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USL Championship Power Rankings – Week 21

By USLChampionship.com Staff, 07/29/19, 5:30PM EDT

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Red Bulls II make move up after big weekend victory over Rowdies

The 2019 USL Championship Power Rankings are compiled each week by staff writers John Arlia and Nicholas Murray. Check back every Monday during the regular season to see who’s hot, and who’s not, as the biggest season in the league’s history progresses.

Atlanta United 2 Austin Bold FC Birmingham Legion FC Bethlehem Steel FC Charleston Battery Charlotte Independence Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC El Paso Locomotive FC Fresno FC
Hartford Athletic Indy Eleven LA Galaxy II Louisville City FC Las Vegas Lights FC Loudoun United FC Memphis 901 FC Nashville SC North Carolina FC
New Mexico United New York Red Bulls II Orange County SC OKC Energy FC Ottawa Fury FC Phoenix Rising FC Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC Portland Timbers 2 Rio Grande Valley FC
Reno 1868 FC San Antonio FC Real Monarchs SLC Saint Louis FC Sacramento Republic FC Swope Park Rangers Tacoma Defiance Tampa Bay Rowdies Tulsa Roughnecks FC

Biggest Movers

Rank

 

Team

Change

Summary

1 Phoenix Rising FC
(13-2-5)
Week 21: W, 1-0 @TUL
Week 22: @LA

Last Week: 1
Rising FC wasn’t at its brilliant best against Tulsa but had enough in the tank to earn its Championship record-setting 11th consecutive victory.
2 New York Red Bulls II
(12-4-5)
Week 21: W, 2-0 TBR
Week 22: STL
6
Last Week: 8
The Red Bulls II extended their perfect home record against the Rowdies to 3-0-0 all-time and are now just two points back of the Eastern Conference leaders.
3 Tampa Bay Rowdies
(12-2-7)
Week 21: L, 0-2 @NY
Week 22: @CHS
1
Last Week: 2
The Rowdies haven’t kept a clean sheet in their last eight games and were held off the scoresheet for the first time since May 1 in their loss to New York.
4 Reno 1868 FC
(12-5-5)
Week 21: L, 1-4 @OC, W, 4-0 COS
Week 22: @RGV

Last Week: 4
1868 FC saw its five-game winning streak snapped against Orange County in midweek before rebounding nicely against the Switchbacks on Saturday.
5 Nashville SC
(10-5-5)
Week 21: W, 2-0 IND
Week 22: @SPR
1
Last Week: 6
Forrest Lasso’s NSC loan spell started brightly with a clean sheet in the center of defense as Nashville beat Indy for its first ever win at Nissan Stadium.
6 Fresno FC
(10-3-7)
Week 21: L, 0-1 @AUS
Week 22: LV
3
Last Week: 3
The Foxes failed to score for just the fourth time this season as they saw their run of five consecutive victories come to an end in Austin.
7 Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC
(8-3-8)
Week 21: W, 4-2 @HFD
Week 22: MEM

