On one hand, Louisville City FC’s 2-1 victory on Saturday night against North Carolina FC might have been the hardest the side has had to work to get a win at Lynn Family Stadium this season.
The sheer overpowering nature of the team itself and typical five-figure crowd has proven a challenge for all who’ve entered it this season.
At the same time, LouCity’s win moved it to seven consecutive victories at home to start a league campaign, a mark that’s only been achieved three times previously in the league’s history. With its win, LouCity moved into a tie for the second-longest home winning streak to start a season with 2013’s Orlando City SC squad which went on to win the USL Championship title.
The next milestone? The nine home victories reeled off by Real Monarchs SLC to start its 2017 campaign, which ended with the Players’ Shield in the possession of then-Head Coach Mark Briggs’ side.
That’s a piece of silverware that despite all its accolades LouCity has yet to claim. It’s finished top of the Eastern Conference before – including two years ago when San Antonio FC took the award for the best regular season record – but now it’s in a strong position to add the Players’ Shield to its trophy case.
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Here’s how the rest of this week’s rankings look.
Rank |
Team |
Change |
Summary |
|
1 | ![]() |
Indy Eleven (8-4-2) Week 15: v. SA |
![]() Last Week: 1 |
A quality road performance earned a seventh consecutive victory, and a first win in Birmingham since 2021. Head Coach Sean McAuley’s men keep rolling along. |
2 | ![]() |
Louisville City FC (10-1-2) Week 15: @ TBR |
![]() Last Week: 2 |
Sure, LouCity’s latest home victory wasn’t as emphatic as those that came previously, but even without leading scorer Wilson Harris they had more than enough to win. |
3 | ![]() |
New Mexico United (8-3-1) Week 15: @ MEM |
![]() Last Week: 5 |
New Mexico has won all five of its home games in the league by a goal. That ability to pull out wins in tight contests is underrated. |
4 | ![]() |
Sacramento Republic FC (6-1-6) Week 15: v. OAK |
![]() Last Week: 6 |
Justin Portillo stepping into the lineup after one week of practice and playing exactly as intended showed exactly why Republic FC went out and got him. |
5 | ![]() |
Charleston Battery (8-1-5) Week 15: @ DET |
![]() Last Week: 4 |
Things have cooled off in front of goal for the Battery since their flying start. Need to pick up the pace before Louisville can get too far ahead. |
6 | ![]() |
Tampa Bay Rowdies (6-3-4) Week 15: v. LOU |
![]() Last Week: 3 |
The Rowdies were below par in Oakland and admitted as much. Got caught looking ahead to this weekend’s game against Louisville, maybe? |
7 | ![]() |
Memphis 901 FC (5-6-2) Week 15: v. RI, v. NM |
![]() Last Week: 9 |
Results matter, but so does the way you play in them. That’s why Memphis is up a couple and Colorado Springs is down a couple after 901 FC dominated the 1-1 draw between the sides. |
8 | ![]() |
Loudoun United FC (5-6-2) Week 15: v. LV |
![]() Last Week: 8 |
Loudoun will try to match its longest league winning streak in club history on Friday night at home to Las Vegas. Good way to kick off the weekend. |
9 | ![]() |
Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC (5-5-2) Week 15: v. OC |
![]() Last Week: 7 |
The Switchbacks haven’t been at their best the past two weeks but have still taken four points from the games. Christian Herrera had some top stops in Memphis. |
10 | ![]() |
Phoenix Rising FC (5-5-4) Week 15: @ ELP |
![]() Last Week: 13 |
Rising looked great in the first half against Orange County, then second-best in the second half, only to pull out a win after going down to 10 players. Figure that one out, if you can. | 11 | ![]() |
