#COSvIND Preview
Indy Eleven vs. Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC
Saturday, June 18, 2022 – 9:00 p.m. ET
Weidner Field – Colorado Springs, Col.
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Local TV: MyINDY-TV 23
Streaming Video: ESPN+ (click to subscribe)
Radio (Spanish): N/A
In-game updates: @IndyElevenLive Twitter feed, presented by Central Indiana Honda Dealers
Live stats: #COLvIND MatchCenter on USLChampionship.com
2022 USL CHAMPIONSHIP REGULAR SEASON RECORDS
Indy Eleven: 6W-4L-3D (+3 GD), 21 pts.; 7th in Eastern Conference
Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC: 10W-2L-0D (+14 GD), 30 pts.; 1st in Western Conference
COMMUNITY HEALTH NETWORK SPORTS MEDICINE INDY ELEVEN INJURY REPORT
OUT: FW Aris Briggs (shin)
QUESTIONABLE:
DISCIPLINE REPORT
IND: none
CHS: none
Indy Eleven are set for the third of a four-match, month-long road trip Saturday night in the Rocky Mountains, as the Boys in Blue face the Western Conference-leading Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC. Indy is coming off of a 1-1 draw at The Miami FC last Wednesday, while Colorado Springs defeated LA Galaxy II 3-1 on Saturday.
Saturday’s match marks the first-ever meeting between the Eleven and the Switchbacks. Despite Colorado Springs joining USL Championship in 2014 and Indy joining in 2018, the two teams have yet to play, in part due to scheduling changes made during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The match is the fifth of eight against first-time opponents for the Boys in Blue this season, with Indy holding a 2W-1L-1D record in these matches so far. The Eleven drew 1-1 with LA Galaxy II on Apr. 2, defeated Rio Grande Valley FC 2-1 on Apr. 9, won 2-1 over Orange County SC on Apr. 30 and lost 2-1 to New Mexico United on May 28 in the previous four matches against new foes this season. The team will follow up their first-time match against Colorado Springs by facing San Diego Loyal on June 25, San Antonio FC on Aug. 27 and Monterey Bay F.C. on Sept. 17.
After a nearly three-hour lightning delay in last Wednesday’s 1-1 draw at The Miami FC, the weather could play a factor again this week for the Boys in Blue. Possible showers and thunderstorms are in the forecast for Saturday night in Colorado Springs, something the Eleven are no strangers to playing in after the downpour in South Florida last time out.
Tim Trilk returned to goal for Indy Eleven in Miami, allowing one goal immediately after play resumed following the weather delay. The third-year pro would keep the opponents off the scoreboard for the remainder of the match. Stefano Pinho scored the equalizer last week, his third consecutive match with a goal.
The draw also marked a club record for the Eleven, being the eleventh-consecutive match in which the team scored at least one goal, the most in a row in team history. This mark beats out a 9-game run across July and August last year. Indy also scored in 10 straight games including postseason play spanning the 2019-20 seasons. After scoring multiple goals in only 8 of 32 games in 2021 (and none in its last 12 games), Indy has already done so in 5 of its 13 games so far this season.
Switchbacks FC sit atop the Western Conference, having won all but two matches all season, while Indy holds onto the 7th and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Colorado Springs have been among the most formidable teams in the league all season, but have hit their stride in the last few weeks, winning five of six matches with a plus-nine goal differential in that time.
LAST TIME OUT
The Miami FC 1 : 1 Indy Eleven
Wed., June 8 | Recap & Highlights | Stats
Indy Eleven needed nearly four-and-a-half hours to win a hard-earned point on the road from a 1-1 draw at The Miami FC at a rain-soaked Riccardo Silva Stadium on the campus of Florida International University. Indy forward Stefano Pinho’s goal in the 55th minute countered Christian Sorto’s 15th minute goal that came mere seconds after the game restarted following a two-and-a-half-hour delay for thunderstorms in the Miami metro area.
The result from the first meeting of the former NASL rivals since 2017 kept Indy Eleven (6W-4L-3D) and Miami (5W-4L-6D) even on the Eastern Conference table now on 21 points and in a tie for seventh place. Pinho’s team-high seventh goal pushed his scoring streak to three games and also improved Indy Eleven’s scoring streak to a club-record 11 games.
Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC 3 : 1 LA Galaxy II
Sat., June 11 | Stats
After going down 1-0 early, Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC scored three unanswered goals to take a 3-1 road victory over LA Galaxy II in Southern California. Colorado Springs has won five of its last six matches dating back to a 2-0 win over FC Tulsa on Apr. 23, outscoring opponents by nine goals in that time.
SERIES VS. COLORADO SPRINGS SWITCHBACKS FC
Saturday is the first-ever meeting between Indy Eleven and Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC.
Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC will be the fifth of eight new opponents this season for Indy Eleven, due in large part to USL expansion and scheduling conflicts created during the 2020 and 2021 pandemic-altered seasons. The Boys in Blue are 2W-1L-1D in four matches with first-time opponents this season:
vs. LA Galaxy II (1-1 D on 4/02)
at Rio Grande Valley FC (2-1 W on 4/09)
vs. Orange County SC (3-1 W 4/30)
vs. New Mexico United (2-1 L 5/28)
at Colorado Springs Switchbacks SC (6/18)
at San Diego Loyal (6/25)
vs. San Antonio FC (8/27)
at Monterey Bay F.C. (9/17)
The Eleven also meet two opponents for the first time in USL Championship competition, which the team has previously faced in other competition in The Miami FC (1-1 D on 6/08), who Indy faced in NASL, and Detroit City FC (7/09), who the team saw in a friendly.
ELEVEN PLAYER TO WATCH: F Stefano Pinho
Stefano Pinho has been outstanding for the Boys in Blue all season long but has found his stride in the team’s most recent fixtures. Pinho is the only player on the team to score in three consecutive matches this season, doing so in the team’s three most recent games against New Mexico United, Charleston Battery and The Miami FC. The Brazilian is tied for third in scoring in USL Championship with seven goals and should have an excellent opportunity to extend his scoring streak to four games on Saturday.
