Lowe and Lambert lead Phoenix Rising to USL championship final

National players Damion Lowe and Kevon Lambert both put in inspirational performances to lead Phoenix Rising FC to the USL Championship following a 4-2 penalty kick win over Saeed Robinson's El Paso Locomotiv on Saturday.

In the hotly contested Western contest final, the teams had battled to a

1-1 scoreline in full and extra time; however, Phoenix Rising's Zac Lubin was the hero once again, as the goalkeeper recorded five saves, including the only penalty that was saved in the shoot-out.

Lowe, you joined Phoenix in September, took to Instagram to celebrate his team's championship run, stating, "Forever Grateful Forever Thankful".

Defensive work

Head coach of the Phoenix Rising team Rick Shantz praised the defensive work from Lowe, who played all 90 minutes, while Lambert was substituted just before the end of extra time.

"It's awesome, but I don't want to celebrate too much because two years ago we did and we came up a little bit short. We still have one game left."

Phoenix Rising will travel away to the Tampa Bay Rowdies for the USL Championship final on November 1 as the Rowdies booked their place in the finale following a 2-1 win over national players Devon Williams and Jason Johnson's Louisville City side.

Williams played all 90 minutes for Louisville, while striker Johnson came on in the 77th minute. However, the Tampa Bay outfit sealed their Eastern Conference title, thanks to goals from Zach Steinberger and Sebastian Guenzatti.