2023 Orange County SC season
| 2023 season | |
|---|---|
| Manager | Richard Chaplow (until May 1) Morten Karlsen (Interim) (from May 1) |
| Stadium | Championship Soccer Stadium Irvine, California |
| USL Championship | Western Conf.: 2nd Overall: 5th |
| USL Championship Playoffs | Conference Semifinals |
| U.S. Open Cup | Third Round |
| Top goalscorer | League: Milan Iloski (17 goals) All: Milan Iloski (20 goals) |
| Highest home attendance | 5,500 (5 times) |
| Lowest home attendance | League: 3,047 (May 17 v.s. Sacramento Republic FC) Open Cup: 1,588 (Second Round, April 5 vs Capo FC) |
| Average home league attendance | 4,475[1] |
The 2023 Orange County SC season was the club's thirteenth season of existence, and their thirteenth consecutive season in the United Soccer League Championship, the second tier of American soccer.
Orange County had a tumultuous start, only winning one out of their first eight games with a 1-4-3 record, leading to the team firing head coach Richard Chaplow and promoting the newly hired assistant coach Morten Karlsen to interim head coach on May 1, 2023.[2] Under new management, Orange County found form and finished the season on a three-game winning streak, going from 11th to 2nd place in the Western Conference,[3] and having a final record of 17–11–6.[4]
In the first round of the USL Championship playoffs, Orange County faced off against seventh seeded El Paso Locomotive FC at home, winning 1–0 with a goal from Forward Milan Iloski.[5] In the semifinals, Orange County hosted 6th seed Phoenix Rising FC, losing 2–1 in extra time to the eventual champions.[6][7]
This would be the last season that the team-leading goalscorer and All-League Second Team[8] Iloski would play for Orange County, as after this season he made a transfer to FC Nordsjælland in the Danish Superliga in the January transfer window.[9][10] Additionally, on November 10, appointed interim head coach Karlsen was signed to become the official head coach of Orange County.[11]
Roster
As of 13 June 2024[12]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
|
|
Technical Staff
| Role[14] | Name |
|---|---|
| President of Soccer Operations & General Manager | Peter Nugent |
| Head Coach | Morten Karlsen |
| First Assistant Coach & IDP Manager | Paul Hardyman |
| Assistant Coach | Didier Crettenand |
| Goalkeeping Coach | Victor Nogueira |
| Performance Data Analyst | Amanda Preciado |
| Performance Consultant | Dan Guzman |
| Head Academy Scout | Shawn Beyer |
| Team Operations Coordinator | Mario Lemus |
Competitions
Exhibitions
Orange County, on January 31, announced six pre-season matches, with most matches being played against MLS Next and colligate teams behind closed doors.[15]
| February 11 Preseason | LA Galaxy II | 1-2 | Orange County SC | Carson, California |
| 11:00 AM | Report | Stadium: HDC University Field 1 Attendance: 0 |
| February 18 Preseason | Orange County SC | 2-1 | UC Irvine Anteaters | Irvine, California |
| 11:00 AM | Osundina |
Report | Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 0 |
| February 25 Preseason | San Diego Loyal | 3-0 | Orange County SC | Carlsbad, California |
| Report | Stadium: MiraCosta Stadium Attendance: 0 |
| March 1 Preseason | Orange County SC | v | Cal State Fullerton Titans | Irvine, California |
| 8:00 PM | Report | Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium | ||
| Note: Season ticket holder exclusive | ||||
| March 4 Preseason | Orange County SC | 1-0 | Los Angeles FC 2 | Irvine, California |
| 10:30 AM | Iloski |
Report | Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 0 |
| March 4 Preseason | Orange County SC | 4-1 | UC Santa Barbara Gauchos | Irvine, California |
| 2:00 PM | Chattha |
Report | Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 0 |
USL Championship
Standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sacramento Republic FC | 34 | 18 | 6 | 10 | 51 | 26 | +25 | 64 | Playoffs |
| 2 | Orange County SC | 34 | 17 | 11 | 6 | 46 | 39 | +7 | 57 | |
| 3 | San Diego Loyal SC | 34 | 16 | 9 | 9 | 61 | 43 | +18 | 57 | |
| 4 | San Antonio FC | 34 | 14 | 6 | 14 | 63 | 38 | +25 | 56 | |
| 5 | Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC | 34 | 16 | 13 | 5 | 49 | 42 | +7 | 53 |
Rules for classification: 1) head-to-head points; 2) head-to-head goal differential; 3) points-per game within conference; 4) total wins; 5) total goal differential; 6) total goals scored; 7) points earned against top four Conference finishers; 8) disciplinary points; 9) coin toss or drawing of lots
Results summary
| Overall | Home | Away | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
| 34 | 17 | 6 | 11 | 46 | 39 | +7 | 57 | 9 | 3 | 5 | 21 | 14 | +7 | 8 | 3 | 6 | 25 | 25 | 0 |
Source: USL standings
Match results
Orange County announced their full season schedule on January 9, 2023.[16]
All times in Pacific Time.
