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LouCity’s Cameron Lancaster, scoring for fun | News & Notes

By NICHOLAS MURRAY - nicholas.murray@uslsoccer.com, 03/15/23, 11:00AM EDT

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Alex Dixon reaches landmark, joins opening game hat trick club; Kaveh Rad’s mixed Hartford debut


Cameron Lancaster became the third player to record 75 regular season goals in the USL Championship with his game-winner for Louisville City FC on Saturday night. | Photo courtesy Liza Rosales / Orange County SC

Welcome to this week’s edition of the USL Championship’s News & Notes, where this week we have a pair of goalscoring landmarks to spotlight. First, there’s the most consistent goalscorer of the USL Championship era, and secondly a fellow veteran who joined an exclusive club in his debut for Monterey Bay F.C.

We also take a look at one of the top assist-men as he sets a club record, put an up-and-down day for one of the league’s young defenders into context, and offer the usual lists of upcoming landmarks and the Week 2 Discipline Report.

Let’s dig in.

NEWS AND NOTES

LOUCITY’S LANCASTER BECOMES THIRD MEMBER OF 75 GOALS CLUB

Louisville City FC’s Cameron Lancaster became the third player to reach 75 regular season goals in the USL Championship for his career on Saturday night, achieving the mark in his 145th regular season game in the league. That doesn’t quite earn Lancaster the title of the fastest player to 75 goals – Hadji Barry narrowly holds that title with his 75th goal coming in the 2021 Championship MVP’s 143rd appearance – but there remains no player with the scoring rate Lancaster has accomplished in the league in his career.

Of the players who have recorded at least 50 goals in the Championship regular season – a group that was joined by Monterey Bay F.C.’s Alex Dixon this weekend – Lancaster’s scoring rate of a goal every 107.3 minutes is more than 40 minutes less than his closest competition.

Best Goalscoring Rate among USL Championship players with 50 regular season goals
1. Cameron Lancaster – 75 goals – 107.3 mins/goal
2. Dane Kelly – 106 goals – 150.3 mins/goal
3. Chandler Hoffman – 66 goals – 156.2 mins/goal
4. Hadji Barry – 79 goals – 157.7 mins/goal
5. Jose Angulo – 53 goals – 167.2 mins/goal

MONTEREY BAY’S DIXON JOINS OPENING HAT TRICK CLUB

Monterey Bay F.C.’s Alex Dixon made a little personal and club history on Saturday night as he logged the first hat trick of his career, and also the first hat trick by a MBFC player in the club’s short history. The 33-year-old’s feat of scoring a hat trick in the opening game of the season is somewhat unique. Dixon became the fourth player in the past five seasons to do so, and the fifth player all-time.

USL Championship Season Opening Hat Tricks
Alex Dixon, Monterey Bay F.C. – vs. Hartford Athletic, 3/11/23
Santiago Patino, San Antonio FC – vs. Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC, 5/1/21
Rufat Dadashov, Phoenix Rising FC – vs. Portland Timbers 2, 3/7/20
Shane Malcolm, Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC – vs. LA Galaxy II, 3/9/19
Kevin Kerr, Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC – vs. Harrisburg City Islanders, 4/27/15

Dixon’s first hat trick also made him the fourth-oldest player to record a hat trick in the USL Championship – former Charlotte Independence legend Jorge Herrera leads that list with a hat trick aged 36 years, 300 days old in the 2017 season. His opening goal after 92 seconds, meanwhile, was the earliest in the Championship in a season-opener since Deshorn Brown scored for OKC Energy FC after 12 seconds against El Paso Locomotive FC to start the 2019 campaign, and only the fourth scored inside the opening two minutes since 2015.

Fastest Goals to Start a USL Championship Season (2015-present)
12 seconds – Deshorn Brown, OKC Energy FC at El Paso Locomotive FC, 3/9/19
70 seconds – Matt Thomas, Las Vegas Lights FC at Fresno FC, 3/17/18
92 seconds – Alex Dixon, Monterey Bay F.C. vs. Hartford Athletic, 3/11/23
95 seconds – Manuel Madrid, Phoenix Rising FC vs. Monterey Bay F.C., 3/12/22

LOUCITY’S ASSIST KING CROWN PASSES TO BRIAN OWNBY


Brian Ownby became Louisville City FC's all-time assists leader on Saturday night at Orange County SC, and now is tied for fifth overall in regular season assists in the USL Championship. | Photo courtesy Liza Rosales / Orange County SC

In addition to Cameron Lancaster’s landmark night on Saturday, his Louisville City FC teammate Brian Ownby also moved to the top of the club’s all-time assists rankings. The veteran winger’s two assists on the night moved him to 34 across all competitions for LouCity, and 31 regular season assists for the club since his arrival before the 2017 season.

