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Louisville Hosts Rhinos in Eastern Semifinals

By NICHOLAS MURRAY - nicholas.murray@uslsoccer.com, 10/24/17, 4:12PM EDT

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Rematch of 2015 Eastern Conference Final set for Slugger Field

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – No. 1-seed Louisville City FC and the No. 4-seed Rochester Rhinos meet for the second time in the USL Cup Playoffs when they square off on Saturday night at Slugger Field in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, with Louisville aiming for its third consecutive trip to the Eastern Conference Final. #LOUvROC kicks off at 7:30 p.m. ET and can be seen live on the USL Match Center.

@LouCityFC continued its stellar home record in the USL Cup Playoffs last Friday night as it took a 4-0 victory against No. 8-seed Bethlehem Steel FC to open its third postseason campaign. Two goals by Tarek Morad and a goal and assist by Luke Spencer led Louisville to victory, and moved the team to 4-0-0 all-time at home in the postseason. As notable as the side’s perfect record at Slugger Field in playoffs is its defensive mark, with the side yet to concede a goal in the postseason on home turf.

The @RochesterRhinos had a tougher time in their Eastern Conference Quarterfinal, needing extra time to defeat the No. 5-seed Charlotte Independence 2-1 at Capelli Sport Stadium on a deflected goal by Stefan Defregger. The victory continued Rochester’s home success in the USL Cup Playoffs, but the side’s recent history on the road in the playoffs has been a different story, with Rhinos having been eliminated in each of its past two away playoff contests against the LA Galaxy II (2014) and New York Red Bulls II (2016). After suffering a 2-1 defeat to Louisville at Slugger Field earlier this season, the Rhinos could need to produce something special to keep their bid for a second USL Cup and fifth championship overall alive.

Opta Says

  • 2 – Louisville defender Tarek Morad’s two-goal game against Steel FC was the second brace in City’s postseason history, with Matt Fondy having recorded the first against the Charleston Battery in 2015.

  • 228 – Rhinos midfielder Wal Fall led the USL with 228 duels won in the 2017 regular season, and went 15 of 23 against the Charlotte Independence in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals.

Projected Lineups

  • Louisville (3-4-3) – GK: Greg Ranjitsingh; D: Sean Totsch, Paco Craig, Tarek Morad; M: Kyle Smith, Speedy Williams, Paolo DelPiccolo, Oscar Jimenez; F: George Davis IV, Luke Spencer, Mark-Anthony Kaye

  • Rochester (5-2-2-1) – GK: Tomas Gomez; D: Jordan Dover, Ryan Feliz, Joe Farrell, Todd Pratzner, Ray Lee; DM: Wall Fall, Ryan James; AM: Kenardo Forbes, Christiano Francois; F: Jochen Graf

Discipline

  • Louisville – None

  • Rochester – None

Officials

  • REF: VICTOR RIVAS

  • AR1: Jeffrey Swartzel

  • AR2: TBD

  • 4TH: Paul Terry

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