March
| March 11 1 | Orange County SC | 1-3 | Louisville City FC | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 PM | Richards Partida Iloski |
Report | McCabe Lancaster Totsch Mushangalusa |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 4,267 Referee: Ekaterina Koroleva |
| March 18 2 | Orange County SC | 1-1 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 PM | Chattha Nielsen Powers |
Report | Lasso Herivaux |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 4,278 Referee: Brandon Stevis |
| March 25 3 | Orange County SC | 2-2 | Las Vegas Lights FC | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 PM | Partida Scott Villanueva Iloski Nakkim |
Report | Torres Botello-Faz Oteng Bushue |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 3,959 Referee: Alexis Da Silva |
April
| April 1 4 | Hartford Athletic | 1-1 | Orange County SC | Hartford, Connecticut |
| 11:00 AM | Rad Amoh Cedeno Hodge Barrera Logue McGlynn |
Report | Iloski Nakkim Partida Doghman Richards Scott |
Stadium: Trinity Health Stadium Attendance: 3,030 Referee: Eric Tattersall |
| April 8 5 | El Paso Locomotive FC | 1-0 | Orange County SC | El Paso, Texas |
| 6:30 PM | Lyons Pavkovics Solignac Zacarias Kostyshyn |
Report | Iloski Fox Buckley |
Stadium: Southwest University Park Attendance: 6,013 Referee: Cristian Campo |
| April 15 6 | Orange County SC | 1-0 | Indy Eleven | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 PM | Iloski Jamison Scott |
Report | Diz Pe Blake |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 3,977 Referee: Ricardo Fierro |
| April 22 7 | Orange County SC | 1-2 | Birmingham Legion FC | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 PM | Nielsen Scott Partida |
Report | Agudelo Kavita Crognale Martínez |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 4,114 Referee: Elvis Osmanovic |
| April 29 8 | New Mexico United | 3-1 | Orange County SC | Albuquerque, New Mexico |
| 6:00 PM | Hurst Rivas Suggs Portillo |
Report | Suggs Casiple |
Stadium: Rio Grande Credit Union Field at Isotopes Park Attendance: 10,048 Referee: Sergii Boiko |
May
| May 6 9 | Orange County SC | 1-2 | San Diego Loyal | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 PM | Villanueva Iloski Richards Partida Doghman McNulty Powers Casiple Osundina |
Report | Moshobane Corona Moon Riley |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 4,616 Referee: Elijio Arreguin |
| May 13 10 | Oakland Roots | 3-0 | Orange County SC | Hayward, California |
| 8:00 PM | Formella Morad Rito |
Report | Miles |
Stadium: Pioneer Stadium Attendance: 5,855 Referee: Corbyn May |
| May 17 11 | Orange County SC | 1-0 | Sacramento Republic FC | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 PM | Iloski Nakkim Lambe Pederssen |
Report | Lewis Keko López |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 3,047 Referee: Deshun Beard |
| May 20 12 | Orange County SC | 0-1 | Phoenix Rising FC | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 PM | Doghman Norris Nakkim |
Report | Fuenmayor Arteaga |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 4,301 Referee: Alexis Da Silva |
| May 27 13 | Miami FC | 0-0 | Orange County SC | Miami, Florida |
| 4:00 P.M. | Chapman-Page Craig Murphy Akinyode Cabral |
Report | Pedersen Iloski |
Stadium: FIU Football Stadium Attendance: 1,374 Referee: Nabil Bensalah |
June
| June 3 14 | Orange County SC | 2-0 | Rio Grande Valley FC Toros | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 PM | Iloski Lambe Osundina Scott Pedersen |
Report | Davilla Ruiz |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 4,268 Referee: Elvis Osmanovic |
| June 10 15 | Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC | 4-0 | Orange County SC | Colorado Springs, Colorado |
| 6:00 PM | Skundrich Williams Henríquez Rios Herrera |
Report | Iloski Pedersen McNulty |
Stadium: Weidner Field Attendance: 6,930 Referee: Olvin Oliva |
| June 17 16 | FC Tulsa | 0-3 | Orange County SC | Tulsa, Oklahoma |
