The first silverware of the 2024 USL Championship may have been decided, while some big victories made the race for homefield advantage in the Eastern and Western Conference much more interesting over Week 24 of the regular season.

Here are the three big storylines we took away from Week 23’s action, our picks for who’s up and who’s down coming out of the weekend, and thoughts on everything else we saw around the league.

TOP THREE STORYLINES

1. THE PLAYERS’ SHIELD IS LOUCITY’S TO LOSE

If Louisville City FC’s victory against Sacramento Republic FC in Week 23 came with uncertainty and relief, its 3-1 win against the Charleston Battery this Saturday delivered a decisiveness that put the Players’ Shield within reach with one-third of the season to go.

And while it may have taken a pair of late goals by Jansen Wilson and Phillip Goodrum to put the game to bed before the biggest crowd in the USL Championship this season of 13,526 at Lynn Family Stadium, the side’s midfield ensured that the result wasn’t ending any other way.

• SEEK AND DESTROY: While the Battery held almost 65 percent of possession, the trio of Aiden McFadden, Elijah Wynder and Taylor Davila worked to make sure it couldn’t find sufficient penetration in the attacking third. McFadden led the way winning 8 of 9 duels overall, while both Davila (7 of 9) and Wynder (4 of 5) were well above 50 percent in ground duels. All three also won multiple tackles.

• SETTING THE LINE: That allowed LouCity to move quickly from midfield and when it won possession in the final third – where it held a 5-0 advantage over the Battery. Louisville had fewer entries into the final third than the Battery, but it had 18 touches in the penalty to Charleston’s 12, an indicator of how the side’s defensive structure left few openings for the visitors.

• FILL THE FAM: With the energized crowd – including new member of the club’s ownership Jack Harlow – roaring them on, it showed the measure of what it might take to knock Louisville off this postseason, with the road to the USL Championship Final now seeming set to go through Lynn Family Stadium.

 “I’ve never played in something that’s as big as this,” said Wilson, who hit the woodwork as well as bagging his sixth goal of the season. “Fill the Fam – all the fans came out. We feel your energy and can’t thank you guys enough for coming out. You guys push us, and we couldn’t do it without out.”

It will have been satisfying enough to end a four-game winless run against the Battery, but the aims for LouCity are now set well beyond any individual rivalry might entail with a shot at history ahead.

2. LOUDOUN MAKES A ROAD STATEMENT

It’s one thing to get results that you should if you’re going to be a playoff contender. Loudoun United FC’s been doing that this season, which has put them firmly in the postseason mix.

It’s quite another to deliver a statement win on the road that opens the door for bigger potential. That’s what Loudoun did on Saturday night in its 2-0 victory against the Tampa Bay Rowdies for the club’s first win at Al Lang Stadium in its history.

• TAKING ADVANTAGE: Loudoun didn’t create a lot of chances against the Rowdies, but the ones they did were premium quality. The timing of Kalil ElMedkhar’s run to get in behind Tampa Bay’s back line before setting up Wesley Leggett with an empty net to open the scoring was tremendous, as was the teamwork between Kwame Awuah and Robby Dambrot for Zach Ryan’s insurance goal.

• MISSING THE MARK: The Rowdies, for their part, couldn’t find the same level of precision, especially in the first half before Blake Bodily’s rash second yellow card colliding late with Loudoun goalkeeper Hugo Fauroux after he’d gathered possession. With Tampa Bay down to 10 players, it was relatively easy for United to keep the hosts at arm’s length.

• HITTING THE MARK: Loudoun’s attack has started to click into gear more consistently, especially with ElMedkhar’s return from injury. He’s now got goal contributions in four consecutive games (3 goals, 2 assists) while United has scored in 13 consecutive games. That’s the longest scoring streak in club history.

Loudoun’s win combined with Detroit City FC’s victory against Birmingham Legion FC loss on Friday night and Rhode Island FC’s draw on Saturday has a collection of five teams between fourth and eighth place in the East within two points of each other.

The race for the final home playoff game could get very interesting down the stretch.

3. MEMPHIS FINDS THE REMEDY

After its defeat in Week 23 in Charleston, Memphis 901 FC needed to find a response.

The side’s 5-1 victory on the road against Miami FC last Wednesday night? Something of a mirage considering the way the game-winner occurred, which led to Miami collapsing in on itself in stoppage time.

