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Louisville City Stays Unbeaten, Draws 1-1 with Rochester and Pittsburgh

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12 years ago

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If it's true that a draw at home feels like a loss, then it must also conversely be true that a draw on the road feels like a win. In the span of four days, Louisville City FC has been on both ends of that scenario.

Louisville City 1-1 Rochester Rhinos

In a battle of the unbeaten, Louisville City showed that it won't be intimidated by history. The Rochester Rhinos, three-time champions of the various American second divisions and perennial playoff participants, were by far the better side Thursday night at Louisville Slugger Field, but could only come away with a share of the spoils.

The Rhinos came out as the more aggressive side, winning the possession battle and forcing Orlando City’s USL affiliate to defend for extended periods of the early going. However, LCFC would respond.

After regaining a foothold in the match, the hosts were the first to find the back of the net in the 36th minute. Team captain Matt Fondy showed, again, why he wears the armband by chasing down and battling a Rochester defender for a long ball inside the Rhino box.

After winning the ball, Fondy calmly made a cut towards the center of the park, passed a Rhinos defender, and teed up midfielder Juan Guzman with a pass into open space. Guzman's first-time finish was slotted perfectly past keeper Adam Grinwis, and Louisville took a 1-0 lead. It was the third time in as many matches that Louisville struck first and led at halftime.

"You have to kind of read between the lines to see all that Matt helps us out with," Louisville City goalkeeper Scott Goodwin said of his captain. "Just an incredible hustle play like that, where most people wouldn't chase it down, turns into a goal."

"I think Matt's work-rate, if you look at how hard he works, is tremendous," Head Coach James O'Connor said of Fondy. "You look at how he wins the ball back and how he sets the goal up, fantastic. Great strike from Juan. Exactly what we want."

In the second half, however, Rochester would show the grit and determination that has seen them into the playoffs in all but one year of the club's existence.

The Rhinos took control from the second half kickoff, finishing with a 12-2 advantage in shots after the break. The Rhino persistence paid off in the 68th minute, as a Rochester free kick from around 25 yards out was blocked by the Louisville wall but not totally cleared.

Rochester worked the ball back into the mixer, and forward Alex Dixon was found streaking towards the right side of the Louisville box. Dixon fired a shot directly at Goodwin, but it proved too powerful for the ex-North Carolina Tar Heel to save. The equalizer was Dixon's second goal of the season.

After both sides missed a few chances to bag a late winner, the match would end at 1-1, preserving both sides' unbeaten status. After the match, O'Connor was disappointed to see the three points slip away.

"I think we were a little bit naive at times in the second half," the Irish ex-midfielder said. "I think we needed to play quicker, and do a couple of things differently. But, look, its a learning curve. At the moment, if it was the other way around, where if we'd finished the first half [down], well we'd be saying, 'No, it was great.' I think that's just a natural instinct.

"From out point of view, from the coaching staff point of view, it's pleasing to see the players disappointed and frustrated, because we want to be the very best we can be."

Highlights from the Rochester Match:

Pittsburgh Riverhounds 1-1 Louisville City

For his efforts against Rochester, midfielder Kadeem Dacres was named Man of the Match, but he saved his best performance for later in the week.

Only three days after drawing Rochester at home, Louisville City reversed its role and played visiting spoiler against the Pittsburgh Riverhounds. Dacres was cast as the hero (or villain, depending on your perspective), and scored the stoppage time equalizer in a dramatic finish.

After allowing Pittsburgh to score off a set piece in the 38th minute, Louisville had come up empty against a game Riverhounds defense and keeper. After his team had worked hard for an equalizer the entire second half, Danish midfielder Magnus Rasmussen went down easily in the box while going for a ball that Dacres had headed down.

Despite minimal contact, the referee pointed to the spot, gifting a desperate Louisville side a chance to equalize in the 86th minute.

Fondy, scoreless so far this season despite leading the team in goals in preseason, stepped up to the penalty spot and sent a low, hard shot to the keeper's right. However, the Hounds' number one, Ryan Thompson, read it perfectly and made a diving save. In a scramble in the box, Fondy collected the rebound and got a shot away that was again saved by Thompson. Bryan Burke had another effort at goal that went high over the bar, and it seemed that Louisville had squandered its good fortune in the Steel City.

Unfortunately for Pittsburgh, Dacres had something to say about that.