Ownby 31 assists also now rank third in the Championship all-time for an individual club, trailing only current Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC midfielder Kenardo Forbes and Solomon Asante, who notched 41 assists for Phoenix Rising FC in the regular season during his four seasons at the club. Ownby is also now tied for fifth in the Championship’s all-time list with 44 career regular season assists to his name, putting him alongside former LouCity teammate and current Hartford Athletic forward Antoine Hoppenot.

Most Assists for one club in the USL Championship’s history
T-1. Kenardo Forbes, Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC – 41*
T-1. Solomon Asante, Phoenix Rising FC – 41
3. Brian Ownby, Louisville City FC – 31*
T-4. Danny Barrera, Hartford Athletic – 30*
T-4. Enzo Martinez, Charlotte Independence – 30

* - Currently active at club

HARTFORD’S RAD HAS A GOOD NEWS, BAD NEWS DAY
Hartford Athletic’s Kaveh Rad scored the second goal of his USL Championship on Saturday night to pull the visitors level against Monterey Bay F.C. four minutes before halftime at Cardinale Stadium. Unfortunately for the 21-year-old, six minutes later he recorded an own goal – accounting for Monterey Bay’s fourth tally of the first half – to join the group of eight other players who have scored at either end in the same game in the Championship’s history.

Players who have scored a goal and own goal in the same USL Championship Game
William Yomby, Richmond Kickers – vs. Harrisburg City Islanders, 8/11/12
Andrew Marshall, Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC – vs. Charlotte Eagles, 7/5/13
Scott Morrison, Phoenix FC – at Charleston Battery, 7/25/13
Patrick Slogic, Charlotte Independence – at Toronto FC II, 8/30/15
Adam Jahn, Phoenix Rising FC – at San Antonio FC, 3/9/19
Azriel Gonzalez, Tacoma Defiance – vs. Portland Timbers 2, 9/27/20
Jesus Vazquez, LA Galaxy II – vs. Phoenix Rising FC, 9/11/21
Grant Lillard, Loudoun United FC – at Detroit City FC, 5/14/22
Kaveh Rad, Hartford Athletic – at Monterey Bay F.C., 3/11/23

Upcoming Player Milestones


Miami FC's Joaquin Rivas could both make his 150th regular season appearance in the USL Championship and pass 10,000 regular season minutes in the league on Saturday when his side hosts New Mexico United. | Photo courtesy Orovio Photography / Miami FC

Appearances
Approaching 250 regular-season appearances

Yann Ekra (TBR) – 247

Approaching 150 regular-season appearances
Joaquin Rivas (MIA) – 149
Sebastian Guenzatti (IND) – 146

Approaching 100 regular-season appearances
Sebastian Velasquez (MEM) – 99
Jake Areman (TBR) – 99
Luis Felipe Fernandes (SAC) – 98
Joe Kuzminsky (COS) – 97
Leland Archer (CHS) – 97
Graham Smith (MEM) – 97

Minutes
Approaching 15,000 regular-season minutes
Speedy Williams (COS) – 14,674
Alex Tambakis (NM) – 14,657
James Musa (COS) – 14,639

Approaching 10,000 regular-season minutes
Joaquin Rivas (MIA) – 9,974

Goals
Approaching 50 regular season goals

Chris Wehan (NM) – 49
Lucky Mkosana (TBR) – 48

Assists
Approaching 50 regular season assists

Aodhan Quinn (IND) – 48
Solomon Asante (IND) – 47

Approaching 40 regular season assists
Enzo Martinez (BHM) – 38

Approaching 30 regular season assists
Oscar Jimenez (LOU) – 29
Lewis Hilton (TBR) – 29
Justin Portillo (NM) – 28
Niall McCabe (LOU) – 27

Saves
Approaching 250 regular season saves

Trey Muse (CHS) – 243

Shutouts
Approaching 40 regular-season shutouts

Matt VanOekel (BHM) – 38

Approaching 30 regular-season shutouts
Joe Kuzminsky (COS) – 29

Discipline Report – Week 2

TAMPA, Fla. – The following is the USL Championship’s discipline report for Week 2 of the 2023 USL Championship season:

Memphis 901 FC’s Laurent Kissiedou has been suspended for one game following his red card for violent conduct against Loudoun United FC on March 11. Kissiedou will be unavailable for selection in Memphis’ contest against Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC this Saturday night.

Rio Grande Valley FC’s Erik Pimentel has been suspended for one game following his red card for two cautionable offenses against Las Vegas Lights FC on March 12. Pimentel will be unavailable for selection in Rio Grande Valley’s contest against Oakland Roots SC this Sunday night.

Las Vegas Lights FC’s Anwar Ben-Rhouma has been suspended for one game following his red card for two cautionable offenses against Rio Grande Valley FC on March 12. Ben-Rhouma will be unavailable for selection in Las Vegas’ contest against Orange County SC on Saturday, March 25.

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