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Austin FC flags flew high at the match in Denver, where 100+ fans watched the club make their first-ever win. (Austin FC/Twitter)
After a flat first half against the Colorado Rapids on Saturday, it was Diego Fagundez who realized the club's first-ever goal in the second match of Austin FC history.
Fagundez was pounced on by his teammates as he looked toward the Verde-clad crowd, throwing up a signature LV in recognition of Austin FC fan club Los Verdes. Some cried, others cheered as the team went on to celebrate their first victory.
The club has a lot to live up to after their explosive 3-1 win on Saturday, which featured a nonstop 12-minute stretch of three unanswered Austin FC goals. Designated Player Cecilio Dominguez scored twice after Fagundez, helping to shut down the Rapids and keep a wave of energy through the end of the match.
With a decisive win in their rearview and the expectations of the entire league on their shoulders, Austin FC is looking to keep their momentum and secure their second win in history this weekend.
Austin FC vs. Minnesota United
Minnesota United is coming off of a 4th place finish in the Western Conference, but the Loons have only managed to score once in both matches played this season.
The club lost big (4-0) to the Seattle Sounders for their season opener, but that could've been more of a reflection of Seattle, an MLS Cup favorite, than themselves.
Minnesota's lone goal came from midfielder Robin Lod, who scored in the last five minutes of play against Real Salt Lake and was the closest to scoring against the Sounders. The Loons also like to keep possession, so ATXFC will need to capitalize on opportunities they get in the final third.
Austin FC has had its share of troubles too, including what looks to be lack of communication and some midfielding mishaps. With two starters like defender Matt Besler and midfielder Tomas Pochettino back, however, Austin FC is more poised than ever to live up to their potential, and they're definitely in higher spirits after Saturday's match.
Projected starting lineup
Last week's match saw several big changes to the lineup, several of which came out less than an hour before kickoff. With DP Tomas Pochettino out due to "registration issues" per a request by the MLS, Matt Besler out due to the birth of his third child and Rodney Redes swapped for Jared Stroud to resemble a 4-4-2 format, it took a while for Austin FC to get their footing.
They managed, however, and started that glorious 12-minute stretch that would secure the win with three back-to-back goals.
So, why change it up?
It wouldn't be a huge surprise if Redes made his way back onto the starting pitch, but Stroud gave no inclination that he was going to give it up easily. Redes did log the assist for Cecilio Dominguez's second goal, however, and he very nearly made the match 4-1 on his own toward the end of the second half. It's a bit of a toss-up.
Poche is back! Until Wednesday afternoon, we had only vague answers as to why he was mysteriously snatched out of the lineup at the MLS's request just before the Rapids match. In a brief announcement, Austin FC announced that Pochettino is available "for all future competitions."
Finally, Sweat was confirmed to have torn his ACL last week in the Rapids match. He'll be out for a while. Luckily, we've already seen potential in fellow left back Zan Kolmanic, the 20-year-old who recently joined the team after finishing out play in Slovenia. Wolff says he could be the fittest on the team since his season ended the latest, and he's positioned to get the most minutes in left back.
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The Oakwood Cemetery is said to have souls roaming around. (Steven Joyner/Austonia)
Austin is largely free of widespread hauntings but that doesn't mean it doesn't have its fair share of phantoms if you know where to look. Here are some of Austin's most haunted burial grounds.
Oakwood Cemetery
Originally called the city cemetery, Oakwood Cemetery is Austin's oldest burial ground and has been standing since the 1850s. Though record-keeping isn't as robust from its early days, with over 40 acres of land and more than 25,000 people buried, Oakwood Cemetery is said to be the permanent home to some well-known Texans: U.S. Marshall and Texas Ranger John Barclay Armstrong who passed in 1913, Alamo survivor Susanna Dickinson who passed on in 1883, radio personality John Henry Faulk who was buried in 1990.
Oakwood Cemetery is also known for its fair share of hauntings—note that not all who lie there are resting in marked graves and some of the early marked graves, like 1897's "Little Brother" gravestone, are haunting in and of themselves.
So, why should you stay away from Oakwood Cemetery at night? You might run into the ghost of the first of the Servant Girl Annihilator's victims, 17-year-old Eula Phillips, who was murdered by her then-husband with an axe. Philips is said to wander the grounds lamenting her violent death with tears. Dickinson, who died at the age of 68, may also appear to you and is said to be the most visual of specters that roam the grounds.
Oakwood Cemetery is known for graverobbing—rumor has it that university professors used to steal bodies from unmarked graves to use as cadavers for their students—so you might encounter the souls who are still roaming the cemetery, looking for their bodies.