Late in stoppage time, Dacres was found in space by defender Conor Shanosky and cut the ball onto his left foot. From about 25 yards out, Dacres beat Thompson inside the near post with a shot that will go down in early Louisville City lore. Dacres had equalized, and in doing so saved Louisville City from its first loss in competitive play.

"He made a nice cut inside and made a great strike," O'Connor said of Dacres' goal, via Louisville City's official site. "He's played well all game. He played on Thursday. Kadeem works really hard and it was nice to see him get rewarded.

"We're obviously very pleased to get a point under the circumstances. The first half, we didn't play with the intensity that we can. I thought the second half was better, but there are things we need to improve on. We need to work on our spacing and set pieces. But overall we're pleased to get a point on the road."

Louisville City (1-0-3, 6 points) sits alone in fourth in the USL Eastern Conference standings. They next play at home against the Tulsa Roughnecks on Saturday at Louisville Slugger Field. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.

Notes

  • Orlando City loanee Sidney Rivera was not listed in the 18 for either match, and is still out rehabbing a groin injury. In fact, Louisville City wasn’t able to field a full bench in either match, due both to injury and open roster spots.
  • Orlando City President Phil Rawlins made a stop in Louisville on his way to Ohio for the Lions’ match with the Columbus Crew, and he was pleased with what he saw from both his USL affiliate and the 4,722 fans in attendance. “I thought [it was] a very good atmosphere. Great crowd for a Thursday night when you’ve got a lot of rain during the day, so I was really pleased with that. I thought the crowd really got into it and got behind the team, and I thought the team played very, very well.”
  • I asked Rawlins if he might be able to say who else, besides Rivera, that the Lions will be sending down to USL. He responded with a smile: “You know I couldn’t do that, but good question.”
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Podcasts

SkoPurp Soccer Episode 144: Gotham Rewind, Seattle Preview, and More

The Pride finished their home schedule with a loss to Gotham and hope to finish their road schedule with a win in Seattle.

Published

1 week ago

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October 28, 2026

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Image of Solai Washington running onto a ball behind the Gotham defense.
Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

The Orlando Pride tried to send their fans home happy in their regular-season home finale, but despite an impressive overall performance against the league leaders, the Pride wasted numerous chances in front of goal and paid for two big mistakes at the back in what ultimately ended as a 2-1 loss in a season filled with far too many defeats. Solai Washington did so many things well, but despite a month’s worth of chances, she could only muster one goal. Still, it was a promising outing albeit in a developing story that won’t continue much longer this year.

We discuss the key plays, players, and moments, look back at our score predictions from last week, and select our Player of the Match.

This week’s mailbagbox asked us about Marta, the reasons for the Pride’s struggles in 2026, and more. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We’d also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we’ll find them easily and read them on the show.

Finally, we look ahead to Sunday’s season finale at the Seattle Reign. The Pride opened their 2026 season with a home loss to the Reign but would like to close it with a road win over Seattle to enter the off-season on a positive note. It won’t be easy, as the Reign are clinging to the last playoff spot and trying to catch rival Portland as multiple teams are trying to catch them. We look at Orlando’s attempt to play spoiler, check back on the series history, compare the teams’ positions in the table, provide our key matchups, and more.

Here’s how Episode 144 went down:

0:15 – The Pride finished their home schedule with a good performance but another poor result against the league’s top team.

20:07 – Our mailbagbox has questions about the GOAT.

38:26 – Seattle was the first 2026 opponent and will be the last 2026 opponent. We preview for the last time this season.

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Podcasts

SkoPurp Soccer Episode 140: Bay FC Rewind, San Diego Preview, and More

The Pride keep their playoff hopes alive by eliminating Bay FC but things get tougher with San Diego visiting Friday.

Published

1 month ago

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September 30, 2026

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Image of Jacquie Ovalle dribbling toward the Bay FC defense.
Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Justin Glatt

The Orlando Pride remained perfect on the road against Bay FC with a 3-1 win on Sunday. Deuces were wild, as Haley McCutcheon, who wears jersey No. 2, scored in the second minute of both halves, and her two goals in California gave the midfielder her second brace of both the 2026 NWSL season and her career. Barbra Banda figured heavily in pulling defenders out of position on two of the three Orlando goals and assisted on Jacquie Ovalle’s right-footed thunderbolt in stoppage time to put the game away. But make no mistake, it’s not as if the Pride played well, turning the ball over often and conceding 28 shot attempts to the hosts.

