Armada FC Public Relations | Sept. 4, 2015

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Still in the thick of the North American Soccer League playoff race, the Jacksonville Armada FC will try to get the road match monkey of its back at 7:30 p.m. ET this Saturday when it heads to Indianapolis to take on Indy Eleven.

The Armada, who have not yet won a match on the road in 2015 in 10 tries (two draws, eight losses), are coming off a scoreless draw with the San Antonio Scorpions last Saturday at Community First Park. Despite four shots on goal from forward Jemal Johnson and a 55-45 percent possession advantage, the Armada were not able to break through a stingy San Antonio defense. Armada goalkeeper Miguel Gallardo notched three saves and recorded his 40 th career clean sheet while also being named Farah & Farah Man of the Match.

Indy Eleven is coming off losses to the Fort Lauderdale Strikers (7-1) and Minnesota United FC (1-0). The Eleven’s most recent contest was on Wednesday night at United FC, which was a stalemate for much of the match until Minnesota defender Justin Davis’ perfect volley in the 77 th minute gave the Loons all they needed to down Indy. The outcome, however, was much more positive than Indy’s game with the Strikers last Saturday in which the Eleven encountered their worst loss in club history. Indy forward Dane Richards scored the team’s lone goal in the loss.

Jacksonville came out on top of the previous meeting against Indy, 1-0, on May 9 in Jacksonville on a header from Bochy Hoyos in the 49 th minute, with the assist from Matt Bahner. The Armada played some of their best defense of the season and held strong during 10-minute plus stretch in the first half when striker Alhassane Keita went down with a head injury and head coach Guillermo Hoyos elected to tough it out with 10 men. His patience was rewarded as Keita eventually made his return. It was the first shutout win in Armada history.

Below is a breakdown of each team and the match.

WHEN & WHERE

Saturday, Sept. 5 at 7:30 p.m. ET | Michael A. Carroll Stadium

Buy Tickets | Weather



THE TEAMS

Jacksonville Armada FC (3W-2D-5L, 11 pts., 7 th NASL Fall; 6-5-9, 23 pts., 9 th NASL Combined)

Indy Eleven (2W-3D-6L, 9 pts., 9 th in NASL Fall; 5-7-9, 22 pts., 10 th NASL Combined)

SERIES HISTORY

Jacksonville leads, 1-0-0

LAST RESULT

Armada FC 1, Indy Eleven 0 - 5/9/15 in Jacksonville | Recap | Video Highlights

CLUB QUICK LINKS

Armada FC: News | Roster | Schedule | Season Stats

Indy Eleven: News | Roster | Schedule | Season Stats

WATCH

- CW17 in Jacksonville | Cole Pepper - PXP, Bob Veal - Color and Krissty Andaur - Sideline

- ESPN3.com



LISTEN

- Live stream on sportsradiojax.iheart.com | Stuart Webber - PXP and David Hayes - Color

- Also streamed live on iHeart app

READ

- Live Twitter updates on @ArmadaFCgameday - #INDvJAX

- Live stats on ArmadaFC.com

WHAT'S AT STAKE

With 10 games left to go in the Fall Season, both teams are still within striking distance of a playoff spot in the Combined Standings. The Armada are just four points back of the Fort Lauderdale Strikers and the Tampa Bay Rowdies, which have 27 points each. The Eleven sit five points behind both teams.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Jacksonville: Defender Fabricio Ortiz, who was named to NASL Team of the Week on Wednesday, has been an anchor on the backline this season for the Armada with his signature sliding tackles that have put a stop to many opposing attacks. Typically set as a right center back, Ortiz has logged 1,600 minutes in 18 starts. The 25-year-old native of Casilda, Argentina, also earned a Team of the Week nod on Aug. 19 after the Armada’s 1-0 over the Atlanta Silverbacks.

Indy: Midfielder Dylan Mares has led the way for the Eleven this season, being equally as dangerous a goal scorer as he has been a maestro. Mares is tied with defender Erick Norales and Richards with three goals scored and is the leading assist man with four.

NOTABLES

In keeping with the team’s philosophy of rotating its top two goalkeepers every two games, David Sierra is expected to start on Saturday in Indianapolis. Sierra has a streak of three-straight shutouts dating back to July 18 when the Armada took down the New York Cosmos 1-0 in Jacksonville. In that stretch, the Armada won all three games, and Sierra had a total of 12 saves.



In addition to not having won on the road yet, Jacksonville has only led in an away match just once this season. The Armada took a 2-1 lead into halftime on April 25 at Tampa Bay before a strong second half surge by the Rowdies took the Armada down 2-1.



LOOKING AHEAD

The Armada will hit the road again to take on the New York Cosmos at 7 p.m. ET on Sept. 12. Jacksonville leads the series, 1-1-0, and drew 3-3 with the Cosmos in the Spring Season finale in New York on June 13. The match will be broadcast live on CW17 in Jacksonville with pre-match coverage beginning at 6:30 p.m.