Last Week: 7
Head Coach Bob Lilley may want to see the Hounds play a little tighter on the defensive end, but four goals will get you a win nine time out of ten.
8 Indy Eleven
(11-4-4)
Week 21: L, 0-2 @NSH
Week 22: @NC
3
Last Week: 5
The Eleven failed to take advantage of Tampa Bay’s loss but are still within striking distance just six points behind with two games in hand.
9 North Carolina FC
(10-4-7)
Week 21: W, 4-2 ATL
Week 22: IND
1
Last Week: 10
Steven Miller made sure that North Carolina stayed in the top four as the club matched its highest offensive output of the season against ATL UTD 2.
10 El Paso Locomotive FC
(7-5-8)
Week 21: --
Week 22: @NM, POR
1
Last Week: 11
Locomotive FC watched teams around it in the standings falter over its bye week, while it prepared for its Wednesday Night Soccer showcase against New Mexico.
11 New Mexico United
(7-5-8)
Week 21: W, 2-1 @SAC
Week 21: ELP, AUS
4
Last Week: 15
Daniel Bruce’s stunning late strike gave New Mexico its first win in league play since May 25 and provided a much-needed shot in the arm for the team’s top-six chances.
12 San Antonio FC
(7-8-6)
Week 21: W, 3-1 SLC
Week 22: SAC
7
Last Week: 19
Frank Lopez’s loan addition looks a shrewder bit of business every week as his goals and SAFC’s five-game unbeaten run has the side a point out of the playoff places.
13 Ottawa Fury FC
(8-4-8)
Week 21: L, 0-2 @MEM
Week 22: BHM
1
Last Week: 14
After exerting a lot of energy to advance to the Semifinals of the Canadian Championship in midweek, Saturday’s setback in Memphis wasn’t all too surprising.
14 Charleston Battery
(6-4-8)
Week 21: PP @SPR
Week 22: TBR
2
Last Week: 16
The Battery had a match postponed for the third time this month, which will result in a busier final stretch for Charleston.
15 Austin Bold FC
(9-7-5)
Week 21: W, 1-0 FRS
Week 22: @NM
9
Last Week: 24
Diego Restrepo’s heroics saw Bold FC produce a strong response against Fresno and solidify its place in the top four in the conference after the debacle in Phoenix.
16 Louisville City FC
(8-7-6)
Week 21: L, 0-3 @LDN
Week 22: @CLT
7
Last Week: 9
Louisville has conceded the opening goal in seven straight games and hasn’t found much success on the offensive end of late, either.
17 Real Monarchs SLC
(8-7-4)
Week 21: L, 1-3 @SA
Week 22: COS
5
Last Week: 12
The Monarchs missed out on a chance to give themselves some breathing room above the playoff line as Lionel Abate Etoundi’s first-half red card doomed the side in San Antonio.
18 Saint Louis FC
(6-6-6)
Week 21: W, 3-0 BST
Week 21: @NY
4
Last Week: 22
2018 leading scorer Kyle Greig is finally finding his form and Saint Louis is back in the playoff places after its first league victory in three months.
19 Birmingham Legion FC
(6-10-4)
Week 21: W, 1-0 CLT
Week 22: @OTT
7
Last Week: 26
Legion FC’s first three-game winning streak has it in the playoff picture but after winning all three at home, let’s see what the side can do away from BBVA Field.
20 OKC Energy FC
(7-7-8)
Week 21: W, 2-0 @TAC
Week 22: TUL
1
Last Week: 21
If you want to make the postseason, you must beat the bottom sides in your conference. Energy FC did that against Tacoma after falling to the Switchbacks the week prior.
21 Charlotte Independence
(5-8-9)
Week 21: T, 2-2 @ATL, L, 0-1 @BHM
Week 22: LOU
7
Last Week: 14
The Independence have played more games than any team above it in the Eastern Conference standings, which after taking one point from two games last week will make getting back into the playoff positions that much harder.
22 Loudoun United FC
(5-8-4)
Week 21: W, 3-0 LOU
Week 22: @ATL
1
Last Week: 23
Loudoun ended its stay at Audi Field in style and will look to carry that momentum on the road before opening Segra Field in two weeks’ time.
23 Orange County SC
(6-7-9)
Week 21: W, 4-1 RNO, T, 0-0 SAC
Week 22: --
4
Last Week: 27
A four-point week against teams above it in the playoff race is just what the doctor ordered for Orange County. Now, it’s just a matter of keeping it rolling.
24 LA Galaxy II
(7-7-8)
Week 21: W, 3-1 @TUL, W, 2-1 @POR
Week 22: PHX
5
Last Week: 29
A pair of road wins against the two bottom-form sides in the Western Conference may not be enough of a test ahead of Rising FC’s visit on Saturday.
25 Sacramento Republic FC
(8-9-3)
Week 21: L, 1-2 NM, T, 0-0 @OC
Week 22: @SA
8
Last Week: 17
Goals have been hard to come by for Republic FC, which has mustered three tallies in the six games since its 6-0 thumping of Tulsa on June 22.
26 Las Vegas Lights FC
(7-8-5)
Week 21: L, 1-4 @TAC, W, 2-1 RGV
Week 22: @FRS
1
Last Week: 25
Lights FC’s road woes hit an all-time low in midweek as it racked up three red cards against the Defiance, but Las Vegas bounced back with a much-needed home win on Saturday night.
27 Portland Timbers 2
(7-7-7)
Week 21: L, 1-2 LA
Week 22: @ELP
9
Last Week: 18
Portland’s stoppage-time defeat to Phoenix at the end of June seems to have sucked the life out of the side as it has only picked up one point from four games since.
28 Memphis 901 FC
(4-9-6)
Week 21: W, 2-0 OTT
Week 22: @PIT
3
Last Week: 31
An own goal from Fury FC’s Thomas Meilleur-Giguère proved to be the game-winner but 901 FC will take goals any way they come.
29 Hartford Athletic
(3-15-4)
Week 21: L, 2-4 PIT
Week 22: @BST
4
Last Week: 33
There’s no way Hartford should be on a three-game losing streak after scoring seven goals over that span, but its defense is letting it down big time.
30 Rio Grande Valley FC
(6-10-5)
Week 21: L, 2-1 @LV
Week 22: RNO
10
Last Week: 20
If Carlos Small can keep finding the back of the net over the coming weeks, Rio Grande Valley might be able to make a run towards the playoff places.
31 Tacoma Defiance
(3-13-5)
Week 21: W, 4-1 LV, L, 0-2 OKC
Week 22: --
3
Last Week: 34
The Defiance were two goals clear of Lights FC over 70 minutes of 11v11 play, which is certainly something to build on moving forward.
32 Bethlehem Steel FC
(6-11-4)
Week 21: L, 0-3 @STL
Week 22: HFD
4
Last Week: 28
Steel FC’s chances at a third consecutive postseason berth took a serious hit after dropping a six-pointer in Saint Louis.
33 Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC
(6-13-2)
Week 21: L, 0-4 @RNO
Week 22: @SLC
3
Last Week: 30
After recording back-to-back clean sheets, the Switchbacks fell back into their old habits and conceded four to Reno.
34 Swope Park Rangers
(3-10-6)
Week 21: PP CHS
Week 22: NSH
2
Last Week: 32
The Rangers will be well-rested for Nashville’s visit on Saturday after their game against the Battery was postponed.
35 Atlanta United 2
(3-12-5)
Week 21: T, 2-2 CLT, L, 2-4 @NC
Week 22: LDN
1
Last Week: 36
After conceding a league-high 25 goals since the start of June, ATL UTD 2 is in danger of surpassing Hartford and Tacoma as the league’s leakiest defense.
36 Tulsa Roughnecks FC
(4-11-6)
Week 21: L, 1-3 LA, L, 0-1 PHX
Week 22: @OKC
1
Last Week: 35
The Roughnecks remain winless since April 24 but put up a valiant fight with 10 men to try to deny Rising FC its record-setting win.

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