This Saturday’s 2-0 win against FC Tulsa, though? One of the most complete performances we’ve seen from 901 FC this season.

• LEADING FROM THE BACK: Tulsa’s attack had a leftward tilt toward Patrick Seagrist and others, which turned out to be a mistake given the performance Memphis’ Álvaro Quezada put in. The versatile right back won 7 of 7 tackles and 13 of 15 duels as he helped lock down the visiting threat in the defensive third.

• TRIO TO TRIUMPH: Memphis’ midfield trio of Zac Duncan, Samuel Careaga and Bruno Lapa, meanwhile, were impressive on the ball, helping Memphis retain and win possession and sustain pressure in the Tulsa half. Those efforts were bound to tell, and Lapa’s penalty kick before Careaga’s third consecutive game with a goal earned the result.

• FIRING SQUAD: In all, Memphis fired off 22 shots – its second-highest total in a game this season – and put nine of them on target. Not all of them had the sort of venom that was going to test Tulsa’s Johan Peñaranda, but the consistency 901 FC showed across all facets of the game was excellent.

The result moved Memphis level on points with Sacramento Republic FC for second place in the Western Conference, while having played two games more, but as importantly it gave 901 FC a six-point cushion to the teams in the lower half of the playoff bracket.

With the up-and-down nature we’ve seen from most of the West this season, Memphis keeps showing us it’s capable of a top four finish and a home playoff game.

Three Up

Mukwelle Akale – From his picture-perfect early free kick to a great all-around display in midfield, Akale got plenty of praise from New Mexico United Head Coach Eric Quill on Saturday night, and rightly so.

Detroit City in Birmingham – All Le Rouge needed to break an eight-game winless streak was a trip to their favorite place to visit in the league. DCFC is 3-0-0 all-time on the road against Birmingham Legion FC after Friday night’s 1-0 win.

Álvaro Quezada – Quezada’s standout defensive night for Memphis 901 FC winning 7 of 7 tackles and 13 of 15 duels wasn’t quite the biggest in the league this season – say hi to Bolu Akinyode going 8 of 8 and 14 of 14 for El Paso earlier this year – but it was magnificent in its own right.

Three Down

Orange County SC’s Attack – OCSC’s attack hasn’t scored in 362 minutes after Saturday’s loss to El Paso Locomotive FC, for which former OCSC standout Eric Calvillo scored the winner. Pretty tough scene.

Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC Playoff Chances – Time is running out for the Hounds after letting a morale-boosting victory slip away against Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC at the death. Nine games to go, there’s a five-point gap to make up or they’ll miss the playoffs for the first time under Head Coach Bob Lilley.

Monterey Bay F.C. – The final score was close, but Monterey Bay wasn’t really in the game against New Mexico United and is now winless in five games. The next two games against El Paso and Miami look like must-wins.

THE REST OF THE ACTION

#BHMvDET:  It had been just over eight years since Brett Levis had last scored in the USL Championship before his game-winner for Detroit City FC against Birmingham Legion FC. Heck of a time to get back on the scoresheet.

#HFDvLV: Even with its win against Las Vegas – bringing the Lights’ undefeated streak to an end at 11 games – Hartford has a lot of ground to make up to the playoff places. They’re going to need a lot more attacking displays like that one to have a chance.

#PITvCOS: We’ll be honest, we didn’t see the Switchbacks’ late equalizer coming. It’s big for Colorado Springs in its playoff pursuit but could be crucial for the Hounds in the worst possible way as they ended all square for a third consecutive outing.

#RIvOAK: He hasn’t hit the heights of last season, but Oakland’s Paul Blanchette delivered when his side needed him to in a game that Rhode Island was the more likely to win. Good point for both, but better for Roots.

#NMvMB: New Mexico United has a club record for victories in a regular season with its 14th win of the campaign to down Monterey Bay. This one was comfortable enough despite the 3-2 scoreline, but they’ll want to start getting the defensive clamps on after the past week overall.

#SAvNC: Better to be lucky than good, as the saying goes, and that basically sums up San Antonio’s attacking performance against North Carolina. Great for new arrival Jesús Brígido, but not overly reassuring the side is going to find enough goals to get into the postseason.

#OCvELP: El Paso’s playoff chances are still probably gone after this victory but on this evidence, Locomotive is going to be more than willing to try and scupper the hopes of the likes of Orange County while they play out the campaign.