PREVIEW: Armada Continues Road Trek With Trip to OKC on Sunday

Armada FC Public Relations | Sept. 8, 2016

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jacksonville Armada will hit the road for the second-straight week with a trip to Oklahoma City to take on Rayo OKC at 8 p.m. on Sunday.

The Armada had its four-game unbeaten streak stopped at the hands of the Carolina RailHawks last Saturday in Cary, N.C., in the form of a 1-0 decision. It was a tale of two halves as the Armada had just one shot in the first half but made adjustments at halftime and recorded six shots in the second half, including two on target.

Jacksonville's starting goalkeeper Miguel Gallardo went down with a groin injury in the 38th minute, prompting interim head coach Mark Lowry to sub in Sean Lewis. In the 44th, Lewis got caught off his line after Carolina's Nazmi Albadawi sent a long ball over the top to Tiyi Shipalane, who chipped it over Lewis and into the back of the net.

The Armada came close to finding the equalizer in the 69th minute when Albadawi conceded a foul just outside of the box. Keita took the set piece, with his initial attempt bouncing off the RailHawks’ wall, but the rebound met his swift kick, sending the ball through the jam of defenders toward the goal. But Sylvestre was able to dive and get to the ball at the right time.

In the 71st minute, Charles Eloundou started a counterattack at midfield and pushed the ball to the edge of the box before dishing it to a trailing Zach Steinberger for a clear look. But Steinberger’s attempt went inches wide.

Jacksonville had a furious finish in the final minute of stoppage time when Eloundou blasted a shot from the top of the box that was blocked, bounced around in the box and trickled out to Beto Navarro, whose last gasp shot was blocked. Seconds later, the final whistle blew to end the Armada’s comeback attempt.

Rayo OKC fell 1-0 on the road to Minnesota United FC last Saturday. Despite firing off nine shots, none were on target. Minnesota's Christian Ramirez, who is the NASL's leading goal scorer, netted his side's tally in the 44th minute on a header. The loss extended Rayo OKC's winless streak to six, which includes four-straight losses.

In the Armada's last meeting with Rayo OKC on May 7 in Jacksonville, the Armada fell 1-0 despite recording season highs in shots (19) and corners (13) in addition to dominating possession (66.9-33.1 percent). In the 70th minute, Rayo OKC took advantage of a long-cross from Michel that Gallardo was not able to intercept, allowing Robbie Findley to put it in the back of the net.

Below is a breakdown of the teams and the matchup.

WHEN & WHERE
Sunday, Sept. 11 at 8 p.m. ET | Miller Stadium
Buy Tickets | Weather

THE TEAMS
Jacksonville Armada (2W-4D-6L, 10 pts., 11th NASL Fall, 3W-8D-11L, 17 pts., 11th NASL Combined)
Rayo OKC (3W-4D-5L, 13 pts., 7th NASL Fall, 6W-7D-9L, 25 pts., 9th NASL Combined)

THE COACHES
Jacksonville Armada – Mark Lowry, 1st season
Rayo OKC – Gerard Nus, 1st season

SERIES HISTORY
Rayo OKC leads, 1-0-0

LAST RESULT 
Rayo OKC 1, Armada 0 - 5/7/16 in Jacksonville | Recap | Final Stats

CLUB QUICK LINKS
Armada: News | Roster | Schedule | Season Stats
Rayo OKC: News | Roster | Schedule | Season Stats

WATCH
- CW17 in Jacksonville – Cole Pepper – PXP and Mauricio Ruiz – Color
- ESPN3 Nationally

LISTEN
- Live on Project 106.9-FM | Stuart Webber – PXP and Andy Kidd  – Color
- Also streamed live on iHeart app or project1069.iheart.com

READ
- Live Twitter updates on @ArmadaFCgameday – #OKCvJAX
- Live stats on ArmadaFC.com

POTENT NOTABLES
- Jacksonville has gone with 20 different lineups this season and has had the same back-to-back starting 11 just twice (June 4 at Carolina, June 11 vs. Tampa Bay; July 11 vs. Puerto Rico FC, July 14 at New York Cosmos).

- Though the Armada is currently on its first and only three-game road swing on the season, the club is no stranger to long road stands. The Armada had three separate stretches of three-straight on the road in 2015, including twice in the Fall Season.

- The Armada is 2-0-2 against NASL expansion clubs this season. Jacksonville defeated both Miami FC, 2-1, on April 15 and Puerto Rico FC, 2-1, on July 9 at home while falling to Rayo OKC, 1-0, at home on May 7 and Miami FC, 1-0, on the road on July 16.

- Sunday's match will be the Armada's first in the central time zone since a May 14 trip to Blaine, Minn., to take on Minnesota United FC. The Loons won, 2-0. Jacksonville is 0-0-4 all-time in the central time zone.

- The Armada will have Kevan George, Mechack Jérôme and Karl Ouimette back from international duty and available for Sunday's match.

George played 24 minutes as a 66th minute sub in Trinidad and Tobago's 2-2 draw with Guatemala last Friday and played 14 minutes in the Soca Warriors' 4-0 loss to the United States on Tuesday night in Jacksonville. Despite the loss, T&T moved on to the CONCACAF FIFA World Cup Qualifying Hexagonal round.

Jérôme started in Haiti's 1-0 loss to Costa Rica last Friday and in the Grenadiers' 2-0 win over Jamaica on Tuesday. With the loss to Costa Rica, Haiti was officially eliminated from World Cup qualifying.

Ouimette did not see the pitch in Canada's 2-0 loss to Mexico last Friday and 3-0 loss to El Tri on Tuesday. With the second loss to Mexico, Les Rouges were officially eliminated from World Cup qualifying.

BY THE NUMBERS
17 – The number of chances created by midfielder/forward Junior Sandoval, which leads the team.

96 – The number of clearances for defender Tyler Ruthven, currently fourth in the NASL.

258 – The number of total shots the Armada has taken this season, currently sixth in the NASL.

INJURY UPDATE
After sustaining a left groin injury in the 38th minute against the Carolina RailHawks on Saturday, Sept. 3, goalkeeper Miguel Gallardo will be out approximately 2-4 weeks.

CLUB CONNECTIONS
Rayo OKC defender Futty Danso and Armada defender Karl Ouimette were teammates on the Montreal Impact (MLS) in 2014 ... Rayo OKC defender Sebastian Ibeagha and Armada midfielder Zach Steinberger are currently loaned out to their respective side from the Houston Dynamo (MLS) ... Rayo OKC defender Kosuke Kimura and Armada defender Anthony Wallace were teammates on the Colorado Rapids (MLS) from 2010-12 ... Kimura and Armada defender Tyler Ruthven were teammates on the New York Red Bulls (MLS) in 2012 ... Rayo OKC midfielder Pecka and Armada forward Jemal Johnson were teammates on the Fort Lauderdale Strikers in Spring 2013 ... Rayo OKC midfielder Mavin Chavez and Armada forward Charles Eloundou were teammates on the Colorado Rapids in 2014 ... Rayo OKC midfielder Tyler Gibson and forward Billy Forbes and Armada goalkeeper coach Daryl Sattler were teammates on former NASL side San Antonio Scorpions in 2015 ... Sattler, Forbes and Rayo OKC midfielder Richard Menjivar and were teammates on the Scorpions in 2014, their NASL title-winning season ... Menjivar and Armada defender Beto Navarro were teammates on former NASL side Atlanta Silverbacks in 2013.

LOOKING AHEAD
The Armada will wrap up its three-match road swing at 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, Sept. 17 against Puerto Rico FC.