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Lower90 Newsletter Week of Oct 11
Lots of games to catch up on. We just added 45 match summaries to fn365reports.com. We’ve highlighted some of the best matches below.
This Week in US Soccer
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Late goals, stunning comebacks, and stoppage-time heartbreak defined a weekend that delivered across all three USL divisions. The Championship’s Western conference continued to sort itself out with New Mexico United making noise and Phoenix Rising having a weekend to forget, while League One served up a remarkable pair of comeback wins that would have had any neutral on the edge of their seat. If you needed a reminder that the minor leagues bring genuine drama week in, week out — this was your weekend.
Match of the Week: USL Championship — Tampa Bay Rowdies vs Indy Eleven
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Editor’s pick: A clean sheet victory built on grit, a decisive second-half moment from Mattheus, and Russell Cicerone doing the creative dirty work — Tampa Bay’s disciplined 1–0 win over Indy Eleven in a physical, card-spiced contest earns top billing this week as the Rowdies continue pressing for position in the Championship.
Tampa Bay Rowdies ground out a 1–0 victory over Indy Eleven on Saturday, with Mattheus netting the only goal of the game in the 53rd minute to secure all three points in USL Championship action.
The first half produced no goals but plenty of edge. Rowdies midfielder Dion Acoff picked up a yellow card in the 21st minute, and Indy Eleven’s Paco Craig followed him into the referee’s notebook 11 minutes later. Neither booking escalated further, but the cards set the tone for a physical, tightly contested opening 45 minutes.
The deadlock broke eight minutes into the second half. Russell Cicerone carved out the chance, and Mattheus finished to put the Rowdies ahead. It was the moment of quality the match needed after a cagey first period.
From there, Tampa Bay managed the game effectively. Indy Eleven pushed for an equalizer but could not find a way through, and the Rowdies held firm to see out the clean sheet.
The win gives Tampa Bay valuable points at home and keeps them moving in the right direction as the USL Championship season hits its stride.
This Week’s Highlights
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USL League One — Sarasota Paradise vs Richmond Kickers
Sarasota Paradise were staring down the barrel at 2–0 down, with Lucca Dourado and Austin Amer putting Richmond firmly in control before the 30-minute mark. But the Paradise showed remarkable character, with Mukisa Kiingi pulling one back in the 36th before Romain Gall leveled on 54 minutes, and then Emiliano Terzaghi delivered the knockout blow in the 85th to complete a three-goal turnaround that Richmond simply could not believe. A result that will live long in League One’s memory this season.
USL Championship — Phoenix Rising FC vs Las Vegas Lights FC
Phoenix looked absolutely ruthless in the first half — Ihsan Sacko bagged a brace either side of Gunnar Studenthofft’s 30th-minute strike to put Rising 3–0 up going into the break, and it felt like a rout was coming. Las Vegas had other ideas: Patrick Leal pulled one back on 77 minutes, and Oalex Anderson’s 85th-minute strike had Rising fans nervously checking their watches until the final whistle. Phoenix held on, but this 3–2 win was far more uncomfortable than it should have been.
USL Championship — Miami FC vs Loudoun United FC
For the best part of 84 minutes, this looked like a hard-earned goalless draw — and then Edward Davis happened. The Loudoun United forward struck in the 85th minute to break the deadlock, then went straight back to the well in the 92nd to seal a jaw-dropping 2–0 road win. Miami could scarcely believe what had hit them, and Loudoun walked away with three points that were nowhere in sight an hour into the match.
USL League One — Portland Hearts of Pine vs Athletic Club Boise
Portland thought they’d done enough when Diego Gonzalez leveled for the Hearts of Pine in the 74th minute to make it 1–1 after Tumi Moshobane had given Boise the lead. But stoppage time had other plans: Thomas Amang, set up by Jonathan Ricketts, buried the winner in the 94th minute to send Boise home with all three points and leave Portland devastated. Pure, uncut stoppage-time agony.
