August 20, 2022 – United Soccer League Championship (USL) – Louisville City FC News Release
Louisville City FC versus Detroit City FC
(Louisville City FC)
Louisville City FC and Detroit City FC had met twice before their first clash as USL Championship rivals. Both of those games went to LouCity in penalty kick shootouts as part of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup in 2016 and 2022.
Similarly, the boys in purple prevailed Saturday night thanks to a shot from the spot with Ray Serrano earning and Sean Totsch scoring a decisive penalty kick in a 1-0 victory at a rowdy Keyworth Stadium.
City hit the back of the net in the 67th minute but had to survive shorthanded the rest of the way after defender Wes Charpie saw the first of City’s two red cards minutes later. So continued a contentious series with Detroit, a USL Championship newcomer that gets a return game Oct. 5 at Lynn Family Stadium.
Saturday’s win extended LouCity’s league-leading unbeaten streak to 10 games – nine of those are wins – as the club improved to 17-3-4. City’s 55 points remain the best in the Eastern Conference as the season hits its home stretch.
“I felt we were relentless for 90 minutes,” said head coach Danny Cruz. “We talked about it all week. It’s not about playing soccer at this stadium. It’s about being resilient, about having the right mentality, understanding that the ball is going to spent half the time at this stadium in the air.
“I felt that given what the game asked for, we answered the call. I was really, really proud of how our group handled going up a goal. I was really proud of how our group handled the red cards that we received – a collective effort from the group and I couldn’t be more proud.”
Serrano stood out before earning the go-ahead penalty. In the third minute, his shot from out wide right required a save and went down as the best threat by the visitors in the opening 45 minutes. Just seconds into the second half, he managed to hit the post, and in the 56th minute Serrano nearly scored when lunging into the box for a rebound only to be whistled for a foul.
LouCity was applying consistent pressure leading up to a pair of game-changing whistles. Serrano looked to re-gain possession with a nifty flick in the box when he was cut down in the box. Totsch followed by tucking in his career-high seventh goal of the year.
“I think my movement in the first half and second half was really good, and I thought those chances I created were good chances,” Serrano said.
“It’s been a…