CHARLOTTE, NC – The Charlotte Independence travel to Florida to face the Sarasota Paradise in the Jacks first ever trip to Premier Sports Campus. The Independence defeated the Paradise in Charlotte 3-1 back on August 15. Here is all you need to know before the matchup.
MATCH DETAILS:
Date: Saturday, October 3
Time: 7:30 PM
Who: Sarasota Paradise
Where: Premier Sports Campus at Lakewood Ranch (Sarasota, FL)
What We’re Wearing: The Independence will be dressed in their Liberty Kit.
Watch: ESPN+
SEASON STANDING
- Charlotte Independence
- USL League One: 17-5-6 (2nd Place – 57 points)
- Last Time Out: 1-1 draw vs Fort Wayne on Sept. 26
- Recent Form: LWDWD
- Sarasota Paradise
- USL League One: 9-12-6 (10th Place – 33 points)
- Last Time Out: 4-1 win @ Portland on Sept. 26
- Recent Form: WDDWW
ALL-TIME SERIES
The two teams met for the first time on August 15 at American Legion Memorial Stadium. The Jacks struck early and often with Souaibou Marou finding the back of the net in the 2nd minute via a Jon Bakero assist. Bakero added a goal of his own six minutes later off of a Christopher Jaime feed before Jaime completed the onslaught in the 14th minute when he finished off a Joey Skinner pass to go up 3-0 inside of 15 minutes. The Paradise pulled back a consolation goal late, but it was not enough as the Independence took all three points from the first meeting between the two clubs.
All-Time Record: 1-0-0
10 MEN JACKS EARN CRUCIAL POINT AGAINST FORT WAYNE
Despite going down a man with over 25 minutes to go, the Jacks were able to salvage a 1-1 draw vs Fort Wayne at Matthews Sportsplex last Saturday. A chippy but even match was 63 minutes in when Jaime was shown his second yellow, tilting the field slightly in the visitor’s favor. Fort Wayne capitalized on being a man up when Tiago Dias put his team up front in the 82nd minute. However, substitute Stefano Pinho rifled home a loose ball in the box in the 89th minute to earn a vital point for the Independence in the Players’ Shield race. The Jacks sit four points back of Union Omaha but hold a match in hand as the league enters the final month of the regular season.
TWO HOT TEAMS COLLIDE
Both sides come into the match on solid runs of form. The Jacks have been unbeaten in their last four matches and have earned points in 11 of their last 12 matches, while the Paradise have rattled off a seven-match unbeaten run after losing in Charlotte on August 15. The Paradise have also scored 10 goals in their last two matches after dispatching Greenville 6-0 on September 19 and beating Portland on the road 4-1 their last time out.
BAKERO READY FOR MORE HISTORY
In an MVP-caliber season, Bakero continues to etch his name into the USL League One record books. After setting a new single-season assists record in the win over Westchester on September 12, Bakero added another milestone with his assist to Skinner against Richmond the following week. The Spaniard now sits tied with Nils Vinyals atop the league’s all-time assists chart with 23.
FINAL HOME MATCH
We’re closing out the regular season home slate in style! Join us at the Sportsplex for OktoberFest on October 10 against New York Cosmos. Fans in attendance will receive a Charlotte Independence-styled stein and have the chance to sample local Charlotte breweries.
