Indianapolis – Indy Eleven clinched a berth in the USL Championship playoffs with an exciting 3-2 victory over Birmingham Legion FC at Carroll Stadium on Saturday night. The Boys in Blue (14-10-9) are in fourth place in the Eastern Conference with 51 points heading into the regular season finale next Saturday at the Tampa Bay Rowdies. The top four teams in the East will host the first round of the playoffs the first weekend in November.
The 14 victories and 51 points this season are the second best in franchise USLC history, only trailing 2019 (19-9-6, 63 points). The Eleven extended their current unbeaten streak to five (3-0-2), including a 2-0-2 mark in October. The last time that Indy Eleven made consecutive playoff appearances came in 2018 and 2019.
The Boys in Blue recorded two goals in a 1:31 span to take a 2-0 first-half lead. In the 14th minute, captain Aodhan Quinn centered a long ball from the left sideline to Douglas Martinez for a header that Birmingham defender Phanuel Kavita inadvertently directed into his own goal.
Just more than 90 seconds later, midfielder Brem Soumaoro turned and played a quick pass up the right sideline to Martinez. Dougie took two touches to get just inside the area where he passed it back to Jack Blake who took a quick touch and blasted it into the top left corner. It was Blake’s 10th goal of the season, and it came in his 50th start in two years for the Boys in Blue. He is now tied for fourth in franchise USLC history with 13 goals.
After Birmingham closed to within one early in the second half, it was two second-half substitutions connecting for the game winner. In the 86th minute, midfielder Ben Mines dribbled down the right sideline and delivered a cross that was deflected to Laurence Wootton whose first touch went into the bottom right corner of the goal.
Indy Eleven finishes its regular season next Saturday at 7:30 p.m. vs. the Tampa Bay Rowdies in a match with huge Eastern Conference playoff ramifications. The match will be played at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, and it will be televised on WNDY 23 and streamed on ESPN+.
Indy Eleven 3:2 Birmingham Legion FC
Saturday, October 19, 2024 – 7:00 p.m. ET
Carroll Stadium | Indianapolis
2024 USL Championships Records
Indy Eleven: 14-10-9 (+2), 51 pts; 4th in Eastern Conference
Birmingham Legion FC: 12-15-6 (-12), 42 pts; 11th in Eastern Conference
Weather: Clear, 64 degrees
Attendance: 10,540
| Score | 1 | 2 | F |
| Indy Eleven | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Birmingham Legion FC | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Scoring Summary
IND – Own goal 14’
IND – Jack Blake (Douglas Martinez) 15’
BHM – Stefano Pinho (Moses Mensah) 54’
IND – Laurence Wootton 86’
BHM – Rida Zouhir (Enzo Martinez) 90’
Discipline Summary
IND – Augi Williams (caution) 79’
Indy Eleven line-up: Hunter Sulte, Aedan Stanley, Ben Ofeimu, James Musa, Logan Neidlinger, Aodhan Quinn (captain), Brem Soumaoro (Laurence Wootton 55’), Jack Blake, Maalique Foster (Ben Mines 72’), Douglas Martinez (Romario Williams 45’), Augi Williams (Elliot Collier 80’).
Indy Eleven Subs not used: Yannik Oettl, Josh O’Brien, Callum Chapman-Page.
Birmingham Legion FC: Matt Van Oekel, Moses Mensah, Phanuel Kavita (captain), Alex Crognale, Derek Dodson, Kobe Hernández-Foster (Darwin Matheus 78’), Rida Zouhir, Enzo Martínez, Tyler Pasher (Diba Nwegbo 87’), Stéfano Pinho, Preston Tabort Etaka.
Birmingham Legion FC Subs not used: Ramiz Hamouda, Jake Rufe, Trevor Spangenberg, AJ Paterson, Miguel Perez.
| Stat | IND | BHM |
| Shots | 11 | 20 |
| Shots on Target | 5 | 6 |
| Offsides | 0 | 2 |
| Corner Kicks | 2 | 4 |
| Fouls | 11 | 9 |
| Saves | 4 | 3 |
