After maintaining an unbeaten record in its last three matches, Rhode Island FC will look to continue its red-hot run of form on Friday as it welcomes Eastern Conference foe Indy Eleven to Beirne Stadium in search of a club-record third-straight win. The Ocean State club enters Friday’s contest on the heels of its first home win in club history, a 3-0 rout of El Paso Locomotive FC. While the historic win sealed the club’s first back-to-back win streak, RIFC now faces a tough test in an Indy side that has won eight of its last nine matches. Ahead of Friday’s contest, here is everything you need to know.
AT A GLANCE
Date | Friday, July 5
Kickoff | 7:30 PM ET
Location | Beirne Stadium, Smithfield RI
Broadcast | ESPN+
Radio | 790 The Score (790 AM)
Social | @rhodeislandfc (X, Instagram, Facebook)
Match Hashtag | #RIvIND
INDY ELEVEN
Roster
GOALKEEPERS (3): 0-Hunter Sulte, 1-Yannik Oettl, 46-Cayden Crawford
DEFENDERS (9): 2-Josh O’Brien, 3-Aedan Stanley, 5-Callum Chapman-Page, 15-Adrián Diz Pe, 25-Jai Dindiyal, 30-Benjamin Ofeimu, 37-Logan Neidlinger, 44-Macca King, 55-Maverick McCoy
MIDFIELDERS (9): 6-Cam Lindley, 8-Jack Blake, 12-Diego Sanchez, 14-Aodan Quinn, 16-Laurence Wootton, 20-Ben Mines, 22-Tyler Gibson, 34-Max Schneider, 39-Nikola Ivetic
FORWARDS (8): 7-Karsen Henderlong, 9-Augi Williams, 10-Romario Williams, 13-Sebastian Guenzattti, 17-Tega Ikoba, 18-Elliot Collier, 32-Benji Chavarria, 42-Douglas Martinez
A Winning Formula
Indy Eleven’s 9W-5L-2D record has the club sitting in third place in the Eastern Conference Standings while the team’s nine wins are tied for third-most in the USL Championship. After going winless in five of its first six matches, most of Indy’s success can be attributed to its recent run of form. The Boys in Blue have earned eight wins in the last nine matches after a club-record eight-match winning run was halted in a tight 1-0 loss to Orange County SC on June 22. The loss marked the first time all season the Indiana club had been shutout in a match, and its first USL Championship loss in over two months, dating back to a high-scoring 4-2 loss against Charleston Battery. Despite the loss, Indy is one of only two teams to take four wins out of its last five matches. Now, following an 11-day break, the Eastern Conference side will look to rebound and continue its impressive recent run against RIFC.
Blake Leads the Way
Indy Eleven’s 27-goal output this season puts the club fifth in the league, split between 10 players with five recording multiple goals on the year. Leading the pack is Jack Blake, who sits in a tie for sixth in the league with eight total goals. The former Nottingham Forest midfielder averages a goal every two matches, including four in the last six. Blake has recorded two braces in 2024 and last found the back of the net during Indy’s 1-0 win on the road at Birmingham Legion FC. Augustine Williams closely follows Blake on the statsheet as a heavy contributor for Indy, netting five goals and adding one assist in 15 appearances.
Building from the Back
Defensively, Indy Eleven has laid a strong foundation for its recent run of form, supplementing its 16 goals in the last nine matches with only six conceded. Between the posts, Hunter Sulte has kept three clean sheets after stepping into the starting role six matches into the season, with two of those shutouts coming in the last three matches. Indy has only conceded multiple goals on four occasions this season with the last such match coming on April 13 to Charleston. On the road, The Boys in Blue have recorded two shutouts and are unbeaten in their last five matches. The club will look to continue that run of form when it makes its first-ever trip to Beirne Stadium on Friday.
RHODE ISLAND FC
Roster
GOALKEEPERS (3): 1-Koke Vegas, 22-Jackson Lee, 30-Nate Silveira
DEFENDERS (7): 2-Nathan Messer, 3-Stephen Turnbull, 4-Collin Smith, 5-Grant Stoneman, 15-Frank Nodarse, 16-Gabriel Alves, 24-Karifa Yao
MIDFIELDERS (11): 7-Prince Saydee, 12-Clay Holstad, 17-Jojea Kwizera, 18-Joe Brito, 19-Kevin Vang, 20-Zachary Herivaux, 21-Kofi Twumasi, 23-Marc Ybarra, 25-Kevin Orduy, 28-Conor McGlynn, 77-Amos Shapiro-Thompson, 80-Isaac Angking
FORWARDS (4): 9-JJ Williams, 10-Chico, 11-Noah Fuson, 14-Mark Doyle
Making History
Setting multiple USL Championship and club records after taking down league leaders Louisville City FC 5-2 on June 22, Rhode Island FC capitalized on that momentum to earn its first home win in club history four days later over El Paso. The win marked RIFC’s fifth clean sheet of the season and largest-ever margin of victory at home, and also matched the club’s largest overall margin of victory. After scoring 13 goals through its first 14 matches, the Ocean State club has now scored eight in its last two and has strung together back-to-back wins for the first time ever. The eight goals were split between six different scorers, including three different first-time scorers, with Noah Fuson and Jojea Kwizera becoming the first RIFC duo to record goals in back-to-back matches. 12 different players have now scored for RIFC as Khano Smith’s men have found an effective formula that is shaping up to be a deadly attacking force down the back half of the season.
Chico Back in Business
After recording three goals in three matches to open RIFC’s inaugural season, 2023 USL Championship MVP and Golden Boot winner Albert Dikwa “Chico” struggled to find the back of the net through his next nine matches. After making a return to the starting lineup for the second straight match vs. El Paso, it took the veteran forward just 21 minutes to find the back of the net. Chico’s close-range strike to open the scoring was his first since March 30. The Cameroonian leads RIFC with four goals and has captained the club four times, continuing to be a valuable asset within Khano Smith’s inaugural roster.
Strong Starts Key in Unbeaten Run
Prior to its last two wins, Rhode Island FC had scored first in half of its total matches, but took just seven points and one win from those contests. After dropping several points in positive performances that were moments away from victory, the Ocean State club has turned a corner in its last two outings. In both matches, RIFC went into the locker room at halftime with a 2-0 lead and were also first to score in the second half. Now that the club has put the pieces together on both sides of the ball in back-to-back complete performances, RIFC will look to continue its positive form and begin a surge up the Eastern Conference table against Indy Eleven on Friday.