Orange County’s Endless Summer Starts Now
Has it been quite the week for Orange County on and off the pitch?
Starting with last week's game up in Monterey Bay. OC were defeated in a 1-2 game that saw Stephen Kelly sent off and subsequently suspended for one week. He will miss this game. Then on Wednesday the 16th, the club had announced that Lyam MacKinnon had suffered a serious achilles injury and will be out for “a significant period of time.” Then to really hammer it home, Kyle Scott has been transferred back to England with Crawley Town FC of EFL League Two.
The USL Championship stops for nobody and OC will really have to regroup now just to have a realistic chance of being in the playoff picture come Fall. As it always seems to be the case the Western Conference is the more competitive side of the USL but that has never been more true than in 2025. 13 points separate first place Tulsa from last place Colorado Springs. Colorado Springs are still looking for the gatorade from their fun time last season. Lexington SC have learned how to play soccer and now find themselves tied with Las Vegas for the 8th and final spot above the playoff line at 18 points.
Orange County SC, in all of their frustrations, cannot write off 2025 but will have to eventually win games more consistently. Orange County have only played 14 games which is two in hand of the rest of the USL (and in the case of Monterey Bay is four less than the 18 they have played). This means some midweek games later in the year but we will go over that later in the season. They have a great chance at home to help themselves when they will wrap up the season series against Las Vegas.
THE OPPONENT - LAS VEGAS LIGHTS FC
Las Vegas is really hoping that 2024 was not a fluke. Making it to their first conference final in club history let alone first postseason was quite the turnaround for Jose Bautista’s ownership group after the circus that was Lashbrook. After a respectable start there is something wrong with Las Vegas in 2025. With their 13 goals scored in the USL, that is the worst mark across the entire league. It was not enough for former head coach Antonio Nocerino who was sacked after the Lights’s five-game losing streak. Current interim manager Giovanni Troise will also not be available for this match due to a red card suspension. Las Vegas Lights for this game will be under their goalkeeper coach.
Las Vegas has a hard time scoring the ball and the defense is not really playing its best either. They have conceded 12 goals in their last six league games. Most of their focus might be to the USL Cup where they have been a perfect 3-0 in the group stage. That includes the first match of the group stage when Las Vegas went to Orange County and came away with a 3-1 victory. Las Vegas went on to win two more times but did get defeated by Sacramento. Las Vegas can win the group if Sacramento does not beat Spokane and Monterey Bay loses to AV Alta.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Las Vegas does have one player who has flown a bit under the radar in that of their right back Shawn Smart. Smart has made 11 appearances for Las Vegas and has been a factor in their USL Cup games. His best game of the season came last week where he got a brace in a 3-4 loss to FC Tulsa. The Florida native is making Las Vegas his first professional team after playing college soccer at Clemson like Ousmane Sylla for OC.
On the orange side of things, Bryce Jamison’s professional journey is just beginning but the 2025 season has not gone the way he would have wanted. Still looking for his first goal he has definitely had a number of chances to do so but has been a bit snake bitten in front of net. Technically on loan from Colorado Rapids, Jamison has been one of Orange County’s success stories for what they are trying to achieve in the soccer landscape and they will both look to make the most of the opportunity ahead of them.
Dylan Starting 11 vs Lights
PREDICTED STARTING XI
The hits are starting to mount up for Orange County. The core is still somewhat intact for now and Orange County have pulled wins from their magic hat before but will need a complete effort from all facets of the team to win a game. Two lineup predictions from two fellow Orange & Black contributors.
Dylan has the average 4-2-3-1 lineup with the backline remaining a bit the same. Chris Hegardt will get the start alongside Jamison and Dunbar on the flanks. The midfield-forward core has taken a hit so it will be all hands on deck to get the job done.
DK Starting 11 vs Lights
D.K. will feature a bit of a different lineup with the biggest difference being the midfield where Ousmane Sylla gets the start alongside Chris Hegardt. Nicola Ciotta also gets the start at right back in the home game.
THE MATCHUP
Third and final scheduled matchup of the season for what is turning into an old opponent for OC. Both teams will be looking for ways to win a bit more games and both teams have had their fair share of troubles in 2025. In what has been an OC dominated rivalry, Las Vegas have gotten the better of OC the past two seasons now. In fact the last time that OC beat Las Vegas was the 5-1 drubbing in Nevada in 2023. The pressure is mounting on Orange County to win this game and they will need to continue playing well at home in order to make the postseason for what would be a club record third consecutive season.
WHAT TO KNOW
Game - vs Las Vegas Lights FC (USL Championship)
When - July 19th, 7:00 PM PST
Where - Championship Soccer Stadium (Irvine, CA)
OCSC Form - LDWWL
LVL Form - LLWWW
All-Time Series - 10-4-6 (20 Games)
TV - FanDuel Sports SoCal, ESPN+, KCAL+ 9.6