Matchday 18 started with Friday's outstanding performance from TFC II, then continued Saturday with two strong performances from Sporting Kansas City II and New York Red Bulls II. The early weekend action leads into another Sunday slate that is sure to produce late drama and spectacular goals.
Here are the results from Friday and Saturday's matches.
Sporting Kansas City II (2) - North Texas SC (1)
Sporting Kansas City II's win over North Texas SC included two impressive goals in the run of play, as SKCII came away with all three points from the road trip.
Jose Mulato opened scoring for North Texas, backheeling a pass from Tyshawn Rose into the goal from close range. Sebastian Cruz combined with Andrew Draper to score a perfectly timed goal in the 41st minute, with Cruz lifting a shot over the goalkeeper. Josh Coan's converted penalty kick in the second minute of first-half stoppage time proved to be the winning goal.
SKCII is on a fantastic run of form, with only one loss from the previous seven games. North Texas SC, on the other hand, continues to struggle with three straight losses.
FC Cincinnati 2 (0) - New York Red Bulls II (2)
Red Bulls II went on the road and grabbed three points with a comprehensive performance against FC Cincinnati 2. Red Bulls II rose to fourth-place in the Eastern Conference.
Ibrahim Kasule put Red Bulls II ahead early, capitalizing on a defensive mistake to notch his fourth goal in July and ninth goal of the season. Panamanian midfielder Rafael Mosquera made an immediate impact upon coming into the match in the 62nd minute. Mosquera cut into the box and delivered an assist on Frank Ssebufu's goal to double the lead in the 64th minute.
Red Bulls II picked up a win to break a two-game losing rut. FCC2 picked up a third loss in the previous five games.
Friday
TFC II (6) - Inter Miami II (1)
Hugo Mbongue scored a brace and added an assist, while TFC II exploded in the second half to claim its largest win of the season. The six goals on Friday doubled the club's previous highest single-game output this year.
TFC II went down a goal after the fifth minute, but continued to pressure Inter Miami II. A red card to Inter Miami II centerback Kevin Gorbell for a last-man foul finally opened the floodgates. Mbongue scored with two tidy finishes, and TFC II also received goals from Themi Antonoglou, Reshaun Walkes, Dekwon Barrow, and Jesus Batiz.
