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Gameday Report: July 6, Week 18

By USLChampionship.com Staff, 07/06/19, 9:00PM EDT

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Memphis wins first at home; Monarchs collect fourth straight victory

In the first of seven games on Saturday night in the Championship, defending champions Louisville City FC defeated regional rivals Nashville SC in league play for the first time since March 2018 with goals from Paco Craig and Antoine Hoppenot overpowering the visitors' tally from Daniel Rios in a tight contest. Meanwhile, Memphis 901 FC won their first-ever game at home with a 4-1 thumping of the Hartford Athletic while Saint Louis FC and Loudoun United FC produced an exciting 2-2 draw and Tacoma Defiance's Trey Muse ensured a 0-0 stalemate with four saves against Rio Grande Valley FC. Meanwhile, El Paso Locomotive FC fought back for a point against OKC Energy FC on the road thanks to more goalkeeper heroics from Logan Ketterer, who had only a slightly better night than his counterpart Cody Laurendi at OKC, Real Monarchs SLC won their fourth straight with a slender 1-0 win over New Mexico United at Zions Bank Stadium, and Portland Timbers 2 secured a late equalizer from the spot against the Tulsa Roughnecks to round out a Saturday's action.

 

portland timbers 2 (1) v tulsa roughnecks fc (1)

PORTLAND, Ore. – Portland Timbers 2 fashioned out a late draw on Saturday night against Tulsa Roughnecks FC thanks to a stoppage time penalty from captain Todd Wharton. In the first half, the visitors established an early lead thanks to a 14th minute strike by midfielder Rodrigo da Costa after a short combination between new addition Calvin Rezende and midfielder Cristhian Altamirano saw the latter pick out da Costa in the air for a headed goal from close in. Tulsa would come close to doubling their lead in the second half but had efforts from Brayan Reyes and Rezende saved by Portland goalkeeper Aljaz Ivacic as their pursuit went begging. Into stoppage time, Reyes was sent off on a second yellow card for a late challenge, and Tulsa then went to nine men when substitute Fredlin Mompremier was sent off for a high boot in the box which yielded a penalty to Timbers 2. Eight minutes into added time, T2 captain Todd Wharton stepped up to convert the spot kick and equalize with the last kick of the game to earn a last gasp draw at home.

USL Championship Man of the Match

Rodrigo da Costa, Tulsa Roughnecks FC – da Costa sparked Tulsa’s night with their first goal and ended up creating three chances while winning seven of nine duels and completing just shy of 87 percent of his passes in the draw.

 

Real monarchs slc (1) v new mexico united (0)

HERRIMAN, Utah – Real Monarchs SLC won their fourth straight game after squeezing out a 1-0 win over New Mexico United at Zions Bank Stadium on Saturday night. The Monarchs, who outshot the visitors in the first half, saw opportunities for Douglas Martínez and Kalen Ryden narrowly rise over the crossbar out of play as the hosts failed to break through before the halftime interval despite the quality of chance. Into the second half, it was New Mexico United’s turn to show defensive resilience with goalkeeper Cody Mizell producing an impressive save on Monarchs midfielder Justin Portillo’s free kick from 22 yards out to keep the score level. However, the visitors were unlucky when Ethen Sampson was whistled for a penalty in the 58th minute for an infraction on forward Martínez, which left midfielder Maikel Chang to step up and bury the spot kick to put the hosts in front. Undeterred, New Mexico United pressed on and produced a few quality opportunities, including a clever move that saw Santi Moar and Chris Wehan before Monarchs goalkeeper David Ochoa leapt to collect and neutralize the threat. The lone late action from the visitors came as midfielder Juan Guzmán was sent off after four minutes of stoppage time for a challenge from behind, and the Monarchs collected a slender win to extend an unbeaten streak that now spans over five weeks.

USL Championship Man of the Match

Douglas Martínez, Real Monarchs SLC – Martínez was an effective presence up front for the Monarchs as he won 16 of 21 duels including seven of nine in the air while also making three tackles and two interceptions for the hosts.

 

OKC Energy fc (1) v el paso locomotive FC (1)

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. – OKC Energy FC and El Paso Locomotive FC produced an exciting 1-1 draw at Taft Stadium on Saturday with a first half penalty from Rafael Garcia being equaled out by a second half own goal from OKC’s Mekeil Williams to even out the match. Locomotive FC were first to test the opposition goalkeeper when Sabastián Contreras unleashed a shot from 25 yards out that landed narrowly wide of Energy FC goalkeeper Cody Laurendi’s near post. Four minutes later, OKC had their best opportunity of the match when forward Omar Gordon broke clear on goal only to have his effort saved by El Paso goalkeeper Logan Ketterer from close on. OKC would eventually take the lead through Garcia’s converted penalty in the 29th minute, but the two sides immediately traded chances as Laurendi again came to OKC’s rescue in the 34th minute when a point-blank save on Contreras and again before the half with a reaction save on El Paso forward Omar Salgado’s flick on goal. In the 50th minute, Laurendi came up big with a save on forward Jerome Kiesewetter that saw Kiesewetter follow-up the original effort by slamming his second shot off the post and back in play, still looking for the go-ahead strike. Locomotive FC’s Logan Ketterer had his time to shine again in both the 54th and 61st minute with saves to ensure his side still had a way back in the match, and Louis Herrera’s scrappy goal for the visitors in the 62nd minute proved enough to keep a point in an action-packed match between new Western Conference foes.

