Overmatched Indy Eleven ousted from USL playoffs by defending champs

Kevin Johnston | Special for IndyStar

Show Caption Hide Caption John Hackworth talks after LouCity win against Indy Eleven Louisville City FC head coach John Hackworth talks after his team's 4-1 victory against Indy Eleven to open the 2018 postseason.

LOUISVILLE – After switching leagues, coaches and revamping nearly its entire roster, the Indy Eleven’s whirlwind 2018 season has come to an end.

On a blustery Saturday night worthy of a wind advisory at Louisville Slugger Field, defending USL champion Louisville City FC downed Indy 4-1 in a convincing first-round win in the playoffs.

The two met last weekend in the regular-season finale for both clubs, with Louisville City outplaying Indy and earning a 1-0 result. Not much changed Saturday except for the disparate scoreline, though the hosts conjured up a few tactical tweaks.

“We tried to change some things up,” said Louisville City FC coach John Hackworth of making adjustments in the rematch. “But what we felt like we could do all week long was try to improve the things we didn’t do well last week, and so we worked on that really hard, and that’s not easy. But obviously, we came back with the same 11 in a just slightly different shape tonight and we were able to execute.”

With everything on the line, Indy coach Martin Rennie rolled out what he felt were his best lineup available. He stuck with the 3-5-2 formation that he switched to late in the season, with Reiner Ferreira, Carlyle Mitchell and Karl Ouimette forming the trio in the back. Ayoze and Seth Moses functioned as left and right wingbacks, respectively. Nico Matern, captain Matt Watson and Dylan Mares rounded out the midfield, with Jack McInerney and Ben Speas pairing up top.

A week after dicing up Indy’s defense, Louisville City left winger Brian Ownby again started and wreaked havoc. One of his several darting runs deep into Indy territory led to a corner kick, which created the hosts’ opener. Niall McCabe banged in an Oscar Jimenez service in the 29th minute to discourage Indy early on.

From there, the floodgates opened.

Thank you to all of the @The_BYB for all of the support, truly terrific fans. Thank you to @IndyEleven for the opportunity to come and play in Indy again! — Dylan Mares (@DMares06) October 21, 2018

The defending champs put another in before halftime when Ilija Ilic slotted home a rebound, then added a third in the 48th minute when Jimenez again connected with McCabe.

Indy pulled one back through Soony Saad in the 67th, assisted by Mares. But Louisville responded shortly thereafter with its fourth on a Cameron Lancaster free kick from distance. The hosts’ leading scorer stunned Eleven keeper Owain Fon Williams with a rip into the top near corner.

Not at all how we wanted to end our inaugural @USL season - congrats to @loucityfc. Some will say we did good considering “the circumstances” but it doesn’t feel that way. @IndyEleven fans are the best & deserve the best. Thank you for your unwavering support 🙌🏼. #IndyForever — Brad Ring (@BradRing87) October 21, 2018

“We have threats from all over the park, whether it’s on set pieces or (Lancaster) with his phenomenal goalscoring,” McCabe said. “It’s nice when everyone can kind of get a piece of the pie, if you will.”

In the spirit of the ongoing banter between the clubs, the Eleven coordinated a “trolling” of Louisville City supporters before the match. A plane flew around the stadium displaying the message “LCFC (hearts) Nickelback -XI- #LIPAFC.” The name Louisville-Indianapolis Proximity Association Football Contest, or LIPAFC, was bestowed upon the rivalry as its official name by both teams’ supporters’ groups.

Rennie and his staff will take a hard look at the Indy roster this offseason to determine where upgrades are needed. Louisville City, meanwhile, will host Bethlehem Steel FC in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Bethlehem edged Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC in a penalty shootout Saturday.