unbeaten last weekend when defeating Saint Louis FC by a 2-0 score in the conference semifinal.

The Tampa Bay Rowdies defeated the Charleston Battery, 1-0, in their most-recent playoff game with the winner scored by super sub Lucky Mksona, a former LouCity forward.

Winners of Saturday’s national semifinals will advance to the USL Cup Final — the USL’s first game to air on ESPN — at 8:30 p.m. ET on Nov. 1.