ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – New Mexico United and Hartford Athletic will meet for the first time on Wednesday night at Isotopes Park as both sides enter the interconference clash in need of all three points to boost their chances of reaching the 2021 USL Championship Playoffs in their respective divisions. Kickoff is scheduled for 9 p.m. ET.

@NewMexicoUTD (10-9-7, 37pts) suffered a 3-1 defeat to Louisville City FC on Sunday afternoon as a late first-half goal by Amando Moreno pulled the side back into the contest after conceding twice early on. An impressive second-half display failed to yield an equalizer, though, as Moreno came closest hitting the crossbar with 19 minutes to go, and soon after LouCity added an insurance tally to put the game away. Despite the result, United remained in fourth place in the Mountain Division but will be looking for a fourth consecutive victory on home turf on Wednesday with Austin Bold FC sitting only a point behind with a game in hand. United will be without Moreno on Wednesday night as he joins El Salvador for its 2022 FIFA World Cup Qualifying games over the next two weeks, but the side will still be able to call on most of the key figures in its recent three-game winning streak including attacking midfielder Chris Wehan and goalkeeper Alex Tambakis, who now ranks seventh in the Championship with 71 saves this season.

@HFDAthletic (9-13-3, 30pts) heads to the Southwest for the first time looking to rebound from a 2-1 defeat to the Charlotte Independence last Thursday night that delivered another blow to the club’s playoff hopes. The Athletic equalized with eight minutes to go at Dillon Stadium, but a minute later conceded what proved to be the winner for the visitors. Charlotte is now 16 points ahead of Hartford with the Athletic having seven games left to play in the regular season, a scenario that means the Athletic almost certainly have to win out to have a chance at their second consecutive postseason berth. The side brings some positive attacking talent, though, including playmaker Danny Barrera, who remains tied for the league-lead with nine assists this season. The visitors could also be hopeful as New Mexico has gone only 1-3-2 in its non-division games so far this season.

FiveThirtyEight.com Match Predictor: New Mexico United 60%, Hartford Athletic 17%, Draw 23%

Most Recent Lineups

New Mexico United (3-4-3): Alex Tambakis; Rashid Tetteh, Kalen Ryden, Austin Yearwood; Daniel Bruce, Andrew Tinari, Micheal Azira, David Najem; Amando Moreno, Chris Wehan, Sergio Rivas

Hartford Athletic (4-1-4-1): Jeff Caldwell; Younes Boudadi, Nicolas Cardona, Thomas Janjigian, Ashkanov Apollon; Justin Haak; Preston Tabort Etaka, Danny Barrera, Luka Prpa, Derek Dodson; Juan Carlos Obregon Jr.

Discipline

New Mexico United – Suspended: Amando Moreno

Hartford Athletic – None