LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Lexington Sporting Club USL Championship team fell to Charlotte Independence in a penalty shootout during the second round of the USL Jägermeister Cup group stage.
Lexington SC opened the match with high intensity, launching several strong attacks led by #99 Cory Burke and #23 Alfredo Midence.
In the 18th minute, LSC advanced the ball up the right flank, where #12 Xavier Zengue delivered a precise cross into the box for #71 Michael Adedokun, who calmly finished, putting Lexington ahead 1-0. The two played with each other at the University of Dayton, establishing strong on-field chemistry.
Adedokun secured career highs in this match by scoring his first professional goal and first goal for LSC.
Riding the momentum of Lexington’s confident play, Midence sent a cross to Burke in the 50th minute, and Burke finished to extend the lead to 2-0.
The Independence struck back in the 55th minute when #99 Christian Chaney scored off an assist from #7 Luis Alvarez, cutting the lead to 2–1 and bringing Charlotte back into the game.
A straight red card was shown to Lexington’s #8 Nick Firmino in the 82nd minute for a foul on #7 Luis Alvarez.
Charlotte tied the game in stoppage time, with Chaney scoring once again. This time the helper came from from #9 Jon Bakero. The late equalizer, which leveled the score at 2-2, sent the two teams into a penalty shootout once the referee’s whistle blew for full time.
Charlotte came out on top in the shootout, winning 4-2, earning two points in the cup. Meanwhile, having lost the shootout, Lexington SC earned one point in the USL Jägermeister Cup group 5 standings.
Lexington SC will travel to Seaside, California for a USL Championship matchup against Monterey Bay FC at Cardinale Stadium on Saturday, June 7, at 10 p.m. ET.
About Lexington Sporting Club
Lexington Sporting Club is a U.S. Soccer professional soccer club competing in the USL Championship (U.S. Soccer Second Division men’s professional soccer), and in USL Super League (U.S. Soccer First Division women’s professional soccer). The two professional teams are the pinnacle of the soccer ecosystem in Lexington that features more than 1,000 players within its youth and academy systems. Lexington SC has recently opened a 7500-seat, state-of-the-art stadium, indoor facilities and training fields.