TAMPA, Fla. – USL League One today announced the Team of the Week for Week 18 of the 2024 regular season with Union Omaha midfielder Joe Gallardo named Player of the Week presented by Konami eFootball with a brace and a penalty won against his former club.

Following a fourth-minute opener from Brandon Knapp, Gallardo closed out the match against Richmond with a goal on either side of halftime to advance the Owls to second place in the table. Since the start of his special USL League One All-League First Team campaign with Richmond in 2019, the former United States youth international has amassed four multi-goal-contribution matches.

"I'm just happy to be named Player of the Week and happy to help the team get three points!" Gallardo said.

"Joe has developed into a leader in our locker room over the past two seasons, so it's great to see his growth being recognized with a well-deserved honor as Player of the Week," said Omaha Head Coach Dominic Casciato. "Creative players who have the mentality to put the team first are worth their weight in gold, so we are happy for Joe and look forward to seeing what he brings to the group as we compete for three trophies going into the latter stages of the season."

COACH - Mike Jeffries, Charlotte Independence: The Independence extended their unbeaten streak to nine across all competitions with a 4-0 thumping of Central Valley on Saturday - their longest unbeaten stretch since 2017. Despite the visitors holding advantages in several statistical categories, Jeffries' Jacks recorded their largest win since 2022.

GK - Austin Pack, Charlotte Independence: Named to the Team of the Week for the sixth time this season, Pack recorded his fifth clean sheet of the season and added seven saves in a 4-0 drubbing of Central Valley.

D - Clay Dimick, Charlotte Independence: Helping Charlotte to its largest victory since a 5-1 thrashing against North Carolina on Oct. 14, 2022, Dimick guided the Jacks to a clean sheet, tallied one goal and four recoveries and completed 89% of his passes.

D - Ahmed Longmire, Spokane Velocity FC: Longmire scored his third goal of the season to help Spokane salvage a point on the road in Knoxville. The 24-year-old added four clearances, four duels won, two recoveries, and completed 92% of his passes.

D - Lucky Opara, Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC: Northern Colorado's Nigerian defender tallied his fifth assist of the season in a big win against Greenville. Opara added five recoveries, four clearances, three completed long passes, two successful dribbles, two duels won and completed 92% of his passes.

D - Anton Sorenson, Charlotte Independence: Appearing on the Team of the Week in back-to-back weeks, Sorenson was productive in Charlotte's shutout victory against Central Valley. The Philadelphia Union Academy product completed 82% of his passes and totaled nine duels won, six completed long passes, five clearances, three recoveries, three successful dribbles and two fouls won.

M - Joe Gallardo, Union Omaha: The former United States youth international recorded the second brace of his professional career in Omaha's 3-0 victory against Richmond. Gallardo added one penalty won, seven duels won, four chances created, four fouls won and completed 79% of his passes.

M - Real Gill, Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC: The 21-year-old Trinidad and Tobago international bagged the second goal of his first professional season in a big home victory against Greenville. Across 63 minutes of play, Gill tallied one penalty won, two recoveries, two duels won, two completed long passes and completed 100% of his 11 passes.

M - Billy King, Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC: Now up to 20 goal contributions across all competitions after tallying an assist against Greenville, King only trails Trevor Amann, Arthur Rogers and Bruno Rendón for most in club history. The Scottish midfielder also recorded five recoveries, four duels won, four total chances created, two tackles won and completed 86% of his passes.

M - Brandon Knapp, Union Omaha: Nearing the conclusion of his first season as a professional, Knapp bagged his first professional goal in match-winning fashion against Richmond on Saturday. In addition to his score in the fourth minute, Knapp added six recoveries, four duels won, two completed long passes and 82% passing accuracy.

F - Ethan Hoard, Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC: Across all competitions, first-year professional Ethan Hoard is up to 18 goal contributions across all competitions. In addition to a goal and an assist against Greenville, the former RKC Third Coast, Green Bay and UC Davis talent contributed with an additional three duels won, two recoveries and two successful dribbles.

F - Kempes Tekiela, One Knoxville SC: With his 11th goal of the season in his first year in Knoxville, Tekiela has now surpassed former USL League Two talent and current Canada international Stephen Afrifa as One Knox's all-time leading scorer across all competitions. Knoxville's German gem totaled four shots on target, three completed crosses and one chance created.

BENCH: Amal Knight (LEX), Jordan Skelton (KNX), Adrian Billhardt (RIC), Omar Ciss (CLT), Isidro Martínez (NCO), Derek Waldeck (SPK), Juan Carlos Obregón, Jr. (CLT)