MATCH DETAILS
Phoenix Rising FC (17-7-5, 56 pts., 2nd in West) vs. Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC (10-15-5, 35 pts., 11th in West)
5:00 PM (MST), Saturday, Weidner Field, Colorado Springs, CO
TV: Cox 4 (SD) and 1004 (HD) in Phoenix, Cox 7 (SD) and 1007 (HD) in Tucson
Live Stream: ESPN+ (subscription required)
Radio: El Patron 97.3 FM (Spanish)
MatchCenter: COSvPHX
Phoenix Rising travel to Colorado Springs for their penultimate regular season road match of the season.
Phoenix Rising Last Match: Despite sloppy condition thanks to the Pacific Northwest, Phoenix pulled out a 1-0 victory on Chris Cortez’s goal in the 16th minute. The goal was his 16th of the season, increasing his team record for goals in a season and put him ever closer to the overall club record, held by Long Tan. Phoenix held a tight grip on the match, though Carl Woszczynski was forced into action with a fingertip save in the 84th minute to preserve the clean sheet. The victory gave Phoenix a clean sweep of the season series, adding to their 1-0 win in July.
Playoff Watch: Phoenix Rising officially clinched their second consecutive playoff spot on Wednesday night after San Antonio FC lost to Swope Park Rangers. Phoenix now looks to clinch home-field advantage in the first round, needing a combined 8 points gained by the team or lost by Timbers 2 and Reno 1868 FC. Phoenix is also still in reach of first place in the West, which would give them home-field advantage until the conference final and possibly the final itself if a team other than FC Cincinnati comes out of the East. Below are the remaining matches for the teams in contention for the #1 seed. Phoenix by far has the most difficult remaining schedule but is in full control of their own destiny.
|
Orange County (60) |
Phoenix (56) |
Real Monarchs (54) |
|
| Match #30 | @COS (11th) | ||
| Match #31 | St. Louis (7th) | @ Los Dos (13th) | |
| Match #32 | @ Las Vegas (15th) | Reno 1868 (8th) | Colorado Springs (11th) |
| Match #33 | Sounders 2 (16th) | @Las Vegas (15th) | OKC Energy (10th) |
| Match #34 | @ Reno 1868 (8th) | Timbers 2 (5th) | @ Fresno FC (12th) |
Team News: Chris Cortez was named to the USL Team of the Week after his performance in Phoenix’s 1-0 over Sounders 2. Cortez scored the game’s lone goal, along with 2 key passes and 5 aerial duels won. Cortez is now one goal away from the overall club record Carl Woszczynski was also named honorable mention in the Team of the Week thanks to his three-save shutout, including a fingertip save off a Seattle free-kick.
Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC Report: While not mathematically eliminated, Colorado Springs is all but done in their pursuit of a playoff spot in 2018. The team sits 10 points back of 8th place Reno and would need to win out along with a lot of extra help to find a place in the top 8. Josh Suggs leads the team offensively with 2 goals and 5 assists to go along with 77 chances created, a whopping 50 more than the next best Switchbacks player.
LAST MEETING: These two teams met just a month ago, a 4-0 Phoenix victory. The match was light on highlights until the the 65th minute when Switchbacks FC player Jordan Burt was shown a straight red for violent conduct. The goals poured in shortly after with Gladson Awako, Joe Farrell, Chri Cortez, and Kevaughn Frater each finding the back of the net.
PREVIOUS FORM (Last five league matches played):
Phoenix Rising FC: W-W-W-L_W
Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC: L-L-W-L-D
POSSIBLE STARTING XI
