LOUISVILLE, Ky. (July 30, 2016) – Orlando City B (7-6-7, 28 points) scored two goals in stoppage time to earn a thrilling 2-1 victory over league leading Louisville City FC (12-3-6, 42 points) Saturday night at Louisville Slugger Field. Tyler Turner converted from the penalty spot before Keegan Smith scored his first goal of the season to grab three huge points on the road.
“I’m really, really proud of the players. To come to the best team in the Eastern Conference and perform like they did, I’m really, really proud of them. To be honest, I thought it was the least we deserved. I know we scored two stoppage time goals but on the balance of play, [it was] as good as we’ve played on the road this year,” OCB Head Coach Anthony Pulis said. “The effort and the commitment that [the players] put in was fantastic. We had a game plan coming in and fair play to the boys because they stuck in and executed it really well.”
Keegan Smith scored the game-winning goal in stoppage time after Michael Cox found Orlando City Pro Academy call-up David Loera on the right side of the box. Loera took a soft touch before centering it for Smith, who curled it around his defender and into the back of the net for his first professional goal.
Just minutes earlier, defender Tyler Turner, who played a full 90 minutes in the MLS Homegrown Game Wednesday in San Jose, Calif., beat Ranjitsingh to the near post from the penalty spot after Andrew Riberio was dragged down in the box on a corner. It was Turner’s fourth goal of the season, tying Hadji Barry for second on the team.
The win extends OCB’s unbeaten streak to eight games and cushions the Lions’ standing in the Eastern Conference playoff race. Defender Antonio Matarazzo earned his first professional start and Loera earned the game-winning assist just 40 minutes into his first professional appearance.
Goalkeeper Mark Ridgers, who entered the match second in the USL with 62 saves, put on another incredible performance. With the sun in his eyes, Ridgers flew to his right to stop a whipping shot from Nial McCabe in the 38th minute. The Scotsman made another strong Louisville opportunity just three minutes later when he did well to react to a point-blank shot from McCabe. Ridgers made another diving save in the 62nd minute and finished with four saves.
The Lions were able to take three points and snap Louisville’s eight-game home-unbeaten streak despite trailing the match for almost 80 minutes. Guy Abend opened the scoring in the 13th minute when he headed in Paolo Delpiccolo’s high lofting corner service.
OCB returns to action on Saturday, Aug. 6, when it hosts Toronto FC II. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET at Titan Soccer Complex.
Tickets to all OCB home matches are available at OrlandoCityB.com or by calling 855-ORL-CITY. Follow the latest Orlando City news and updates via Facebook, Twitter,Instagram and YouTube.
Scoring Summary:
LOU - Guy Abend (Paolo Delpiccolo) 13’
OCB - Tyler Turner (PK) 90’
OCB - Keegan Smith (David Loera) 90’
Misconduct Summary:
LOU - Sean Reynolds (Yellow Card) 43’
OCB - Michael Cox (Yellow Card) 70’
LOU - George Davis IV (Yellow Card) 72’
OCB - Keegan Smith (Yellow Card) 90’
Lineups/Substitutions:
Orlando City B - GK Mark Ridgers, D Tyler Turner, Antonio Matarazzo, Kyle McFadden, Mikey Ambrose, M Tony Rocha, Johnny Mendoza, Andrew Ribeiro, Marius Obekop (David Loera 54’), Keegan Smith, F Michael Cox
Substitutes: GK Jake Fenlason, D Zach Hayden, Jack McCloskey, F William Eyang, Raul Aguilera
Louisville City FC - GK Gregory Ranjitsingh, D Enrique Montano (Kyle Smith 90’), Conor Shanosky (Tarek Morad 85’), Sean Reynolds, Ben Newnam, M Guy Abend, Paolo Delpiccolo, Mark Anthony Kaye (Kadeen Dacres 46’), Nial McCabe (Cameron Lancaster 46’), George Davis IV, F Chandler Hoffman (Magnus Rasmussen 75’)
Substitutes: GK Tim Dobrowolski, F lija Ilic
Details of the Game:
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
Weather: Overcast
July 30, 2016
Attendance: 8,351
Stats:
Shots:
OCB - 10
LOU - 15
Saves:
OCB - 4
LOU - 5
Corners:
OCB - 4
LOU - 8
