• Portland Timbers 2 (10 Wins, 3 Draws, 9 Losses) currently sit in 7^th place in the USL Western Conference table, 3 points and 3 places below Rising in 4^th.
• This is the first encounter between both clubs this season.  Rising won both games in 2017 by a combined score of 6-1.
• However, Timbers 2 are currently enjoying a more successful season than 2017. They’ve already earned more than double the points they earned last year, but come into today’s game on the back of a mixed run of form.  In their last 5 games, they’ve won 2, lost 2, and drawn the other.
• They’ve won 5 home games to date, and lost the other 5.  Real Monarchs, Sacramento Republic, Swope Park Rangers, RGV, and Los Dos have all left Providence Park without a point to show for their efforts.  The home losses, perhaps surprisingly, have come against OKC Energy, the Switchbacks, Fresno, Las Vegas Lights, and Reno.
• So far, 34 players have featured for Timbers this season. While that isn’t remarkable for an MLS reserve team, it does mean that nobody has played in all 22 games. The player with the most appearances is midfielder Jimmy Mulligan, who joined in the close season from New York Cosmos.  He’s featured in 20 of Timbers 2’s 22 games to date, 19 of them as a starter.
• Timbers 2 are one of the most clinical USL sides in front of goal. They are tied in 5^th place for their shot conversion rate of 17%.  By comparison, Rising have converted 13% of their shots into goals.
• Foster Langsdorf has played a key role in the transformation of Timbers 2 into a USL playoff contender.  The 22 year-old Timbers Academy graduate has scored 10 goals so far this season, and is on loan from the MLS senior side after signing his first full-time contact at the start of the season. Comparing Langsdorf with Rising’s current top scorer Chris Cortez, the Oregon-based forward to date has shown greater shooting accuracy and scored 1 goal more, despite playing 2 games less.

• The remainder of the team’s goals have been shared between 11 players, with no individual picking up more than 4.
• Forward/winger Marvin Loría is one of 3 players with 4 goals to his name. Currently on loan from Deportivo Saprissa (Liga FPD), he has also been capped at U20 level by Costa Rica.
• Victor Aboleda and Augustine Williams have also scored 4 goals each to date.
• Aboleda signed for Timbers 2 back in 2016.  Capped at U15 and U17 level for Colombia, he made 5 MLS appearances signing a full-time contract with the senior side in 2017.
• Twenty year-old Augustine Williams hails from Sierra Leone and joined Timbers 2 in August 2016.
• Timbers 2 appear particularly dangerous in front of goal in the last 15 minutes of either half.  Four of their goals in a 7-3 mid-May home win over Los Dos were scored in the final 10 minutes, including 3 goals in injury time.

• They have scored in every home game this season, and only failed to find the net in 3 away games (goaless draws in Tulsa and Saint Louis, and a 1-0 defeat in Reno).
• Renzo Zambrano is instrumental in the Timbers’ buildup play. Now in his second season in Oregon, the former Real Valladolid (Spain) Venezuelan anchors his side’s midfield.
• Attacking midfielder Eryk Wiliamson, previously linked with Schalke in Germany, has clocked up 3 goals and 2 assists in 14 appearances in 2018.  However, he will have to be careful against Rising as he is only a yellow card away from a suspension.
• In defense, Lithuanian left back Vytautas Andriuškevičius has made several appearances for Timbers 2 on loan from the senior team in 2018. Andriuškevičius has 26 full international caps, and has played for Lechia Gdánsk in Poland, Djurgårdens in Sweden, and Cambuur in the Netherlands.
• Roy Miller has also appeared at the back for Timbers 2 this season. With 59 full caps for Costa Rica, he offers much-needed experience to a side featuring many younger players.
• Timbers 2 are twice as likely to concede a goal in the second half as the first.

• Goalkeeping duties have been primarily shared by Kendall McIntosh and Alex Mangels.
• Kendall McIntosh first signed for Timbers 2 in 2016, and was given a contract by the senior team a year later.  He was part of the U.S. team that finished runners-up in the CONCACAF U20 Championship in 2013.  At college, he also featured for PDL side FC Tucson.  McIntosh has made 12 appearances for Timbers 2 in 2018, conceding 20 goals, and keeping 4 clean sheets.  He was Timbers 2’s last line of defence in their California road trip to Los Dos and Orange County last week.
• Alex Mangels is a former Tulsa goalkeeper (17 appearances straight out of college in 2016).  He also spent time in the NASL with San Franciso Deltas before joining Timbers 2 this season. Mangels has made 8 appearances for Timbers 2 in 2018, conceding 12 goals, and keeping 3 clean sheets.
• Comparing both Timbers 2 keepers to Rising’s number 1, Woszczynski has a higher save success rate (75.7%) than McIntosh (68.8%) and Mangels (61.3%).

• Austin Pack and Jeff Attinella have also clocked up 1 goalkeeper appearance apiece for Timbers 2 this season.  Attinella even managed to record a clean sheet.
• From a disciplinary perspective, Timbers 2 are far more likely to finish the game with 11 men than Rising, picking up a single red card this season compared to Rising’s 5.  Defender Lamar Batista was the Timbers 2 player dismissed for a second bookable offence in injury time in the 3-2 home win over RGV on April 18.
• Timbers 2 have also collected 35 yellow cards this season.

From the Ashes Prediction:  Rising to steal 3 points on the road.