Results Roundup
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USL League One — Westchester SC vs Forward Madison FC — Westchester SC 3-2 Forward Madison FC. Bibi Karamoko’s 96th-minute consolation for Madison came agonizingly too late, as Westchester held on through a breathless five-goal contest to take the win.
USL League One — AV ALTA FC vs Greenville Triumph SC — AV ALTA FC 2-2 Greenville Triumph SC. Azaad Liadi’s first-half brace had Greenville cruising, but Cesar Bahena Jr and Adam Aoumaich (58’) hauled ALTA back level in a spirited second-half fightback.
USL Championship — New Mexico United vs Phoenix Rising FC — New Mexico United 2-1 Phoenix Rising FC. Phoenix leveled in the 72nd minute only for Cullen Wilkerson to break their hearts with an 81st-minute winner, completing a rough weekend for Rising.
USL Super League — Brooklyn FC vs Dallas Trinity FC — Brooklyn FC 1-1 Dallas Trinity FC. Seven Castain’s 86th-minute strike for Dallas Trinity ripped a likely win right out of Brooklyn’s hands in a gut-punch late equalizer.
USL Championship — New Mexico United vs Monterey Bay FC — New Mexico United 3-1 Monterey Bay FC. Charlie Dennis was on fire with two goals inside the first 27 minutes, putting New Mexico firmly in the driver’s seat for a dominant home statement.
USL League One — Union Omaha vs Fort Wayne FC — Union Omaha 0-1 Fort Wayne FC. Down to 10 men after Aleksandar Vukovic’s 70th-minute red card, Fort Wayne dug in heroically to protect their lead and earn a remarkable away win.
USL League One — One Knoxville SC vs Chattanooga Red Wolves SC — One Knoxville SC 3-0 Chattanooga Red Wolves SC. Tennessee derby bragging rights were never in question as One Knoxville put on a masterclass to dismantle rivals Chattanooga in front of a raucous home crowd.
USL Super League — Tampa Bay Sun FC vs Carolina Ascent FC — Tampa Bay Sun FC 0-3 Carolina Ascent FC. A devastating two-goal burst before halftime set the tone as Carolina Ascent made a commanding road statement against a shell-shocked Sun FC.
USL Championship — Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC vs Hartford Athletic — Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC 2-1 Hartford Athletic. Hartford leveled before the break to make things interesting, but Charles Ahl’s 66th-minute winner gave the Riverhounds a hard-fought three points.
USL League One — Corpus Christi FC vs Fort Wayne FC — Corpus Christi FC 1-3 Fort Wayne FC. Fort Wayne were ruthless, striking twice in four minutes through Armas and Gafar before wrapping it up in the 79th in a surgical road dismantling.
USL Championship — El Paso Locomotive FC vs Orange County SC — El Paso Locomotive FC 2-1 Orange County SC. Two goals before halftime gave El Paso a firm grip on proceedings, and they never let go, grinding out a gritty home win that keeps their season on track.
USL Championship — Sacramento Republic FC vs Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC — Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC 1-1 Sacramento Republic FC. Kyle Edwards’ 75th-minute equalizer for Sacramento cancelled out Colorado Springs’ lead in a tense, playoff-relevant point-sharer that neither side could afford to lose.
USL League One — FC Naples vs Richmond Kickers — FC Naples 2-0 Richmond Kickers. Raul Miglietti was the difference-maker with a brace in the 23rd and 67th minutes, handing Naples a clean sheet win on a difficult weekend for the Kickers.
USL Super League — Tampa Bay Sun FC vs Lexington SC — Tampa Bay Sun FC 1-1 Lexington SC. Addie McCain’s sharp 41st-minute equalizer denied the Sun FC a home win in a fiery first half that left both sides frustrated.
USL Championship — Charleston Battery vs Louisville City FC — Charleston Battery 0-2 Louisville City FC. Louisville were dominant throughout, with Mukwelle Akale’s 88th-minute second goal putting the seal on a commanding road win that sent a clear playoff message.
Until next week — keep watching the beautiful game
Originally published by Lower90 on Substack.
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