We break down a road win that may have been more exhausting to watch than to play in (although I wouldn’t bet on it), check back on our score predictions, and make our selections for Player of the Match.

This week’s mailbagbox asked us about Haley McCutcheon, where to most strongly place the blame for the Pride’s disappointing season, and more. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We’d also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we’ll find them easily and read them on the show.

Finally, we looked ahead to Friday, when Orlando will host San Diego Wave FC, looking to both complete a season sweep and to keep its faint playoff hopes alive. We look at the series history, provide our key matchups for the contest, and make our predictions for the final score.

Here’s how Episode 140 went down:

0:15 – The Pride improved to 2-1-1 under Yolanda Thomas, but a lot of good Cosette Morche saves were required to get that second win.

20:00- The mailbagbox asks us to play the blame game.

33:36 – The Pride continue to face California-based competition, but Friday’s opponent is much higher in the table than Sunday’s was.

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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. San Jose Earthquakes: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More

Orlando City restarts its 2026 MLS campaign late tonight out west at San Jose.

Published

4 months ago

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July 22, 2026

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Image of Braian Ojeda taking a shot in a friendly against FC Dallas.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Justin Glatt

Welcome to your match thread for a late night midweek matchup tonight between Orlando City (4-9-2, 14 points) and the San Jose Earthquakes (10-3-2, 32 points) at PayPal Park (10:30 p.m., Apple TV). This is the only scheduled meeting between the teams in 2026 and the first time the teams have met since 2024.

Here’s what you need to know ahead of tonight’s match.

History

Orlando City is 3-1-3 in the previous seven MLS meetings with the Quakes since the club joined Major League Soccer in 2015. The Lions got their only away win in the series in the last meeting and enter tonight 1-1-2 on the road against San Jose.

The teams last met on May 18, 2024, with Jack Lynn coming off the bench to score the game’s only goal. Lynn’s strike in the 89th minute broke the scoreless deadlock and lifted the Lions to a 1-0 victory.

The teams met in Orlando most recently way back on June 22, 2021, with the Lions beating the Quakes down, 5-0. Orlando got things started with an early penalty kick goal by Nani, followed by braces from Benji Michel and Daryl Dike to easily put the game away. The lasting memory from the game is Michel’s celebratory dance wearing a cowboy hat that came out of the stands.

Prior to that Orlando City romp, the last time the teams met was on Aug. 31, 2019 when the Lions got freight trained 3-0 at Avaya Stadium, giving the Quakes their first win in the series. San Jose’s offense came via a Chris Wondolowski brace and an early opening goal by Magnus Eriksson. Orlando looked flat and weary out of the gate.

The Lions were victorious in Exploria Stadium in the 2018 meeting on April 21, a 3-2 Orlando win. It was the first win in the series for either side after three straight draws. Chris Mueller, Sacha Kljestan, and Dom Dwyer gave the Lions a 3-0 lead before Florian Jungwirth pulled two back in the game’s late stages.

The Lions led all of the first three matches in the second half only to see San Jose pull level, with two of those tying goals coming late. In the 2017 meeting, Carlos Rivas finally broke the scoreless tie and gave Orlando City the lead in the 81st minute, but Wondolowski spoiled the Lions’ night with an equalizer two minutes later as the teams drew at Avaya Stadium, 1-1.

In 2016, the Lions were gut-punched in the 94th minute in an emotional match that ended in a 2-2 draw. It was the first home match following the Pulse nightclub tragedy and what appeared to be a storybook ending to a cathartic win turned sour on a last-gasp equalizer by Shea Salinas. Seb Hines — now the Orlando Pride’s head coach — opened the scoring for Orlando, only to see Chad Barrett tie it up. Julio Baptista restored the lead in stoppage time, but Salinas ruined everything.

The two teams also drew in the first meeting, a 1-1 affair at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, with the Lions down to 10 men after Brek Shea was sent off in the first half. Kaká and Wondolowski each scored from the penalty spot four minutes apart in that initial meeting.

Overview

The teams meet tonight to get their post-World Cup portion of the season started. Orlando City has been terrible on the road all season long, keeping only one MLS opponent under two goals all year away from home and allowing five goals twice (at New York City FC and Nashville) and six goals twice (at LAFC and in the team’s most recent match away at FC Cincinnati just before the break).

