Kickoff: Wednesday, May 17 (7:00 PM PST)
Where: Championship Stadium (Irvine, CA)
How to Watch: At the Champ, Bally Sports SoCal, ESPN+
Orange County SC returns home to the first of two matches this week beginning with Wednesday’s matchup with Northern California rival Sacramento Republic FC on Whisky Wednesday at Championship Stadium in Irvine, CA at 7:00 PM. Come enjoy Orange County’s largest outdoor happy hour and another great night of professional soccer in the OC!
INDOMITABLE DEFENSE
Sacramento Republic FC is in 1st place in the USL Championship Western Conference, led by their league best defense. In nine matches, Sac Republic have let in just three goals so far this season. They at one point earlier in the season held a five match shutout streak. Their offense has also scored the second most goals in the league so far this season. So…what’s the good news? On the road is where they have been their most vulnerable. They have dropped points to both San Antonio and most recently Tulsa FC on the road.
2023 Regular Season Record: 6-3-0 (1st in USL-C Western Conference)
Goals Scored: 17 | Goals Allowed: 3 | Clean Sheets: 6
Players to Watch
GK Danny Vitello
F Russell Cicerone
SEARCHING FOR A SPARK
Orange County SC enters the midweek matchup in 11th place in the USL Championship’s Western Conference. The Black and Orange are currently on a four game losing streak, but have had to field players out of position for the majority of those matches. There is still hope that as players begin to get healthy again, it won’t take too much to right the ship. Forward Mark “Sparky” McNulty has shown encouraging signs in his substitute appearances as he recovers from an injury and defender Owen Lambe played his first match in an Orange County shirt last Saturday against Oakland and provided numerous dangerous crosses and energy going forward.
All-time record:
Orange County SC is 8-10-5 against Sacramento Republic.
Previous Matchup: 2022 USL Championship Season
Sacramento Republic FC 4 – 0 Orange County SC (Heart Health Park, Sacramento, CA)
Scoring Summary: Damia Viader 7’, Rodrigo Lopez 18’, Maalique Foster 28’, 45’ (SAC)
MILESTONE WATCH: BRENT RICHARDS
The next time Orange County SC defender Brent Richards takes the field for the Black and Orange, he is likely to make history! Richards needs just 68 minutes to surpass the 15,000 minutes played mark in the USL Championship.
BACK AGAIN ON SATURDAY
Orange County SC is back at the Champ on Saturday, May 20 against Western Conference rival Phoenix Rising FC for Community Night, presented by True Path Loans. During the match, OCSC will be recognizing local community-based and non-profit organizations and rewarding one lucky organization with the opportunity to earn $5,000 with a halftime kick!
FLEX PACKS
Get your 10-game Orange County SC Flex Packs for the upcoming 2023 season. When you buy 9 tickets, you get a 10th for free! You can spread out the ten tickets across multiple games or bring out the whole crew for a game at the Champ. Flex packs can be purchased at https://www.orangecountysoccer.com/flex-packs/.