The Tri-Cities Otters are an amateur American soccer club based in Johnson City, Tennessee who most recently competed in the USL League Two in 2022. [1][2]

Tri-Cities Otters
Full nameTri-Cities Football Club
Nickname(s)Otters
FoundedJune 28, 2016; 7 years ago (2016-06-28)
StadiumTVA Credit Union Ballpark
Johnson City, Tennessee
OwnerOtter Soccer, LLC
Head CoachDavid Strickland
LeagueUSL League Two
20224th, South Central Division
Playoffs: DNQ
WebsiteClub website

History edit

Founded in 2016, the team represents the Tri-Cities Area communities in Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia.

As of the conclusion of the 2022 USL League Two season, the club has failed to qualify for the USL League Two playoffs for the 6 years they have participated in the USL.[3]

Hiatus (2022–present) edit

On December 12,2022, the team shared a statement to their social media accounts that "it is in the organization's best interest that we take the next year off from fielding a team". The club cited financial difficulties and the need for further planning prior to restarting. The same statement indicated that the club hoped to be active in time for the 2024 USL League Two season.[4]

On February 13, 2024, USL League Two announced the 128 teams participating in the 2024 season, confirming that Tri-Cities would not rejoin the league and would remain inactive for a second consecutive season.[5]

Stadium edit

The Otters play their home matches at TVA Credit Union Ballpark.

2022 Roster edit

As of December 1, 2023

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
00 GK   GER Jasper Rump
0 GK   USA Joshua Garvilla
1 GK   USA Shane Lanson
3 DF   ENG Ant Cox
4 DF   USA Andy Elkins
5 DF   USA Austin Yowell
6 DF   ENG Mike Peck
7 MF   COD Erick Kilosho
8 MF   CHI Nicholas Cortes
9 FW   CRC Esteban Leiva
10 FW   ENG Patrick O'Halloran
11 FW   ENG Mikey Saunders
11 MF   ARG Agu Ortiz
12 FW   USA Davis Eddleman
14 FW   JPN Shoki Yoshida
15 DF   GER Torge Witteborg
16 DF   USA Will Stallworth
No. Pos. Nation Player
17 FW   CHI Sebastian Borquez
18 MF   ENG Fletcher Dyson
19 FW   ESP Aritz Uriarte
20 FW   DEN Soeren Nygaard
21 FW   USA Daniel Garvilla
22 MF   ISR Tom Tzabari
23 MF   USA Nate Dragisich
24 MF   USA Edin Hernandez
26 FW   ENG David Panter
27 DF   USA Ethan Bishop
28 FW   ENG Conal Gallagher
29 MF   MEX Raul Varela
30 FW   USA Davis McBee
31 DF   GER Jan Gruhn
33 DF   USA Kelly Gieber
35 DF   USA David Evans
99 FW   NOR Noah Kvifte

Year-by-year edit

Up to date as of December 1, 2023.

Year League Regular season Playoffs Open Cup
2016 USL PDL 8th, South Atlantic did not qualify did not enter
2017 USL PDL 9th, South Atlantic did not qualify did not qualify
2018 USL PDL 5th, Deep South did not qualify did not qualify
2019 USL League Two 4th, South Atlantic did not qualify did not qualify
2020 USL League Two Season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic
2021 USL League Two 4th, South Atlantic did not qualify did not qualify
2022 USL League Two 4th, South Central did not qualify did not qualify
2023 Team on Hiatus

References edit

  1. ^ Tri-Cities Otters Archived 2019-02-02 at the Wayback Machine at www.uslleaguetwo.com
  2. ^ "PDL Announces Addition of Tri-Cities FC for 2016 Season". Premier Development League (PDL). January 28, 2016. Archived from the original on March 22, 2019. Retrieved January 28, 2016.
  3. ^ "Standings - 2022 Regular Season - South Central Division". www.uslleaguetwo.com. Archived from the original on 2023-12-05. Retrieved 2024-02-13.
  4. ^ "Otter Soccer to take year off after financial struggles". WJHL | Tri-Cities News & Weather. 2022-12-12. Archived from the original on 2023-12-22. Retrieved 2023-12-01.
  5. ^ Staff, USLLeagueTwo com (2024-02-13). "USL League Two Announces 2024 Divisional Alignment". USL League Two. Archived from the original on 2024-02-13. Retrieved 2024-02-13.