LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – It’s been a tough week in Louisville, but the city has responded. It responded all day Saturday, filling to capacity every slot for a blood drive at Lynn Family Stadium.
Fans came back to the stadium Saturday night with signs and banners that read “End gun violence” and “City united.” Before LouCity FC’s game against San Antonio, they observed a moment of silence for victims of a mass shooting on Monday just blocks from the stadium. Team captains wore orange armbands to make a statement about gun violence.
The hometown fans left happy after a 1-0 LouCity FC victory over the defending USL champion. LouCity avenged a loss in last season’s USL final with a win in front of its biggest crowd of the season, 11,589. But fans arrived home to news of another large scale shooting in Louisville, a gunman firing into a crowd at Chickasaw Park, killing 2 and injuring 4 others, one of them critically, at a time when police said hundreds of people were in the park.
“We talked about in the locker room about inspiring tonight — about not taking a moment for granted,” LouCity coach Danny Cruz said. “You look at the collective of this community and how everybody’s come together in a difficult moment — constant support. I heard the blood drive went well, so just something else for us to be proud of as a club and community. It was just a special night all around.”
Team captain Paolo DelPiccolo said, “I've been in this city for 10, 12 years of my life and this is probably the biggest tragedy that we've been through since I've been here. So, for us to play a game like tonight and see energy and put smiles on people's faces in such a tough week it's important. It really is important for us. It's important for the community and I'm proud to be a small part of a night like tonight.”
San Antonio came into the game undefeated, but LouCity deprived the visitors of their counterattacking oxygen for much of the night.
“They're a team that doesn't want the ball. So we gave them the ball,” Cruz said. “We made sure that we stayed tight. The data shows they don't want the ball. The video shows they don't want the ball. So you let them have it. And you keep your numbers collected to be nice and tight to be able to pick up the second balls and you try to limit set pieces. Let me be clear, though, that's not a knock on them. They do what they do very, very well. . . . They buy into that style of play. I don't mean any disrespect to that. I mean, they do a good job.”
LouCity finished with a season-low 4 shots, and only 2 on target, but Wilson Harris put one of them into the back of the net, redirecting a cross from Enoch Mushagaloosa, flicking a header inside the far post in the 23rdminute.
That’s all the home team would need for its third straight 1-0 victory. The shutout was the fourth in as many games for rookie goalkeeper Oliver Semmle, a graduate of 2020 NCAA champion Marshall, who turned away both San Antonio shots on target, including a last-ditch effort in stoppage time.
“He's been fantastic,” Cruz said. “You know, he, he's come in, he's learned, he wants to listen. He wants to grow. I think his management of games has continued to improve. He had a couple of big big saves tonight. The kids continuing to, you know, to prove that how much better he's going to continue to get
After giving up 8 goals in back-to-back losses, LouCity posted its third straight clean sheet on Saturday, including a shutout of Lexington in the U.S. Open cup.
“We have a special group,” Mushagalusa said. “We’ve had our ups and downs. That’s normal in football. It’s just about finding that (rhythm) and you keep going…We’ve just got to keep working and being ready. Games are easy. Trainings are harder. That’s where we put in the work.”
Next up is a trip to Charleston to face division-leading Charleston Battery. Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday.
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