Shoal Creek Indian Massacre Site
The historical marker is located at 24th Street at Shoal Creek. (austinghosts.com)
Shoal Creek, like nearly all of the United States, can be traced back thousands of years to 9,000 B.C. with Native American arrowheads. Settlers would camp along the mouth of the creek, including famous residents like the second president of the Republic of Texas Mirabeau Lamar, where it is said they engaged in a turf war with the Native Americans who resided right nearby. Those who weren't killed by Comanche warriors were killed by cholera and were buried along the creek. It is said that a mass grave, filled with victims of yellow fever, cholera and unexplained violence, lies beneath the creek.
Of the hauntings most commonly seen at Shoal Creek, watch out for cold spots in the middle of summer, vanishing orbs of light called "Marfa Lights," vanishing apparitions, unexplainable noises at night, sudden sickness and nightmares after visiting.
The Austin State Hospital
The Austin State Hospital is still operating. (Texas Historical Commission National Register Collection and the Portal to Texas History)
When the Austin State Hospital took in its first patients in 1861, it was meant to be a beacon of hope for the mentally ill to recover from the stressors of everyday life. On any given day, the hospital would treat and allegedly sometimes experiment on anywhere from 200-4,000 patients and after an unfortunate death, bodies that were not claimed were buried in the cemetery out back behind the hospital. When the cemetery inevitably filled up, bodies were exhumed and transferred to a burial ground just over two miles away. Though they say all the bodies were transferred, legend tells that some have been left on the still-operating hospital's grounds just six feet below.
The Austin State School and State School Farm Colony
The Austin State School is now closed, many of its 68 buildings abandoned. (Andreanna Moya Photography/CC)
These two gender-segregated facilities were originally intended for mentally-troubled juvenile offenders, many of whom never left the grounds. On the school's 436 acres, 1,800 students were housed across 68 buildings and the campus also held farmland, a swimming pool and a cemetery. Children who were not claimed were buried on-site, where about 3,000 students are buried. The school was sued in the 1960s after changing its name to the Travis State School for inadequate living conditions and closed in the late 90s. Many buildings have been taken over by charter schools but some remain empty to this day.
Tucker Cemetery
Tucker Cemetery's unique sight is its dozens of hand-written tombstones. (kissingtoast/CC)
Just outside the Barton Creek Greenbelt, Tucker Cemetery doesn't have many stories of haunts to its name other than anecdotes of car locks popping open on their own. However, what makes this cemetery freaky is its collection of tiny, hand-scrawled tombstones.
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Luxury car condos are in the works at Circuit of the Americas. (Lincoln Property Company)
Located on the racetrack's storied "Turn 11," COTA will create around 178 car condos on a 22-acre plot in a partnership with real estate firm Lincoln Property Company. Presale reservations for the units began Wednesday, and the project hopes to break ground by late spring of 2022.
The 340,000 square foot space will include a 7,000-square foot amenity center with a pool, a clubhouse, a conference center, outdoor barbecue grills and more.
The luxurious car condos will be located alongside COTA's famed Turn 11. (Lincoln Property Company)
Customers can trick out their space, which can range from 1,300 square feet to 6,000+, however they'd like. In other projects, Lincoln Property's JR Gideon has seen car condo owners add in mechanic shops, basketball hoops, bars, music studios and more.
"They're really for storing luxury cars just as much as hosting," Gideon said. "You can do pretty much anything in there besides live."
Think of the ultimate man cave, though that word's not quite appropriate—according to Gideon, some female clients have also booked reservations for the project.
"I think predominately, our demographic is going to be men, yes, but we've already had a few ladies reserve units, which is awesome," Gideon said.
Along with having a trackside space, Gideon said that owning a condo has other perks, including 20% off COTA events. Most importantly, however, these car enthusiasts want to see their cars on the track, something the team is already planning for.
"If you're going to have your nice cars at the track, you want to know if you're going to be able to get them on there," Gideon said. "Right now I'm planning for two full track weekends for owners to be able to get their cars out on the track."
Marketing for the project has just begun, and almost every client so far has been from Texas and/or the Austin area. But Gideon and team expect plenty of interest from national customers as well as some international buyers as the only F1 racetrack in the States with trackside car condos.
There could be a hitch in the plan, however. COTA's 10-year contract for F1 expired last weekend, and no new deal has been finalized yet. But COTA chair Bobby Epstein feels confident in renewing a contract, especially after the sports' biggest weekend to date. Gideon and Lincoln's Seth Johnston aren't involved in contract talks but say that plenty of attractions exist at COTA outside of the U.S. Grand Prix.
And with newfound American interest in F1—Gideon, like many others, partially credits Netflix's "Drive To Survive" series—the crew is confident that there will be more projects like this to come in the future.
"With (Drive To Survive) coming out in the last couple of years and so many people watching the past race, I think there's certainly a lot of momentum around Circuit of the Americas and this project as well as other future developments at COTA," Gideon said.
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