Matchweek 25’s trip away to Swope Park Rangers (7th, 11-9-7, 40 pts) is the biggest match of the season for Energy FC (10th, 10-12-5, 35 pts). To be honest, each fixture for the remainder of the campaign will feel like a cup final, because the Greens need to pick up as many points as possible to have a shot at making the playoffs.

The sides met back on May 5 at Taft Stadium in a match that OKC dominated for the most part but let slip late; as Swope went on to win via a Hadji Barry penalty in the 86th minute. Despite outshooting SPR 17-5, OKC was unable to convert – something that was happening all too often during the 600-minute+ scoring drought.

Those days of struggling to break down defenses seem like ages ago, however. The Greens are currently in the midst of one of the club’s all-time best scoring runs, and the attack is carving opponents apart. For reference, OKC has scored 13 goals in the past four games. That’s only ever happened once before – last year’s final four regular season matches that cemented a spot in the playoffs.

Much of the improvement has to do with the players finally buying into and learning Head Coach Steve Cooke’s style of play. The personnel at Cooke’s disposal has also drastically changed over the past four months. Since May 5, Energy FC have added eight players to the roster: Cody Laurendi, Drew Beckie, Atiba Harris, Kalif Alhassan, Ryley Kraft, Adam Jahn, Monty Patterson and Marco Bustos. Those are some serious midseason additions, four of which are now regulars in the starting lineup!

While there are many new faces since the first meeting with SPR, there are plenty of guys that are not only looking for revenge from that defeat but also for how the 2017 season ended. For those that choose to block out unhappy memories, Energy FC and Swope Park Rangers battled for 120 minutes in last year’s Western Conference Final, only for Swope to advance to the USL Cup after 11 rounds of penalties.

These fixtures have historically been very tight, with the clubs splitting the all-time series with four wins a piece. That record is also split evenly between home and away, as both sides have each won two and lost two at their respective home grounds.

Energy FC have been trending up over the past couple of months, but Swope Park has had a tougher time. After beating Seattle Sounders FC 2 on July 5, SPR went winless in their next eight matches, losing five and drawing three. It wasn’t until this past week that SPR finally got a win, as they defeated San Antonio FC 2-1 at Toyota Field. First half goals from Barry and Amer Didic were enough to get the three points and add to the misery for SAFC of late. SPR picked up another valuable three points on Wednesday night after coming from behind to beat Tulsa Roughnecks FC 2-1 thanks to goals from Wan Kuzain and, of course, Barry.

Barry still leads the team with 10 goals this season, but Kharlton Belmar is right behind him with nine and on ten less appearances. Belmar, who was called up to Sporting Kansas City after starting off the USL season on fire, has not featured for the MLS side since being an unused substitute against Houston on August 5. It appears that he’s back for the run-in with Swope having played 268 minutes over their last three matches prior the win on Wednesday night. He was not in the squad against Tulsa.

Former Energy FC U23 goalkeeper Eric Dick is having an impressive first season with Swope Park after being drafted by Sporting #13 overall in the 2018 MLS SuperDraft. Dick, who has made two more appearances than Adrian Zendejas, leads the team in saves (36) and clean sheets (3).

For the Greens, more of the same is expected, as the team is hitting top gear at the right time. Christian Volesky is a man possessed, having scored in the last four matches and tying a club record in the process. If Volesky can find the back of the Sunday, he’ll break the Energy FC record for consecutive games with a goal, which he currently shares with Danni Konig and Jose Angulo.

Not enough can be said about Jose Barril, who was named to the bench for the latest USL Team of the Week. With another pair of assists, taking his season total to nine, it’s hard to imagine him not being on the shortlist for the USL’s August Player of the Month. Barril is now tied for second in the league in assists and is the all-time club leader with 12.

Slowing down the SPR attack is a challenge for any team, but if there is a defense that can do it, it’s OKC’s. The backline, anchored by Beckie and Harris with Laurendi in goal, has kept two clean sheets in the past four games. If they can do it again this week, you have to like OKC’s chances of scoring at least once.

On the latest episode of the Off Pitch Podcast, Beckie, in typical fashion, did not want to take much credit for the turnaround.

“It’s not me. There are a lot of reasons. We’ve done a good job of collectively defending well. There have been some good additions as well. Atiba has been fantastic, and whoever has been in the back, it’s been really good. A lot of guys that we’ve brought in have played a lot of games professional and at a lot of places, and you pick up so many things along the way.”

After the midweek fixtures, the Greens are four points off a playoff spot and the race is incredibly tight, with only seven points separating 6th from 12th. At the weekend, there are several matches to keep an eye on.

Fresno FC (12th, 34 pts) v Reno 1868 FC (6th, 41 pts)

Portland Timbers 2 (5th, 42 pts) v Saint Louis FC (8th, 39 pts)

LA Galaxy II (13th, 27 pts) v Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC (11th, 34 pts)

Sunday’s match against Swope Park Rangers kicks off at 4:00 p.m. at Children’s Mercy Park, and if you’re not making the trip, as always, you can watch live on espn+.