Orlando City is a putrid 1-6-1 on the road this season, and now the Lions must face the Western Conference co-leaders tonight before coming home to face Supporters’ Shield-leading Nashville SC at home on Saturday. They’ll have to play at least tonight’s game without Martin Ojeda, who is out with a thigh injury sustained some time between his first-half goal a week ago in a friendly against FC Dallas and the time the availability report dropped on Tuesday.

But it isn’t all bad news for the Lions, who should have both Antoine Griezmann and Dike in the lineup. Griezmann was the club’s highly prized and widely publicized summer Designated Player signing, while Dike’s return to Orlando came together more recently, following his departure from West Bromwich Albion. They’ll help the club’s offense, but the attack hasn’t been the issue in 2026 — it’s been the historically porous defense, which is on pace to shatter the MLS record for goals conceded.

Meanwhile, San Jose is one of the first half of the season’s biggest surprises, as the Quakes have been outstanding in 2026. Scoring 34 goals while conceding just 15, San Jose is among the league leaders in goals scored (tied for third), goals conceded (third), and goal differential (+19, third).

The Earthquakes are 4-2-1 at home and are coming off a 3-1 road win at Portland in their last game prior to the World Cup break. San Jose boasts Golden Boot challenger Preston Judd, who leads the Quakes with 11 goals, adding two assists in his 15 appearances. Ousseni Bouda has chipped in five goals and three assists. Niko Tsakiris leads the team with seven assists to go along with his two goals, but he’s still recovering from a lower body injury and is not available tonight. However, the arrival of Timo Werner (four goals and five assists in just seven games) has truly elevated Bruce Arena’s Quakes, and he’ll need to be one of the main focal points for the Orlando defense.

To have any shot at taking something from this game, the Lions will need to play better road defense than they have all season. Orlando can score goals, but with Ojeda out, Griezmann will need to adapt quickly, and someone other than the team’s leading scorer will need to find the net.

The Lions will play without Ojeda (thigh), Joran Gerbet (knee), Nolan Miller (knee), Colin Guske (international duty), and Clovis Archage (international duty). In addition, Marco Pasalic may or may not have returned to the team after the World Cup. He was not in training Monday, although interim head coach Martin Perelman said he expected the Croatian back soon. The Earthquakes will be without Nonso Adimabua (lower body), former Lion Earl Edwards Jr. (lower body), DeJuan Jones (lower body), and Tsakiris (you guessed it, lower body…come on, San Jose).

Match Content

Official Lineups:

Orlando City (4-4-2)

Goalkeeper: Maxime Crepeau.

Defenders: Adrian Marin, David Brekalo, Robin Jansson, Griffin Dorsey.

Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Braian Ojeda, Eduard Atuesta, Tiago.

Forwards: Justin Ellis, Antoine Griezmann.

Bench: Javier Otero, Bernardo Rhein, Tahir Reid-Brown, Zakaria Taifi, Iago, Wilder Cartagena, Luis Otavio, Harvey Sarajian, Tyrese Spicer

San Jose Earthquakes (4-2-3-1)

Goalkeeper: Angus Gunn.

Defenders: Jamar Ricketts, Reid Roberts, Daniel Munie, Benjamin Kikanovic.

Defensive Midfielders: Beau Lerouox, Ronaldo Vieira.

Attacking Midfielders: Timo Werner, Nick Fernandez, Ousseni Bouda.

Forwards: Preston Judd.

Bench: Jonathan Gonzalez, Dave Romney, Paul Marie, Jack Skahan, Jack Jasinski, Ian Harkes, Francesco Montali, Max Floriani, Darius Johnson.

Referees

REF: Elijio Arreguin.
AR1: Adam Wienckowski.
AR2: Mike Nickerson.
4TH: Timothy Ford.
VAR: Jose Carlos Rivero.
AVAR: TJ Zablocki.

How to Watch

Match Time: 10:30 p.m.

Venue: PayPal Park — San Jose, CA.

TV/Live Stream: Apple TV.

Radio: AM 810 FOX Sports Radio Orlando (English), Mega 97.1 FM (Spanish), Nossa Rádio 1160 AM-WRLZ (Portuguese).

Social Media: For rapid reaction and live updates, follow us on Bluesky Social at @themaneland.bsky.social or follow Orlando City’s official Twitter (@OrlandoCitySC) or Bluesky (@OrlandoCitySC) feed.

Enjoy the match. Go City!

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