| 5:00 | McCabe Yosef Malou Bonet |
Report | Iloski Osundina Shutler Nakkim Amang |
Stadium: ONEOK Field Attendance: 4,333 Referee: Jose Carlos Rivero |
| June 24 17 | Detroit City FC | 0-1 | Orange County SC | Hamtramck, Michigan |
| 4:30 | Williams Lewis Carroll |
Report | Iloski Iloski McNulty Partida Nakkim Scott |
Stadium: Keyworth Stadium Attendance: 6,669 Referee: Alejo Calume |
July
| July 1 18 | Orange County SC | 3-1 | Monterey Bay FC | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 PM | Powers Amang Lambe Iloski |
Report | Rebollar Martínez Fehr Doner |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 5,500 Referee: Alex Beehler |
| July 9 19 | Rio Grande Valley FC Toros | 2-0 | Orange County SC | Edinburg, Texas |
| 5:00 | Ritondale Coronado Ackwei Ricketts Davila |
Report | Casiple Iloski Iloski |
Stadium: H.E.B. Park Attendance: 3,557 Referee: Nabil Bensalah |
| July 15 20 | Loudoun United FC | 1-3 | Orange County SC | Leesburg, Virginia |
| 4:30 | Landry Hopkins Leerman Garay Rocha |
Report | Nakkim McNulty Iloski Villanueva Osundina Amang |
Stadium: Segra Field Attendance: 2,458 Referee: Joe Surgan |
| July 22 21 | Memphis 901 FC | 3-4 | Orange County SC | Memphis, Tennessee |
| 5:30 | Hyndman Buckmaster da Costa Kelly Peters Ward Paul Lapa Pickering |
Report | Iloski Doghman McNulty Powers Doghman Villanueva Jamison |
Stadium: AutoZone Park Attendance: 3,971 Referee: John Griggs |
| July 29 22 | Orange County SC | 1-0 | New Mexico United | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 | Chattha Iloski Amang Shutler |
Report | Suggs Hamilton Seymore |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 5,500 Referee: Gabriele Giusti |
August
| August 5 23 | San Diego Loyal | 1-3 | Orange County SC | San Diego, California |
| 7:00 | Conway Martin Stoneman Damus |
Report | Casiple Scott Amang Iloski Shutler Osundina |
Stadium: Torero Stadium Attendance: 4,217 Referee: Malik Badawi |
| August 16 24 | Orange County SC | 1-0 | Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 PM | Iloski Partida Jamison Richards |
Report | Farrell Ybarra |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 4,019 Referee: Brad Jensen |
| August 19 25 | Orange County SC | 2-0 | Charleston Battery | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 PM | B. Iloski M. Iloski Scott Lambe |
Report | Wynne Palma Avila Dodson |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 5,500 Referee: Elijio Arreguin |
| August 26 26 | Sacramento Republic FC | 0-2 | Orange County SC | Sacramento, California |
| 7:30 | Report | Fox Amang Casiple Scott |
Stadium: Charles C. Hughes Stadium Attendance: 20,231 Referee: Ricardo Fierro |
September
| September 2 27 | Las Vegas Lights FC | 1-5 | Orange County SC | Las Vegas, Nevada |
| 7:30 | Bushue Carroll Rios |
Report | Iloski Amang Nakkim McNulty Lankford |
Stadium: Cashman Field Referee: John Matto |
| September 9 28 | Orange County SC | 0-0 | El Paso Locomotive FC | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 PM | Scott Nakkim Partida McNulty |
Report | Navarro Lyons Hinds Rose Gómez |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 5,500 Referee: Ramy Touchan |
| September 15 29 | Orange County SC | 0-1 | Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 | Partida |
Report | Echevarria Magee Herrera |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 4,344 Referee: Sergii Demianchuk |
| September 23 30 | San Antonio FC | 4-0 | Orange County SC | San Antonio, Texas |
| 5:30 | Fogaça Hayes Yacoubou Oluwaseyi Patino Taintor |
Report | Iloski Casiple McNulty Nakkim |
Stadium: Toyota Field Attendance: 7,513 Referee: Gerald Flores |
| September 30 31 | Phoenix Rising FC | 1-1 | Orange County SC | Phoenix, Arizona |
| 7:30 | Hernández Traore Cuello |
Report | Iloski Fox Powers |
Stadium: Phoenix Rising Soccer Stadium Attendance: 6,440 Referee: Matthew Thompson |
October
