LEXINGTON, Ky. – Fort Wayne Football Club completed its preseason slate of matches with a competitive 2-1 loss Friday to Lexington SC, which plays in USL Championship – a division one level higher than USL League One.
“It was a great exercise for us tonight to wrap our preseason against Lexington,” Fort Wayne FC’s head coach, Mike Avery, said. “No club in the Championship has been as aggressive in the offseason as Lexington, and it was easy to see the talent they’ve collected. They will be a team that challenges this season, and we wish them good luck moving forward. They were great hosts.”
Jack Thomas, who was added to the roster Thursday, had the Fort Wayne FC goal for a 1-0 lead in the 10th minute. Thomas had a standout college season for Louisiana State University-Shreveport in 2025, when he was named the United Soccer Coaches’ NAIA Player of the Year.
Lexington’s Michael Adedokun tied Friday’s match in the 28th minute. Adedokun was a familiar face; he played for Fort Wayne FC in the pre-professional level of USL League Two in 2022.
The winning goal came from Lexington’s Marcus Epps in the 47th minute.
“I was proud of our team and how well they competed tonight,” Avery said. “We were very good to open the game and throughout the first half. Lexington really pushed us through the second half, which was exactly why I wanted a game like this – we need challenges like this to grow, and we grew a lot tonight. In the latter stages of the second half we created a few really good chances to level the game, but in all it was a fair result and sets us up well heading into Matchday 1 of the regular season.”
Fort Wayne FC’s previous four preseason matches were closed-door events – against FC Cincinnati 2 of MLS Next Pro, Bethel University, Indiana Tech, and Columbus Crew 2 of MLS Next Pro – and neither scores nor statistics from those matches were reported.
Now, Fort Wayne FC will focus fully on its first ever regular-season match in the professional ranks, March 7 against FC Naples in Naples, Florida.
“I really like our team and feel good about our potential heading into the season,” Avery said. “We have some roster challenges that we will be working through for a few more weeks, but we have a talented young squad that is nowhere close to its ceiling yet. If we keep improving as we’ve done over the last month, this will be a fun team to follow.”
Fort Wayne FC’s season opener will be the first of five consecutive road matches before the May 2 home opener against the Charlotte Independence – the first ever match at Fort Wayne FC Park, the soccer-specific stadium being built at Bass Road and I-69.
Season tickets for Fort Wayne FC’s first season in professional soccer are on sale. Six-game Mini Plans are also available.
About Fort Wayne Football Club
Fort Wayne Football Club, founded in 2019, is a professional soccer club playing its first season in USL League One in 2026. The club is building a state-of-the-art, soccer-specific stadium, Fort Wayne FC Park, that will open at Bass Road and I-69 in 2026. In pre-professional USL League Two, Fort Wayne Football Club won division titles in 2023, 2024 and 2025. For more information, visit FortWayneFC.com.
About United Soccer League
Founded in 1986, the United Soccer League (USL) is the largest and fastest-growing soccer organization in the United States, impacting more than 200 communities nationwide. The USL is the first and only organization to offer a comprehensive youth-to-professional pathway for both men and women under one ecosystem. This structure includes four men’s leagues: the newly announced, top-tier professional Division I league, the USL Championship (Division II), USL League One (Division III), and USL League Two (pre-professional). The women’s pathway includes the top-tier USL Super League (Division I), which debuted in 2024, and USL W League, the country’s leading pre-professional women’s league. The USL also oversees USL Academy, a progressive talent development platform, and USL Youth, a premier national youth platform.