KANSAS CITY, Kan. – Sporting Kansas City II plays host to OKC Energy FC at Children’s Mercy Park on Saturday evening as the visitors look to build on consecutive victories that have bolstered their postseason chances in the USL Championship’s Central Division. Kickoff is scheduled for 5 p.m. ET.

@SportingKCII (3-13-7, 16pts) fell 1-0 on Wednesday night at home to Birmingham Legion FC as the side was held scoreless for a second consecutive outing to remain at the bottom of the Central standings. Sporting threatened to grab a point from the contest, but a late chance for Ropapa Mensah hit the right post proved the closest the side would come to finding an equalizer after Legion FC took a late first-half lead. The defeat extended SKC II’s winless streak to nine games, with the side looking for its first win since July 10 and its first home victory since June 2 on Saturday night. Sporting has held OKC twice previously this season in three meetings, with the sides most recently playing to a 0-0 draw on July 24 at Taft Stadium as goalkeeper Kendall McIntosh recorded a four-save shutout for the visitors.

@EnergyFC (7-7-8, 29pts) had a more successful Wednesday than Sporting as it emerged with a 1-0 win against Memphis 901 FC at AutoZone Park that moved the side into sole possession of fourth place in the division standings. Villyan Bijev scored two minutes into the second half for his 10th goal of the season, becoming the fifth player in OKC’s eight-season history to reach double-digit goals in a campaign. Energy FC was reduced to 10 men midway through the first half as Zach Hayden-Ellis was sent off, and the defender will serve a one-game suspension on Saturday night. The club will also be without forward Frank Lopez, who on Friday was sent on loan to Rio Grande Valley FC in exchange for an international roster spot. OKC will be looking for its third consecutive victory on Saturday, a feat it has accomplished once previously this season, while looking to maintain its place above Indy Eleven and Atlanta United 2 in the race for the playoffs.

FiveThirtyEight.com Match Predictor: Sporting Kansas City II 32%, OKC Energy FC 38%, Draw 30%

Most Recent Lineups

Sporting Kansas City II (4-3-3): John Pulskamp; Kayden Pierre, Matthew Constant, Graham Smith, Isaiah LeFlore; Ozzie Cisneros, Petar Cuic, Christian Duke; Jamil Roberts, Zion Long, Rojay Smith

OKC Energy FC (3-4-3): CJ Cochran; Mitchell Osmond, Conor Donovan, Lamar Batista; Zach Ellis-Hayden, Hiroki Kurimoto, Charlie Ward, Deklan Wynne; Seyi Adekoya, Jaime Chavez, Villyan Bijev

Discipline

Sporting Kansas City II – None

OKC Energy FC – Suspended: Zach Ellis-Hayden