Rowdies Extend League Lead After Rhode Island Win
After a set of goals from Conner Antley and Louis Perez, the Rowdies go eleven points clear in the USL Eastern Conference. In a dominant second-half show, the Rowdies won 2-0 over Rhode Island FC.
The Rowdies wasted no time going on the offensive looking for the first goal. A Conner Antley cross found new signing Ethan Bartlow, whose header was saved by Rhode Island keeper Koke Vegas.
Vegas parried the shot to his right, directly in front of Tampa Bay forward Evan Conway. Conway, point-blank in front of the goal, smashed the ball into the post, missing an open goal.
A couple minutes later, it was RIFC on the attack. Yutaro Tsukada dribbled past Antley, and fired directly at Rowdies goalkeeper Jahmali Waite. Tuskuada’s shot was stopped by Waite’s face, and went out for a corner.
Despite both teams trading chances, the halftime whistle went, and the score remained deadlocked at 0-0.
Right after the restart, Karsen Henderlong was wide open in space. He eventually shot at Koke Vegas, who bobbled his catch. He then botched a clearance, with the ball falling to Marco Micaletto. Desperate Rhode Island defending denied Micaletto the open goal, with multiple defenders slide tackling on the line. A perfectly timed slide tackle popped the effort over the bar for a corner.
An hour into the match, Conner Antley scored his first-ever Rowdies goal. Antley is a member of the 100 Appearance Club.
A perfect through ball from Dion Acoff found Antley, who skated past a RIFC defender. He then curled a left-footed shot past Vegas, sending Al Lang Stadium into celebration.
The Rowdies kept attacking, with the best chance coming from the right wing back Dion Acoff. He was in acres of space, lined up a shot, and fired. Out of nowhere, a Rhode Island defender came sliding across, blocking the shot.
With the game now in stoppage time, the Rowdies found their dagger.
After a game of pinball on the sideline, substitute Russell Cicerone emerged with the ball, driving into the box. He popped the ball over two RIFC defenders, and found another substitute Louis Perez. Perez hit the ball on the volley, and Koke Vegas had no chance of saving that shot.
Rhode Island had no response, and the full-time whistle blew. The Rowdies picked up another three points.
While overall the Rowdies played well, they really struggled with the Rhode Island press. There were many moments in the game where they were rushing passes, and they looked caught off guard by the press.
Thankfully, they did not concede, but it is definitely something I think they need to work on.
The substitutes really played an impact on the game, with two substitutes linking up for the second goal. Perfect timing from Coach Casciato on the subs. His game management is really impressive to watch.
Around the League:
In the USL Championship, it was a great night for the Tampa Bay Rowdies. The 2nd and 3rd place teams in the Eastern Conference dropped points.
2nd-place Charleston Battery travelled to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to face 5th-place Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC.
After three goals in the first 20 minutes, the hosts led 2-1. Joao Souza added one more to the lead in 60th minute off a corner kick.
To ruin any chance of a comeback, centerback Douglas Martínez got a second yellow and was sent off. He tripped a Pittsburgh attacker just outside of the box, a deserved second yellow.
The other important match was Detroit City FC vs Loudoun United.
Neither team were able to find a winner, and the game finished a boring 0-0.
The Rowdies played their twentieth game, and have ten games left in the USL Championship Regular Season.
With ten games left to go, the Rowdies have an eleven-point lead in first place of the USL Eastern Conference. The Rowdies have 44 points. 2nd place Charleston have 33 points, and 3rd place Detroit City FC have 32 points. Louisville City is in 4th place and has 31 points. 5th place Pittsburgh has 30 points. Indy Eleven and Rhode Island FC share 25 points, with Hartford a point behind them now in a playoff position. After a string of losses, Miami FC has 22 points, and are out of the playoff bubble. 10th place Loudoun United FC has 19 points, Birmingham Legion have 17 points, and Brooklyn have 13 points. Finally, still in last, after another loss, Sporting Jax has 8 total points.
Coming Up:
The Rowdies now start a two-game road trip, with the first game against 3rd place Detroit City FC at Keyworth Stadium.
Having one of the loudest atmospheres in US Soccer, Keyworth is a very difficult place to play. The Rowdies won their playoff game there in 2024, with now Captain Lewis Hilton nailing a beautiful penalty to move onto the next round of the playoffs.
The most recent trip for the Rowdies to Michigan was a complete disaster. The team was the worst they looked all season, and a rain delay halfway through the game only stalled the inevitable loss. Thankfully for everyone, this is a much different Tampa Bay team.
Despite having played over twenty games this season, these clubs haven’t met in 2026 yet.
Detroit City’s striker Darren Smith leads the USL Championship in goals, scoring 12 in 19 games.
The South African striker got league attention after his game against Sporting Jax, where he kicked the ball into the net five times.
With the Rowdies now having Ethan Bartlow and Conner Antley, it will be really interesting to see how they line up against Detroit City.
Detroit City uses their wings a lot, with players like Ates Diouf and Haruki Yamazaki excelling through wing play. Because of this, I can see the Rowdies starting in that five-in-the-back system we have seen recently. It worked well against Louisville, and worked amazing against the Rhode Island attack.
I think the Rowdies ability to run the five-in-the-back system depends on Conner Antley’s availability. He came off injured against Rhode Island, and I really hope he is ok.
Even if Antley is unavailable, Laurence Wyke has played well recently. Also Max Schneider has played well in centerback when called upon, so I feel confident in this defense no matter what.
With all this in mind, I am predicting a 2-1 win for the Rowdies.
