Fort Wayne Football Club, once again, held its own against a team from the higher-level USL Championship division.
Aurie Echevarría was impressive for Fort Wayne FC with seven saves. Lilian Ricol scored in the 86th minute for his eighth goal of the season regardless of competition. And Jeremy Garay received Man of the Match honors for completing 58 of 62 passes, to go with two tackles and two clearances.
But Detroit City FC still emerged with the 2-1 victory in front of 4,214 raucous fans at Ruoff Mortgage Stadium on Saturday night. The match began with U.S. Representative Marlin Stutzman presenting the game ball, featured mascot Friendly the Goalrilla a week after he was introduced for the first time to fans, and saw the new Team Store opened on the Ruoff Mortgage Stadium grounds.
It was a Prinx Tires USL Cup match that didn’t impact the standings for Fort Wayne FC, which had already been eliminated from advancing past group play. The Autumn Gold & Black went 0-3-1 in their first ever run in the USL Cup, including getting a point against another USL Championship side, Indy Eleven (which won in penalty kicks), and building a lead against USL Championship’s Louisville City FC.
Fort Wayne FC, which is 6-2-6 in USL League One, holds an 11-match unbeaten streak in league action – the second-longest run ever by a first-year squad. The Autumn Gold & Black will be back to league action Wednesday, when they face defending-champion One Knoxville SC on the road.
On Saturday, Fort Wayne FC will be back at Ruoff Mortgage Stadium for a 7:30 p.m. match against Greenville Triumph SC. It will be John Bellio Cancer Night and Fort Wayne FC will be doing much to raise money to combat the horrible disease. Tickets are on sale now.
Detroit City FC (7-3-4 in USL Championship), despite winning, also failed to advance in the USL Cup competition with a 2-2-0 record.
“They’re a good team and there were moments in the game when we identified areas we need to grow, but there were other moments when we looked quite good as well,” Fort Wayne FC coach Mike Avery said. “The thing I love about this team is they just keep coming back. They don’t give up, they don’t take a day off, and it doesn’t matter who we put out on the field. They just keep going. And I love that, that’s a great quality for our team.
“Look, we got some rest for some guys tonight, we got some experience for some guys tonight, and we gave the crowd a good game. Nothing to be worried about tonight.”
Ricol’s goal, assisted on by Clarence Awoudor, was the final tally of the match. Detroit City FC got goals from Darren Smith, the leading goal scorer in USL Championship with 11, and Rafael Mentzingen, who played in college for Avery at Valparaiso University.
“(The USL Cup matches) made our team better through tough competition,” Fort Wayne FC’s goalkeeper, Echevarría, said. “These are USL Championship teams and it’s obviously great to play against a level like that.”
Detroit City FC’s Carlos Saldaña thwarted one shot. Overall, Detroit City FC outshot Fort Wayne FC 25-6, including 9-2 in shots on target.
Earlier in the day, Fort Wayne FC added 16-year-old Johnny Aye to the roster on an academy contract. Aye joined Nico Burns and Tyson Hagaman as academy players with Fort Wayne FC, meaning they are able to retain their high school and/or college eligibility while training with and competing against professional players.
“It’s really exciting,” said Aye, an incoming junior at Northrop High School. “They’ve given me a lot of opportunities here.”
Aye played one match for Fort Wayne FC in the pre-professional level of USL League Two in 2025 and holds the club record for youngest player to appear in a match at age 15.
Match photos
Videos
Box score
FORT WAYNE FC 0-1-1
DETROIT CITY FC 0-2-2
Prinx Tires USL Cup group play
July 11, 2026
At Ruoff Mortgage Stadium, Fort Wayne, Indiana
Attendance: 4,214
RECORDS: FW 6-2-6 (USL League One), 0-3-1 (USL Cup); DET 7-4-3 (USL Championship), 2-0-2 (USL CUP)
GOALS: FW— Lilian Ricol; DET— Darren Smith, Rafael Mentzingen.
ASSISTS: FW— Clarence Awoudor; DET– Ryan Williams, Hakiru Yamazaki.
SAVES: FW— Aurie Echevarría 7; DET— Carlos Saldana 1.
POSSESSION: FW—48.9%; DET—51.1%.
YELLOW CARDS: FW— Reid Sproat; DET— Alasanne Ates Diouf, Kobe Hernández-Foster.
RED CARDS: FW—None; DET—None
REFEREE: Carlos Rodriguez
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 plays home matches at Ruoff Mortgage Stadium, which opened May 2, 2026, and is a soccer-specific venue. 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.