There were goals galore in the USL Championship in week 32 – 39 in 12 games. That’s 3.25 goals per game. 2 more teams booked their passage into the postseason, leaving 7 spots unclaimed. Of those 5 are in the West, which has been ridiculously tight all year. Both conference titles were decided this week, as was the Players’ Shield. There was also a ton of movement in the rankings; oddly, both idle teams saw a decent bounce in their positions.
| Rank | Team | Previous | Change | Record | Last 5 | Forge Factor | Note | Next |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hartford Athletic | 2 | +1 | 13-10-5 | WLWWW | 23.805 | It’s been a good week or so for Hartford. They follow the Jäger Cup win with a big 3-1 win in Oakland Tuesday and then get a second win over Sacramento at home by a 3-2 margin. They add their name to the playoff-bound. | @ Tampa Bay |
| 2 | Charleston Battery | 6 | +4 | 18-5-4 | WTWTW | 21.726 |
3 halves over 3 days didn’t pose a problem for the Battery. They waxed the Switchbacks 5-0. Already locked into 2nd in the East they are now 2 points from potentially hosting the final. |
v. Detroit |
| 3 | Louisville City | 1 | -2 | 21-1-6 | WWWWW | 21.152 | It took 88 minutes for Lou City to get the breakthrough against Miami and a last-gasp save by Daniel Faundez to preserve the win. Not their best performance but the win streak is now 7 games and the Players’ Shield is iced. | @ Orange County |
| 4 | Rhode Island FC | 7 | +3 | 10-12-6 | WWLWW | 18.173 | Rhode Island’s 5-0 result over Tampa Bay was their best of the year and second-best ever. They also have 8 unanswered goals in the last 2 games. Unbeaten in 6 now. | @ North Carolina |
| 5 | New Mexico United | 3 | -2 | 13-10-5 | TWWWT | 17.220 | New Mexico split the honors with Orange County 3-3 in the highest-scoring game of the week. They had to come from behind twice to do it and nearly lost it late. | v. Oakland |
| 6 | El Paso Locomotive | 8 | +2 | 11-8-9 | LWWTW | 17.181 | The Locomotive were heavily outshot by Lexington but rode 2 first-half goals to a tight 2-1 win. 40 points now but still aren’t booked for November. | v. Tulsa |
| 7 | FC Tulsa | 9 | +2 | 15-5-8 | WTLWW | 15.426 | Tulsa needed a huge 6-save effort by Tyler Deric for the 2-0 win over San Antonio. That won them the Western Conference title, their first silverware ever. | @ El Paso |
| 8 | Phoenix Rising | 21 | +13 | 8-8-12 | TTTLW | 12.470 | The Rising ended a 5-game winless streak 2-0 over North Carolina. In control all game but still need to do some work to lock in a playoff spot. | v. San Antonio |
| 9 | Birmingham Legion | 12 | +3 | 5-11-12 | LLTTW | 11.063 | Birmingham Legion were on a bye this week. | v. Miami |
| 10 | Pittsburgh Riverhounds | 11 | +1 | 11-10-7 | LWWLW | 10.580 | In their first-ever game without Bob Lilley the Riverhounds did not miss a beat. The 2-1 win over Indy cemented a playoff spot in convincing style. | @ Monterey Bay |
| 11 | Indy Eleven | 10 | -1 | 9-14-5 | LWWLL | 9.970 | Indy’s yo-yo season continued with a 1-2 loss in Pittsburgh. They did not look like potential playoff contenders but are still barely in the chase. | v. Loudoun |
| 12 | The Miami FC | 18 | +6 | 6-16-6 | TLLWL | 9.488 | Miami had just 2 shots on target but still nearly escaped Louisville with a point. A late goal doomed that but this was a good follow-up to last week’s solid win over Pittsburgh. | @ Birmingham |
| 13 | Sacramento Republic | 5 | -8 | 12-7-7 | TWLWL | 9.321 | Sacramento were bent on revenge against Hartford and pummeled them with 20 shots. Despite that they never led and lost 2-3 on a stoppage-time goal. A last-minute red card didn’t improve matters. | @ Lexington |
| 14 | Detroit City | 14 | 0 | 9-11-8 | LLLWL | 8.747 | Detroit did not have a single shot on goal in the 0-1 home loss to Loudoun. Down to 8th with a 3-point lead; it may just be enough to extend the season. | @ Charleston |
| 15 | Loudoun United | 22 | +7 | 12-10-6 | LTTLW | 8.690 | Loudoun broke a 4-game winless streak 1-0 in Detroit. 7 shots on goal but the winning shot was 91 minutes in coming. They book their first-ever postseason appearance. | @ Indy |
| 16 | Orange County | 17 | +1 | 8-11-8 | LTLTT | 8.478 | Orange County really could not afford a 3-3 draw with New Mexico. They led twice but couldn’t make it count. They have a game in hand but the schedule is not favorable. | v. San Antonio, v. Louisville |
| 17 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 4 | -13 | 8-14-6 | WTTWL | 8.247 | The Rowdies didn’t get a shot on goal until the 82nd minute and were humiliated 0-5 in Rhode Island. On the brink of elimination now. | v. Hartford |
| 18 | Colorado Springs Switchbacks | 13 | -5 | 9-12-7 | LLLWL | 5.339 | Colorado Springs had absolutely no answers in the 0-5 weather-delayed drubbing in Charleston. 4 losses in the last 5 games and they are flirting with missing the playoffs. | v. Las Vegas |
| 19 | Monterey Bay FC | 23 | +4 | 7-14-7 | LLTWL | 3.382 | Monterey Bay FC were on a bye this week. | v. Pittsburgh |
| 20 | Lexington SC | 16 | -4 | 9-11-8 | TWLLL | 3.334 | Lexington had several great chances to score but were denied by incredible goal-line defending by El Paso. They go down 1-2 and have the longest current losing streak. Not good. | v. Sacramento |
| 21 | Oakland Roots | 20 | -1 | 7-14-6 | TTLLT | 2.619 | The Roots led Hartford early Tuesday but imploded in the second half for a 1-3 loss. At the weekend they led Las Vegas twice but finished 2-2. 1 point from elimination. | @ New Mexico |
| 22 | San Antonio | 15 | -7 | 10-10-7 | WWTLL | 2.403 | San Antonio will be wondering how the ball stayed out of the net so many times in Tulsa. They were not outplayed in the 0-2 loss but that was the 3rd straight game without scoring. | @ Orange County, @ Phoenix |
| 23 | North Carolina FC | 19 | -4 | 12-11-5 | TWTLL | 2.286 | North Carolina’s low-scoring approach was never going to work against Phoenix. They gave up 2 early goals in the 0-2 loss. A winless streak is not good at this point in the season. | v. Rhode Island |
| 24 | Las Vegas Lights | 24 | 0 | 6-14-8 | TLLLT | 1.123 | The Lights came from behind twice for an even 2-2 draw with Oakland, surviving a late barrage. 1 point wasn’t enough to keep hope alive and they join the ranks of the eliminated. | @ Colorado Springs |
