March 27, 2023 – United Soccer League Championship (USL) – FC Tulsa News Release
TULSA – A commanding 3-0 win on Saturday night over Loudoun United FC catapulted FC Tulsa to the top of the USL Championship scoring list as the club put in a complete shift – the offense was humming, keeper Michael Nelson and his backline notched the first clean sheet of the campaign, and Blair Gavin earned his first win as a head coach. Up next is a perennial playoff club in Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC who is just one point ahead of Tulsa in the standings.
It was more brilliance from wingers Marcus Epps and Milo Yosef over the weekend who have started the season in sizzling form. Each scored their second goal of the season, making FC Tulsa the only club in the USL Championship with multiple players to score multiple goals through three weeks. Blaine Ferri also bagged his first goal of the season, putting his man through the spin cycle in a sequence that was jaw-dropping and elicited an eruption of noise from the ONEOK crowd.
Tulsa’s offensive accuracy has been spot on through three matches, boasting the best goals-per-shot percentage in the league (20%). For reference, the average goals-per-shot percentage from 2015-2021 when combining the English Premier League, French Ligue 1, German Bundesliga, Italian Serie A, Spanish La Liga, and Major League Soccer over a full season was 10%, according to American Soccer Analysis. In addition, the club has put 43.4% of its attempts on target, the fifth-best pct. in the USL Championship.
On Tuesday, the weaponry of FC Tulsa up front will match up with the every-consistent backline barricade of the Hounds in a tactical chess match between head coaches Blair Gavin and Bob Lilley.
“Lilley Ball” (patent pending) as they call it up in Pennsylvania is the style of play Riverhounds SC head coach Bob Lilley has implemented since taking the club reins in 2018. The approach consists of patient buildup and a strong defensive presence that has yielded at least one playoff appearance in all five of Lilley’s years as the Hounds’ head coach.
An uncharacteristic seven goals were scored between the two clubs the last time Riverhounds SC made the 995-mile trip to ONEOK Field on April 9, 2022. While the scoreline on Tuesday may not creep up to those gaudy numbers, it will be a tight match between the fourth and fifth place Eastern Conference clubs that fans won’t want to miss.
Kickoff from ONEOK is set for 7 p.m. CT.
SCOUTING THE HOUNDS
Following the…