USL PRO News Release
Thursday, April 19, 2012
TAMPA, Fla. – USL PRO enters the third weekend of the season with a pair of key early-season matchups and the opening game of the 2011 USL PRO runner-up Harrisburg City Islanders’ season as part of a five-game schedule on Friday and Saturday nights. On Friday night, the Los Angeles Blues are aim for revenge against the Rochester Rhinos, while on Saturday the Richmond Kickers will try to end Orlando City’s strong start to the season, while the City Islanders take a trip to North Carolina for a pair of games.
Week 3 in USL PRO got underway on Tuesday night as the Charleston Battery took a 3-0 victory against the Charlotte Eagles at Winthrop College. Former Philadelphia Union player Ryan Richter had a goal and an assist for the Battery as they took their second win of the season, bouncing back from their defeat this past Saturday.
The Eagles, who are still looking for their first win of the season, will host the City Islanders at Charlotte Christian Stadium on Friday night at 7 p.m. ET, with Harrisburg aiming to get their season started on the right foot. A year ago the City Islanders took a pair of victories against the Eagles in their three meetings, and with the return of forward Sainey Touray, midfielders Brian Ombiji and Andrew Welker and defenders Andrew Marshall and Dustin Bixler, they are aiming to repeat last season’s success.
Later on Friday night, Los Angeles will host Rochester for the second time as the teams complete their season-opening series at Fullerton’s Titan Stadium at 10:30 p.m. ET in a game that can be seen USL Live. The Rhinos took a 1-0 victory in last Saturday’s meeting, with Tyler Rosenlund scoring the only goal for the club’s first victory to start the season since 2006.
The Richmond Kickers will honor one of the club’s longest-serving players as they host Orlando City on Saturday night, with Mike Burke having his No. 19 jersey retired by the club. Burke played for 11 seasons with the Kickers, making 275 appearances and collecting a team-record 61 assists. The Kickers will then try to maintain their momentum from a come-from-behind victory in Charleston this past weekend against Orlando, which has opened the defense of its USL PRO championship with a pair of victories. Kickoff at City Stadium is set for 7 p.m. ET
Also on Saturday night, the Pittsburgh Riverhounds and Wilmington Hammerheads host their home openers, with the Riverhounds aiming for their second win of the season when they face the Dayton Dutch Lions at 7 p.m. ET at Chartiers Valley Stadium. The Hammerheads open their home slate at Legion Stadium against the Harrisburg City Islanders, who make the trip south to Wilmington after their game in Charlotte, for a 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff that can be seen on USL Live.
For more details on USL Live, visit www.USLNation.com, and follow USL PRO on Facebook and Twitter for previews, live updates and game reports from all of the weekend’s games.