If there was ever a time for excuses to creep in, the match against Orange County was certainly an understandable one. Just a few days prior, Louisville City had taken the Seattle Sounders to penalty kicks in the Pacific Northwest and immediately hopped on a plane to head home. Between the short rest from a lengthy Open cup loss and the cross-country travel, it was set to be an uphill battle for the boys in purple as they took on the West’s 3rd best team. Despite the adversity, Louisville City cracked the code of OC’s stellar defense, all while making their offense nearly non-existent. “I can’t say enough about how proud I am of the group,” said Coach Danny Cruz. “It was a difficult week with regard to the travel, when we got home, when we trained, and the physical aspects that go into this.”
Despite the 3-0 final scoreline, observers could have argued that the score should have been more lopsided. Morados’ tallied up 28 shots with 8 on-target and a whopping 11 more blocked. Although the possession percentages were split even, 70% of the team’s accurate passes were in the opposition half. It felt even more extreme when paired with the fact that just under 30% of the visitors' accurate passes occurred in their own half. While this may have been part of their plan to absorb the attack and bank on counter opportunities (they tried a few times), it clearly did not pan out. Wilson Harris bagged the first goal of Mother’s Day weekend at 19’ with Ray Serrano securing one at 68’, and Jansen Wilson putting the match fully out of reach at 86’. “I think it’s a huge statement,” Adrien Perez declared. “We lost the Open Cup, but I think we’re here to take the league.”
It was indeed a statement win. In a recent overview of the team’s season thus far, strength of schedule was a minor argument going against the squad. Apart from Charleston, they have not seen many top teams. The OC match was a test that the boys of Butchertown passed with flying colors. They not only secured a win over a quality opponent, but they did so in head-turning fashion.
Last season, Lynn Family Stadium was not as imposing for the opposition as we have seen it in the past. This year, it has reemerged as a factor. “We just want to keep that going, keep making this place a fortress and make them scared to come here,” Taylor Davila said after the win. The OC win joins several 5 goal affairs in the home win column adjacent next to the empty list of home losses.
LOU is off to Las Vegas to try and keep the wins coming. Their road performances have not been as strong so this presents itself as an opportunity to further silence what little criticism remains of the team. It sometimes feels like the only team that can beat LouCity is LouCity. When playing to their potential, they look as if they can go toe-to-toe with anyone. It's a long season, so gotta take it one game at a time. But thus far, there is a lot to be excited about!
Parting Thoughts
Want more reading on LouCity? Check out the following:
Be sure to check out the Vamos Morados Podcast featuring myself, Benton, and Zach Allen-Kelly. It’s available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcast, Audible, and Spotify. Everything you need to listen can be found on the Podcast page. Subscribe so you don’t miss an episode!
The podcast is now also available in video format! Make sure to subscribe to The State of Louisville YouTube channel to catch the latest episodes along with a number of other quality shows!
If you don’t follow the site on Facebook, do yourself the favor and follow there so you don’t miss any of the action! I'm also on Twitter dispensing #LouCity and #RacingLou info and thoughts as well as Instagram!
Comments