Orange and Blue’s defender earns second spot of the season on league’s weekly team
CINCINNATI – FC Cincinnati defender Forrest Lasso has been voted to the United Soccer League’s Team of the Week for Week 19 after standout efforts in last week’s two-game sweep of the Charlotte Independence and New York Red Bulls II. This is Lasso’s second Team of the Week inclusion this season. Additionally, Emmanuel Ledesma earned a spot on the Team of the Week Bench for his performances last week.
Lasso was a backbone of the Orange and Blue’s defense last week as the team allowed just one goal – an own goal on a set piece. Additionally, Lasso was instrumental on the offensive end of the field, scoring goals in each of the two games.
On Wednesday against Charlotte, Lasso scored his first goal of the season as he headed home a Kenney Walker free-kick service to put Cincinnati up 2-0. Earlier in the game, his header off a Ledesma corner kick set up Dekel Keinan’s rebound goal to give FCC the early lead.
On Saturday, Lasso put FC Cincinnati on the board with his second in as many games. He converted a Ledesma corner kick, heading a goal into a narrow opening on the near post to give Cincy the 1-0 lead in the 17th minute.
Defensively, Lasso added 15 clearances last week, including a game-high 13 on Saturday against the Red Bulls. He also had four interceptions and four blocks, with a game-high three coming on Saturday. On the season, Lasso’s 114 clearances and 23 blocks lead the squad, while he’s also added 26 interceptions. Standing 6-foot-6, he has also won 86-of-116 aerial duels this year.
Ledesma has been voted to the USL Team of the Week for the seventh time this season with his bench nod this week. He was involved in three of Cincinnati’s four goals last week, including a pair of assists on Saturday to move his season total to 10. June’s USL Player of the Month, Ledesma leads the USL in assists, two more than a pair of players with eight, and is tied for seventh in goals with nine.
FC Cincinnati (13-3-5, 44 pts.) currently leads not only the USL Eastern Conference by nine points, but also sits atop the entire USL table, ahead of Western Conference leader Real Monarchs SLC by three points.
FC Cincinnati has a bye in the USL schedule this weekend and will host La Liga’s RCD Espanyol on Saturday night at Nippert Stadium in an international friendly presented by Cincinnati Bell. The game will be televised on WSTR 64 and streamed live on YouTube.
Tickets for all home games – including Saturday’s international friendly against Espanyol on July 28 – are available at fccincinnati.com/tickets or by calling 513-977-KICK (5425).
