PRESENTED BY TRAVELERS
Date: Saturday, July 29th, 2023
Time: 9:00 PM ET
Location: Toyota Field, San Antonio, Texas
Hartford Athletic travel to San Antonio for the first time to close out their three-game road trip with a matchup against the defending league champions. Coming off a victory in Las Vegas, the Green and Blue have a chance to bring back to back wins home with them before playing four out of five games at Trinity Health Stadium in August.
LAST TIME OUT
Hartford Athletic are coming off a 2-0 victory over Las Vegas Lights FC on the road last Saturday. A strong defensive performance from Hartford, they made 42 clearances and Joe Rice protected the net with seven saves. One of the most important plays of the game was when Andre Lewis chested a header off the goal line to keep the score tied at 0-0 early on. Athletic would take the lead just two minutes later on a long-distance shot from Juan Pablo Torres, bouncing the ball over the diving Leo Diaz. The score would remain the same until Kyle Edwards scored the game-sealer for Hartford in the 81st minute, his team-leading seventh of the season.
WHAT IT TAKES TO WIN
The win last Saturday snaps a nine-game winless streak and a six-game losing streak for Hartford. A difficult stretch in which they dropped points due to goals conceded in the last 15 minutes of a match four times. “Obviously, it gives the team some confidence and makes them believe again that they can win games,” said Coach Namazi earlier this week after the win. “In our case, we’ve had a lot of close games… I think now [the team] has the idea of what it takes to get over the hump and close out those games where [in the past] we have lost at the end.”
GET AHEAD, STAY AHEAD
Hartford now hold a 3-2-1 record when they lead at halftime this season, and are winless when they are tied or losing at halftime. Getting out on the front foot is crucial for this team to control the game, making the early stages of each match very telling for how the rest of the match may go for Hartford.
BETWEEN THE POSTS
Joe Rice made a season-high seven saves last week, playing a vital role in a much needed clean sheet for Hartford. The performance earned him a spot on the USL Championship’s Week 20 Team of the Week as well. His best save of the night came in the 20th minute with the game still tied 0-0. Vegas midfielder Jacob Bushue received a cross and put a well-struck header on target from close range, but Rice tracked the ball perfectly and sprung to his right to deflect the shot out of play with his right hand. A massive save to lift his club and keep them level in the early stages of the game. Athletic have conceded the most goals in the USL championship (41), making a quality performance like this from Rice even more significant. Rice (seven starts) and Richard Sánchez (13 starts) have split time between the posts throughout the season.
FAMILIAR FACE
San Antonio defender Tulu spent three years with Hartford Athletic before being transferred to the defending champions on May 24th. He made 52 appearances for Hartford Athletic and logged nearly 4,000 minutes for the club. A fan favorite, he was voted Most Improved Player in the 2022 Fan’s Choice Awards. Tulu has made 3 appearances for San Antonio FC this season.
ABOUT THE OPPONENT
San Antonio FC come into the match with a 9-4-7 record, placing them second in the Western Conference table with 34 points. Coming off a 1-0 shutout loss to Miami FC, San Antonio ends its two-game homestand against Hartford Athletic. The home loss ends a 24-game unbeaten streak at Toyota Field. The defending champions are the USL Championship leaders in goals scored (37), two ahead of the second place team (Memphis).
PLAYERS TO WATCH
San Antonio FC: Tani Oluwaseyi, FW #16
Tani Oluwaseyi is San Antonio’s leading goal-scorer with nine goals, and the next closest on the squad is four (three players tied). After starting 2023 with Minnesota United FC in the MLS, the 23-year old came to the USL Championship and has shown his elite ability to score, averaging almost one goal per game.
Hartford Athletic: Kyle Edwards, FW #17
Kyle Edwards scored his seventh goal of the season last week against Las Vegas Lights FC. After a Kembo Kibato through-ball was almost intercepted in the box, the ball landed at Edwards’ left foot and he tapped into the back of the net. Should he score twice more, he would tie Ariel Martínez and Prince Saydee for third on the all-time leaderboard for Athletic. The 26 year old has already set a personal professional record for goals scored in a season and still has 14 matches to play.
INJURY REPORT
Hartford Athletic
Out: None
San Antonio
Out: David Loera (upper body)
Questionable: Juan Carlos Azocar (lower body), Connor Maloney (upper body)
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