On Saturday, Rhode Island FC will return to Centreville Bank Stadium after a three-week break as it gets set for an Independence Day clash with Western Conference leaders Orange County SC at 7:30 p.m. RIFC entered the break on a two-game win-streak, having out-scored its opponents 11-3 in its last four games across all competitions. It will look to continue that streak as it resumes regular-season action on Saturday, playing in front of the home fans for the first time since June 6. Ahead of Independence Day at Centreville Bank Stadium, which will conclude with the City of Pawtucket Official Fireworks Show, presented by Rhode Island Energy, here is everything you need to know.
AT A GLANCE
Date | Saturday, July 4
Kickoff | 7:30 p.m. ET
Location | Centreville Bank Stadium – Pawtucket, R.I.
Broadcast | myRITV, WPRI 12+
Radio | 790 The Score (WPRV 790 AM)
Social | @rhodeislandfc (X, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok)
Game Hashtag | #RIvOC
Last Meeting | Sept. 15, 2024: OC 1-0 RI – Irvine, California
ORANGE COUNTY SC
Roster
GOALKEEPERS (2): 1-Alex Rando, 31-Tetsuya Kadono
DEFENDERS (7): 2-Grayson Doody, 4-Nico Benalcazar, 5-Tom Brewitt, 6-Garrison Tubbs, 13-Pedro Guimaraes, 15-Tyson Espy, 23-Ryan Doghman
MIDFIELDERS (9): 8-Ousmane Sylla, 10-Chris Hegardt, 14-Brandon Cambridge, 18-Marcelo Palomino, 19-Kevin Partida, 25-Efren Solis, 27-Stephen Kelly, 29-Oliver Kurnik, 32-Nicola Ciotta
FORWARDS (7): 9-Ethan Zubak, 11-Lyam MacKinnon, 12-Yaniv Bazini, 17-Jamir Johnson, 20-Mataeo Bunbury, 21-Mouhamadou War, 22-Apolo Marinch
Flying High
Orange County SC is unbeaten in its last five regular-season games, retaining the top spot in the Western Conference standings with a 4-2 win at Miami FC on June 24 and scoring at least three goals for the second-straight road game. After 10 days of rest, the Western Conference leaders will play the fifth of their six-game road stretch in their first-ever trip to the Ocean State, looking to become just the second visiting team in 2026 to defeat Rhode Island FC at Centreville Bank Stadium. Orange County leads the Western Conference with seven wins, a +7 goal differential and is tied for the second-fewest losses in the league (2) behind only the league-leading Tampa Bay Rowdies.
Life on the Road
With the United States Men’s National Team utilizing Orange County SC’s home ground, Championship Soccer Stadium, as its dedicated training facility during this summer’s tournament, Orange County has played the majority of its summer stretch on the road. OCSC’s trip to Rhode Island FC will mark the club’s fifth-straight road game across all competitions, and comes in the midst of a brutal stretch in which Orange County will play just one home game in a 10-game stretch through July 11. Despite the logistical challenge, the club has not missed a beat, scoring seven goals and picking up two wins in its last two games. OCSC comes to Pawtucket riding a five-game unbeaten run (2W-0L-3T), scoring a staggering 13 goals in that run. Having lost just once in eight road games in the regular season (4W-1L-3T), OCSC’s four road wins rank second in the USL Championship in 2026, and its 15 goals away from home lead the league.
Players to Watch
Orange County’s Yaniv Bazini has come alive in his last two games, scoring three goals in the space of four days to bring his team-leading total to five. The 26-year-old forward, who is leading the charge in his first season in the USL Championship after logging 11 goals for former USL League One club South Georgia Tormenta FC in 2025, scored his first career USL Championship brace in OCSC’s 4-2 win in Miami. Fourth-year USL veteran and 2024 USL League One Golden Boot winner Lyam MacKinnon closely trails Bazini with four goals this season, scoring his fourth goal of the season in Orange County’s 3-2 comeback win at Las Vegas Lights FC on June 20. Three other players have registered multiple goals for a balanced Orange County attack whose 22 goals rank sixth in the USL Championship this season.
RHODE ISLAND FC
Roster
GOALKEEPERS (3): 1-Koke Vegas, 13-Will Meyer, 29-Jacob Castro
DEFENDERS (8): 2-Dani Rovira, 3-Aldair Sanchez, 4-Hugo Bacharach, 5-Grant Stoneman, 15-Frank Nodarse, 22-Nick Scardina, 24-Karifa Yao, 25-CJ Williams, 32-Hamady Diop
MIDFIELDERS (7): 7-Dwayne Atkinson, 10-Agustín “Pity” Rodríguez, 12-Clay Holstad, 17-Jojea Kwizera, 19-Kevin Vang, 21-Zachary Herivaux, 77-Amos Shapiro-Thompson
FORWARDS (4): 8-Leo Afonso, 9-JJ Williams, 11-Noah Fuson, 20-Jamin Gogo Peters
Back at Home
Rhode Island FC enters Saturday’s game after stringing together two-straight wins across all competitions for the first time in 2026, dominating USL League One club Westchester SC 3-0 on June 6 before earning its second-largest road win in club history, 4-1 at Loudoun United FC, on June 13. After nearly one month away, Rhode Island FC will return to Centreville Bank Stadium looking for a third-straight win. Rhode Island FC has lost just once in 11 games at Centreville Bank Stadium this season across all competitions (6W-1L-4T). That record includes results against each of the top three teams in the Eastern Conference standings: Tampa Bay Rowdies (1-1), Charleston Battery (4-0) and Detroit City FC (0-0).
Attacking Battle
Saturday’s battle between Rhode Island FC and Orange County SC will pit two of the hottest attacking teams in the USL Championship against each other: OCSC ranks second in the league with 11 regular-season goals since May 23, while Rhode Island FC sits fourth in the league with eight goals in that time, despite taking a three-week break and playing just two regular-season games. Both squads have scored at least three goals in each of their last two games, and enter Saturday’s contest in the midst of two-game win streaks. RIFC is led by JJ Williams, who scored his team-leading ninth goal of the season and tallied his first career multi-assist game for RIFC in its dominant win at Loudoun United FC on June 13. Williams will look to score in his third-straight game on Saturday to continue his prolific season, chasing his career-high 11-goal year with RIFC during its inaugural season in 2024.
For the Recordbooks
Rhode Island FC and Orange County SC have met just once before, with Orange County earning a 1-0 shutout win at Championship Soccer Stadium on Sept. 15, 2024. The defeat marked the final loss of the 2024 regular season for the Ocean State club, which then embarked on a club-record nine-game unbeaten run that took it all the way to the 2024 USL Championship Final in its historic inaugural season. On Saturday, RIFC will look for its long-awaited revenge against Orange County when the clubs meet for the first time in nearly two calendar years.