| October 4 32 | Orange County SC | 3-1 | Oakland Roots SC | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 | Scott M. Iloski Amang B. Iloski |
Report | Peláez Diaz Tamacas |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 3,378 Referee: Elvis Osmanovic |
| October 7 33 | Orange County SC | 1-0 | San Antonio FC | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 | Casiple Iloski McNulty Scott Fox Amang |
Report | Maloney Patino Azócar Boni |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 5,500 Referee: Brandon Stevis |
| October 14 34 | Monterey Bay FC | 0-1 | Orange County SC | Seaside, California |
| 7:00 | Glasser |
Report | Lankford Iloski Partida Fox |
Stadium: Cardinale Stadium Attendance: 5,278 Referee: Eric Tattersall |
USL Cup Playoffs
| October 21 Western Conference Quarterfinals | Orange County SC | 1-0 | El Paso Locomotive FC | Irvine, California |
| 7:30 | Iloski Scott |
Report | Dollenmayer Sonupe Rose Petrovic Díaz Calvillo |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 5,500 Referee: Natalie Simon |
| October 28 Western Conference Semifinals | Orange County SC | 1-2 (a.e.t.) | Phoenix Rising FC | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 | Amang Scott |
Report | Trejo Fuenmayor Uzochokwu Cuello |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 5,500 Referee: Calin Radosav |
U.S. Open Cup
As a member of the USL Championship, Orange County SC entered the tournament in the Second Round on April 5, 2023.[17]
| April 5 Second Round | Orange County SC | 5-0 | Capo FC | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 | Nielsen Jamison Partida Iloski Chattha Amang |
Report | Loya Cervantes Montes Vega Scalzo Olivia |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 1,588 Referee: Jervis Atagana |
| April 26 Third Round | Portland Timbers | 3-1 | Orange County SC | Portland, Oregon |
| 7:30 | Blanco Loría Clegg Sulte Niezgoda |
Report | Iloski |
Stadium: Providence Park Attendance: 11,639 Referee: Olvin Oliva |
References
- ^ "2023 USL Championship Attendance". Soccer America. October 16, 2023. Retrieved June 13, 2024.
- ^ "Orange County SC replaces coach Richard Chaplow after 8 games". Orange County Register. May 2, 2023. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
- ^ "The Hype is Building". Orange & Black SoccerCast. December 15, 2023. Retrieved June 13, 2024.
- ^ "Standings". uslchampionship.com. Retrieved June 13, 2024.
- ^ "Orange County 1-0 El Paso (Oct 21, 2023) Final Score". ESPN. Retrieved June 13, 2024.
- ^ "Phoenix 2-1 Orange County (Oct 28, 2023) Final Score". ESPN. Retrieved June 13, 2024.
- ^ "Match Center | USLChampionship.com". www.uslchampionship.com. Retrieved June 13, 2024.
- ^ USLChampionship com Staff (November 7, 2023). "USL Championship Announces 2023 All-League Teams". USL Championship. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
- ^ Burke, Elias. "Orange County SC's Milan Iloski moves to Nordsjaelland, continuing trend in USL". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
- ^ "Orange County SC's Milan Iloski headed to Europe after USL season". Orange County Register. September 13, 2023. Retrieved June 24, 2024.
- ^ "Orange County SC removes interim label for coach Morten Karlsen". Orange County Register. November 10, 2023. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
- ^ "Orange County SC Roster 2023". www.uslchampionship.com. Retrieved June 13, 2024.
- ^ "Minnesota United Loans Forward Cameron Dunbar to Orange County SC". August 15, 2023. Retrieved June 13, 2024.
- ^ "Technical Staff". Orange County SC. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
- ^ "ORANGE COUNTY SC POSTS 2023 PRESEASON SCHEDULE". Orange County SC. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
- ^ "ORANGE COUNTY SC ANNOUNCES FULL 2023 USL CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE". Orange County SC. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
- ^ "2023 U.S. Open Cup second round: Schedule and results". Pro Soccer Wire. April 12, 2023. Retrieved June 24, 2024.