ST. PETERSBURG, FL – Tampa Bay Rowdies Midfielder Lewis Hilton has been named to the USL Championship Team of the Week for his stellar performance in Tampa Bay’s 5-1 victory at Phoenix Rising FC in Week 10 of the campaign. Hilton is the third Rowdies player to earn Team of the Week honors, following his teammates Juan Tejada and CJ Cochran.
Rowdies attacker Jake LaCava earned a spot on the Bench for the USL Championship Team of the Week Bench after recording a goal and an assist in Phoenix.
Hilton recorded one assist in the match, perfectly freeing wingback Dayonn Harris with a ball played into the final third for Harris to chip past the keeper. However, Hilton’s impact was felt outside of that lone assist. The midfielder pulled all the strings for the Rowdies in the middle of the field, completing 78 of 83 his pass attempts as the Rowdies recorded 88 percent of their passes on the night.
Now in his third season in Tampa Bay, Hilton continues to prove to be an invaluable piece of the puzzle for the Rowdies. Hilton missed the club’s 3-2 loss to San Diego Loyal at Al Lang Stadium on April 30 due to an ankle injury but returned for the trip out to Phoenix. After Sunday, Hilton has now appeared in 63 total matches for the Green & Gold.
Hilton and the Rowdies return to Al Lang this Saturday for their only home match in May to host Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC. Tickets for the match can be purchased here or by calling the Rowdies ticket office at 727-222-2000.
View the full USL Championship Team of the Week below.
USL Championship Team of the Week – Week 10
GK – Kevin Silva, Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC: Silva recorded a five-save shutout, including a late penalty kick denial on El Paso’s Luis Solignac, to preserve a 1-0 win for the Hounds against Locomotive FC at Highmark Stadium.
D – Mitchell Taintor, San Antonio FC: Taintor put in a stellar defensive display as San Antonio took a 2-0 victory on the road against Miami FC, winning 8 of 11 duels and 6 of 7 aerial duels and recording four interceptions while scoring a late penalty kick to ice the game.
D – Brent Richards, Orange County SC: Richards recorded one assist, two shots and four chances created as he joined the attack on the right flank and completed 46 of 54 passes and 3 of 3 dribbles in Orange County’s victory against Tulsa.
D – Zach Carroll, Memphis 901 FC: Carroll scored the opening goal in Memphis’ victory against Indy Eleven on Saturday night while defensively winning 6 of 6 duels and 5 of 5 aerial duels and making six clearances for the hosts at AutoZone Park.
M – Mikko Kuningas, Orange County SC: The Finnish playmaker recorded a pair of assists, had seven chances created overall and completed 44 of 47 passes and 2 of 2 dribbles as Orange County rolled to victory against FC Tulsa on Friday night.
M – Maxi Rodriguez, Detroit City FC: Rodriguez scored once on two shots, completed 34 of 45 passes and put in a big defensive display in midfield, winning 12 of 17 duels and 4 of 6 tackles while registering 13 recoveries in a 4-2 win against Loudoun United FC.
M – Aaron Molloy, Memphis 901 FC: Molloy put in an impressive shift in the center of midfield, completing 43 of 48 passes and recording three chances created while winning 6 of 9 duels and making four interceptions and 13 recoveries in 901 FC’s 2-1 win against Indy Eleven.
M – Lewis Hilton, Tampa Bay Rowdies: The English midfielder ran the show for the Rowdies in their 5-1 win on the road at Phoenix Rising FC, completing 78 of 83 passes and recording one assist on four chances created while making 11 recoveries at Wild Horse Pass.
F – Milan Iloski, Orange County SC: Iloski scored the first hat trick of his professional career, and the fourth in Orange County’s history, as the hosts delivered a five-goal first half in their victory against FC Tulsa at Championship Soccer Stadium.
F – Cameron Dunbar, LA Galaxy II: The 19-year-old scored a pair of goals on three shots as Los Dos handed Louisville City FC its first loss of the season in a 4-3 victory on Friday night, while also completing 7 of 8 passes and winning 4 of 8 duels.
F – Russell Cicerone, Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC: Cicerone scored the only goal as the Hounds took victory against El Paso Locomotive FC as part of a strong all-around performance in which he recorded four shots and three chances created and won 6 of 10 duels and completed 4 of 6 dribbles.
Bench: Alex Tambakis (NM), Robert Coronado (RGV), Alex Lara (LV), Jeremy Kelly (MEM), Chris Wehan (NM), Jake LaCava (TBR), Corey Hertzog (HFD)
