RICHMOND, Va. – (Friday, May 3, 2019) – The Richmond Kickers (2-2-1) continue their home stand Saturday night against Lansing Ignite FC at 7:00 p.m. The party gets started at 5:30 p.m. for Star Wars Night, with happy hour drink specials for the first 30 minutes after the gates open with craft beer on tap and selections of wine, live music. The players will come out for warm ups in limited edition Star Wars pregame jerseys, which will be auctioned off to benefit Sportable. This match will be available to stream live on ESPN+. Tickets are available now at www.richmondkickers.com.
This match will mark the third and final meeting between the two clubs for the 2019 USL League One regular season. Lansing has had the better of the Kickers, taking two wins in the first two meetings of the season.
LIFC claimed a 3-2 win over the Kickers to open up the 2019 season at City Stadium March 30. Maxi Rodriguez and Joe Gallardo scored for Richmond in the second half trying to make the comeback after first half goals from Tumi Moshobane and Xavier Gomez, followed by a goal right out of halftime by Kevin Coiffic.
An early red card doomed the Kickers on the road in Lansing April 14. Rodriguez was shown the red card after two yellows in 27th and 34th minute, reducing the Kickers to 10 men for the remainder of the match. LIFC capitalized on the advantage in the second half with goals from Nick Moon, Alex Bruce and Grant Stoneman. Dennis Chin made his debut in this match, coming on in the 54th minute and netting his first goal in a Richmond shirt just 12 minutes later.
Richmond comes into this match riding a two-match win streak following a 1-0 victory over Chattanooga Red Wolves SC last Saturday night at City Stadium. Joe Gallardo put Richmond on the board in the 52nd minute following a brilliant run up the right wing by Mutaya Mwape to get to the endline and serve up a perfectly placed pass for Gallardo to put away. The Kickers backline lead by Wahab Ackwei and Akira Fitzgerald worked towards their second straight shutout and third of the season. Ackwei and Mwape were named to the USL Team of the Week for their performances.
A midweek match up for Lansing has them riding a two-match losing streak, falling to FC Tucson on the road Tuesday night, 0-2. Devyn Jambga and Devin Vega gave the home side the win with goals in the each half respectively. Nick Moon stood out for LIFC, completing 81.6 percent of his passes.
The Kickers are back at City Stadium this Tuesday, May 7 to open up the 2019 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup against amateur side Virginia United. Gates open at 5:30 p.m. for Food Truck Night, featuring a variety of RVA food trucks. It is also Two for Tuesday, where you can get two tickets and two beers for just $22. This match and the entire Open Cup will be available to stream live on ESPN+. Get tickets now at www.richmondkickers.com.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Richmond: Midfielder Mutaya Mwape (#80) was named to the USL League One Team of the Week for Week 5 following his performance in the Kickers 1-0 win over Chattanooga. The Zambian midfielder won nine of 15 duels and made 38 passes which included the assist to Joe Gallardo for the game winner. Midfielder and Captain Maxi Rodriguez (#21) scored in the opening match of the season against Lansing. The San Antonio native has made four appearances for Richmond this season, recording ten interceptions and three clearances. Defender Braeden Troyer (#31) has made two appearances for the Kickers this season coming off knee surgery that kept him out of action since last season. A product of the University of South Carolina, Troyer has made two clearances and had one interception in 59 minutes of play this season.
Lansing: Midfielder Xavier Gomez (#10) had a goal and an assist in the first meeting between the two clubs back on March 30. Gomez made 13 appearances for Chicago FC United before joining LIFC in the off season. Midfielder Kyle Carr (#8) has made five appearances, all starts for Lansing this season. Carr has recorded eight interceptions and five clearances. Defender Nick Moon (#14) was the stand out player in the team’s last match on the road in Tucson. He completed 81.6 percent of his passes in that outing.
