Recap: SKC II suffers 2-0 road defeat at St. Louis CITY2

Sporting KC II took a 2-0 defeat on the road at St. Louis CITY2 at Energizer Park in St. Louis, Missouri on Sunday afternoon. A penalty conversion for Mykhi Joyner was followed up by a penalty save from Collin Welsh in the first half before a late goal sealed the fate of the match.

Coming off a midweek home match, SKC II head coach Istvan Urbanyi had Academy Amateur goalkeeper Jacob Molinaro in net for his first start of 2025. Centerback Pierre Lurot made his MLS NEXT Pro debut with Nati Clarke his partner in the middle. Anthony Samways and Leo Christiano played on either side of them.

Cielo Tschantret held down a midfield three with Shane Donovan and Gael Quintero while Maouloune Goumballe, Medgy Alexandre and Beckham Uderitz roamed the attacking third.

The match got off to a slow start with neither side threatening in the first 10 minutes. The complexion of the contest changed in the 12th after Christiano was whistled for a handball inside the 18. Joyner stepped up to the ball on the spot and put it in despite Molinaro picking his side correctly.

SKC II looked to even the score 10 minutes later with a free kick delivered into a dangerous area from the right side which Quintero latched onto but sent off target. In the 26th minute Goumballe, who was drawing fouls all match from the right wing, earned a penalty kick for the visitors. Welsh, the former Western Michigan goalkeeper, was able to deny Donovan's kick from the spot and keep St. Louis out in front.

Sporting took the lion's share of the chances for the rest of the match but was not able to truly test the CITY2 backline, putting just two shots on target. Christiano nearly found one just before the half mark, however his offering whistled high. The final two actions of the first saw Molinaro touch a corner away and Clarke get into a terrific spot defensively to clear a set piece of the line.

St. Louis made two changes at the half, taking off the goal-scoring Joyner and replacing him with Matteo Kidd who picked up the assist on the host's second goal. Carter Derksen was the first change for Urbanyi, taking off Donovan. St. Louis nearly doubled their lead after gaining entry to the 18 with a centering pass through traffic. Fortunately, the shot at goal drifted just wide of the far post.

Goumballe won another free kick in a rather advantageous area for SKC II in the 69th. Christiano's attempt could not get past the five-man CITY2 wall and was eventually cleared away. Molinaro got into the right spot to take the ball off Dida Armstrong's foot after a searching through-ball scampered away off the substitute's foot.

The single SKC II corner of the afternoon was beamed toward the near post by Uderitz, cleared for a throw-in, thrown back into Alexandre and then collected by the keeper. SKC II's most threatening chance of the first half came off a searching-centered ball from the right side. The pass was hit with a bit too much space, split two SKC II runners and was handled by CITY2.

The 85th minute saw Gabriel Mikina blast a long-range rocket into the back of the net, doubling St. Louis' lead. Sporting KC Academy Amateur Zane Wantland made his professional debut in place of Uderitz in the 86th and the home side saw out the rest of the contest.

Sporting KC II will remain on the road in their next match when they travel to Texas to take on title holders, North Texas SC at Choctaw Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The match will begin at 7:45 p.m. CT and can be streamed live on MLSNEXTPro.com.

Sporting Kansas City II: Jacob Molinaro; Anthony Samways, Pierre Lurot, Nati Clarke, Leo Christiano; Cielo Tschantret, Shane Donovan (Carter Derksen 61'), Gael Quintero; Maouloune Goumballe, Medgy Alexandre, Beckham Uderitz (Zane Wantland 86')

Subs Not Used: Jack Kortkamp, Johann Ortiz, Nate Young

St. Louis CITY2: Colin Welsh; Joey Zalinksy (Gabriel Mikina 69'), Timo Baumgartl, Jaziel Orozco, Cam Cilley; Seth Antwi, Miguel Perez, Mykhi Joyner (Dida Armstrong 46'), John Di Maria (Matteo Kidd 46'), Brendan McSoreley (Ryan Dugan 79'); Emil Jaaskelainen (Caden Glover 69')

Subs Not Used: Nicholas Bishop, Ryan Becher, Kai Jaeger, Wan Kuzain,

Scoring Summary:

STL -- Mykhi Joyner 2 (Penalty Kick) 12'
STL -- Gabriel Mikina 1 (Matteo Kidd 1) 85'

Misconduct Summary:

STL -- Matteo Kidd (Yellow Card; Unsporting Conduct) 83'
SKC -- Beckham Uderitz (Yellow Card; Dissent) 85'
STL -- Dida Armstong (Yellow Card; Unsporting Conduct) 90+3'

Referee: Velimir Stefanovic
Assistant Referee: Chana Forstall
Assistant Referee: Race Williams
Fourth Official: Braeden Frey