PHOENIX, AZ (March 16, 2018) – Phoenix Rising Football Club (0-0-0) begins its 2018 campaign with a road trip to Irvine, California, for a match with Orange County Soccer Club (0-0-0) this Saturday at 7:00 p.m. Fans can watch the match on YurView Arizona, Cox channels 4&1004 (Phoenix) and 7&1007 (Tucson) or online at PHXRisingFC.com. Fan can also listen to a Spanish broadcast of the match on El Patron 93.7 FM & 1230 AM.

Phoenix Rising will meet Orange County for the 15th time in club history and holds a 6-4-4 edge in the series. Rising FC is also riding a six-match unbeaten streak in the series, going 2-0-4 in that stretch.

The club comes off its busiest preseason ever, squaring off against five Major League Soccer teams before traveling to Quito, Ecuador, for a match with Liga Deportiva Universitaria.

“We have been playing hard from the first day,” said Phoenix Rising FC head coach Patrice Carteron. “Everything is different when you can work with your players for many weeks like we did. I’m really happy with preseason and like I told the players, there was a time for preparation and now it’s time for competition.”

Last season, Phoenix Rising and Orange County drew in all three of their matches. Two of those draws required late-match equalizers. On July 8, Didier Drogba stunned Orange County with a 20-plus yard free kick equalizer to steal a road point in a 1-1 draw. Over a month later, on August 18, OC’s Sola Abolaji provided the late-match heroics in a 1-1 to give the home side a point.

Game 1 – Phoenix Rising FC at Orange County SC

Date: Saturday, March 17, 2018
Kickoff: 7:00 p.m. AST
Stadium: Champions Stadium (Irvine, Calif.)
Phoenix Rising FC: 0-0-0, 0 pts
Orange County SC: 0-0-0, 0 pts
All-time Series: Phoenix Rising FC is 6-4-4 all time.

Social Media Information:
Twitter:@PHXRisingFC
Snapchat: PHXRisingFC
Facebook: Phoenix Rising FC
Instagram:@PHXRisingFC
Hashtags: #RisingAsOne, #OCvPHX