August 22, 2024 – United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Rhode Island FC News Release
After Albert Dikwa “Chico” bagged his 50th career USL Championship goal in the 86th minute of Rhode Island FC’s 1-1 draw vs. Oakland Roots SC to secure a dramatic late point at Beirne Stadium on Saturday, the Ocean State club will look to continue its momentum this weekend as it heads to Loudoun United FC for a first-ever meeting with the Eastern Conference club. With both teams in the thick of the race for a top-four finish in the Eastern Conference standings and just four points removed from fourth, Saturday’s matchup will be crucial for both sides as they near the business end of the season. Ahead of a huge Eastern Conference clash, here is everything you need to know.
AT A GLANCE
Date | Saturday, August 24
Kickoff | 7:30 PM ET
Location | Segra Field, Leesburg, Virginia
Broadcast | ESPN+
Social | @rhodeislandfc (X, Instagram, Facebook)
Match Hashtag | #LDNvsRI
LOUDOUN UNITED FC
Roster
GOALKEEPERS (2): 1-Dane Jacomen, 23-Hugo Fauroux
DEFENDERS (7): 2-Keegan Hughes, 3-Keegan Tingey, 5-Yannis Leerman, 6-Kwame Awuah, 16-Cole Turner, 22-Robby Dambrot, 24-Jacob Erlandson
MIDFIELDERS (7): 4-Tommy McCabe, 8-Florian Valot, 12-Drew Skundrich, 13-Alex Nagy, 19-Surafel Dagnachew Mengestu, 30-Abdellatif Aboukoura, 44-Isaiah Johnson
FORWARDS (8): 7-Wesley Leggett, 9-Tommy Williamson, 10-Kalil ElMedkhar, 11-Isaac Espinal, 14-Zach Ryan, 15-Riley Bidois, 17-Christiano François, 18-Pape Amadou Wane
Winning Big on the Road
Loudoun United FC took the USL Championship by storm in Week 24, fighting to a 2-0 win over the Tampa Bay Rowdies on the road to become the second team this season to shut out the Eastern Conference powerhouse at Al Lang Stadium. The historic win snapped a six-match unbeaten run for the red-hot Rowdies, and marked the first time in Loudoun’s history that it took all six points from Tampa across two meetings in a season. Despite the fact that Tampa Bay came out strong with 10 first-half shots to Loudoun’s two, the visitors made their opportunities count in the first half, taking the lead in the 34th minute through Wesley Leggett’s seventh goal of the year. Loudoun would eventually double its lead with its only other shot on target during the match in the 69th minute when leading scorer Zach Ryan netted his ninth of the season. Adding three saves between the posts from Hugo Fauroux, Loudoun preserved its seventh clean sheet of the season.
Staying Strong at Segra
After picking up a…