Detroit City FC (6-3-2) Week 15: v. CHS |
![]() Last Week: 15 |
Two big things this weekend. One, getting a much-needed victory. Two, seeing Elvis Amoh back on the field. Potential momentum builder for Le Rouge. |
12 | ![]() |
Birmingham Legion FC (5-5-3) Week 15: --- |
![]() Last Week: 11 |
Legion wasn’t bad against Indy, but the visitors were better in transition and more dangerous as a result. |
13 | ![]() |
North Carolina FC (3-5-5) Week 15: v. MB |
![]() Last Week: 12 |
Losing is never fun, but if there’s a silver lining for NCFC, Evan Conway getting on the scoresheet for a third consecutive game is definitely a positive. |
14 | ![]() |
Oakland Roots SC (5-7-2) Week 15: @ SAC |
![]() Last Week: 18 |
Oakland has won three of the last four to pull itself into the mass of clubs trying to fight for a top-three spot and did so impressively in its win against Tampa Bay. |
15 | ![]() |
San Antonio FC (4-5-5) Week 15: @ IND |
![]() Last Week: 11 |
There are all kinds of caveats you can apply to the week San Antonio had, but losing consecutive regular season games? We haven’t seen that since the last two games of the 2020 regular season. |
16 | ![]() |
Orange County SC (5-5-3) Week 15: @ COS |
![]() Last Week: 15 |
Everything OCSC did right in the second half was undone by their late-game letdown. Even with absences, it was too easy for Phoenix to capitalize. |
17 | ![]() |
Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC (3-5-5) Week 15: @ HFD |
![]() Last Week: 17 |
Pittsburgh didn’t create many big chances in Charleston, so the Hounds are probably happy enough with a point, but we’re going to wear out this drum about a lack of goals soon. |
18 | ![]() |
Monterey Bay F.C. (5-6-4) Week 15: @ NC |
![]() Last Week: 16 |
The level of chippiness we saw at points of Saturday’s game with Sacramento was fascinating. We’ve got a proper rivalry developing here, looks like. |
19 | ![]() |
Las Vegas Lights FC (4-7-3) Week 15: @ LDN |
![]() Last Week: 20 |
The Lights are finally back in the win column and not a moment too soon. Valentin Noël continues to be a tremendous addition, as Sanchez knew he would be. |
20 | ![]() |
El Paso Locomotive FC (3-9-2) Week 15: v. PHX |
![]() Last Week: 22 |
Again, a Locomotive victory that comes with caveats – such as San Antonio hitting the woodwork three times – but it’s a win all the same. |
21 | ![]() |
FC Tulsa (3-5-4) Week 15: v.--- |
![]() Last Week: 23 |
Tulsa breaks its scoreless streak and its winless run to take victory against San Antonio. Owen Damm had his best game since his move, too. |
22 | ![]() |
Hartford Athletic (4-7-1) Week 15: v. PIT |
![]() Last Week: 19 |
We spoke on Friday about our concerns on Michee Ngalina. Thirteen touches, four passes, two completed, and no shots did nothing to assuage us. |
23 | ![]() |
Rhode Island FC (1-4-8) Week 15: @ MEM |
![]() Last Week: 21 |
There have been performances where you can see the silver lining this season for RIFC. Saturday night’s loss to Detroit was not one of those games. |
24 | ![]() |
Miami FC (2-11-1) Week 15: --- |
![]() Last Week: 24 |
Giving up a goal in first-half stoppage time when you’ve got the chance to get to the break head is a killer. It’s just not going well in South Florida. |
Tag(s): Power Rankings San Antonio FC CO Spring Switchbacks Orange County SC Phoenix Rising FC Sacramento Republic FC FC Tulsa Charleston Battery Louisville City FC Pittsburgh Riverhounds Tampa Bay Rowdies Las Vegas Lights FC Birmingham Legion FC North Carolina FC Indy Eleven Memphis 901 FC El Paso Locomotive FC New Mexico United Loudoun United FC Hartford Athletic Miami FC Oakland Roots SC Detroit City FC Monterey Bay F.C. Rhode Island FC