USL Championship Man of the Match

Logan Ketterer, El Paso Locomotive FC – Ketterer made one more save (5) than his counterpart Laurendi (4) and kept his team in the match on multiple occasions as Locomotive FC fought back for a point on the road against OKC.

 

rio grande valley fc (0) v tacoma defiance (0)

EDINBURG, Tx. – Rio Grande Valley FC and Tacoma Defiance could not find a way past the other as they settled for a scoreless draw at H-E-B Park on Saturday night. RGVFC had their first quality chance on goal fall after just three minutes when Jesús Enríquez headed an aerial cross on goal but the effort was easily saved by Tacoma goalkeeper Trey Muse. Towards the end of first half stoppage time, Enríquez was at it again as he cut inside the top left edge of the box and curled on effort on goal that Muse was well-positioned to handle. Continually looking for a way through, RGVFC’s best opportunity of the second half came when Nico Lemoine danced his way past a defender on the right side of the box and whipped a rising effort on goal that Muse had to jump to get his palms to in order to send it over the bar. In the end, RGVFC’s four shots on target to Tacoma’s none did not play a factor in the final score as the visitors did well to hold on to a point.

USL Championship Man of the Match

Trey Muse, Tacoma Defiance – Muse made four impressive saves to keep RGVFC off the scoresheet as he earned another clean sheet in Tacoma’s second consecutive draw.

 

saint louis fc (2) v loudoun united fc (2)

SAINT LOUIS, Mo. – Saint Louis FC battled back from a two-goal deficit with grit to earn a point against Loudoun United FC in front of a crowd of over 4,500 at World Wide Technology Park on Saturday night in Saint Louis. The visitors jumped out to a lead in the first half when midfielder Kyle Murphy slammed home teammate Orlando Sinclair’s cross from close range in the 41st minute, a lead the visitors would then double up on early in the second half. In the 51st minute, midfielder Nelson Martinez took a short corner from teammate Antonio Bustamante and ripped a dipping effort from the top left corner of the 18-yard box to stun Saint Louis FC goalkeeper Jake Fenlason for the group’s second. However, six minutes later, Saint Louis FC’s Kyle Greig scored his 50th all-time USL Championship goal by heading home a Russell Cicerone cross to pull one back. Then, in the 73rd minute, Cicerone turned from provider to scorer when he pounced on a loose ball in the six-yard box that Loudoun United FC failed to clear and belted in an effort from just a few yards out to help seal the draw for the home side.

USL Championship Man of the Match

Russell Cicerone, Saint Louis FC – Cicerone scored one and assisted on Saint Louis’ other goal while creating five chances to help spark a comeback and help earn a point for his side, who currently sit on the fringe of the Eastern Conference playoff race.

 

memphis 901 fc (4) v hartford athletic (1)

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Memphis 901 FC picked up a confidence-boosting win over Hartford Athletic at AutoZone Park on Saturday, overwhelming their opponents 4-1 with two pairs of goals in each half. 901 FC scored their first two goals in quick succession with forward Elliot Collier scoring twice in quick succession in both the 6th and 11th minute to help his side jump to a two-goal lead. However, Hartford would eventually penetrate the Memphis defense with a goal of their own when midfielder Mads Jorgensen fired a long-range bullet at the near post and in past 901 FC goalkeeper Scott Levene. Well into the second half, Memphis eventually doubled their lead with another set of two goals in five minutes as Collier completed his hat-trick in the 75th minute and substitute Lagos Kunga scoring the fourth and final goal in the 80th minute to solidify the result. The win is 901 FC’s first since May 10, when they also beat Hartford Athletic, 2-1, and is their first home win of the season.

USL Championship Man of the Match

Elliot Collier, Memphis 901 FC – Collier’s hat-trick is his first of the season with the attacker also creating two chances and winning 12 of 14 duels in the win.

 

louisville city fc (2) v nashville sc (1)

LOUISVILLE, Ken. – In front of a full crowd at Slugger Field, Louisville City FC edged out regional rival Nashville SC, 2-1, with goals from defender Paco Craig and recent addition forward Antoine Hoppenot helping the defending champions over the line. The visitors were first off the mark after just 11 minutes when forward Cameron Lancaster, on his return to face his former club, settled a pass for teammate Daniel Rios, who curled home an unbelievable effort from just outside the box past Louisville goalkeeper Chris Hubbard. However, the visitors would have to withdraw Lancaster after 29 minutes, while Louisville had to take off captain Paolo DelPiccolo after 36 minutes, leaving both sides short a substitute in the second half. In the 65th minute, LouCity pulled level when defender Paco Craig outjumped a pair of Nashville players and headed in a free kick from defender Oscar Jimenez for the hosts’ first goal of the night. Then, nine minutes later, recently acquired forward Antoine Hoppenot opened his LouCity account by slamming in a delicious left-footed cross by midfielder Brian Ownby to give his side their first lead of the evening. The hosts would hold that lead through the end to jump to extend their unbeaten streak to three games and earn their first win in nearly a calendar month.

USL Championship Man of the Match

Oscar Jimenez, Louisville City FC – Jimenez was a key figure in attack and defense, registering one assist and creating five chances while also completing just shy of 84 percent of his passes in the win over Nashville SC.

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