Fresh off their first MLS NEXT Pro win, Sporting Kansas City II (1-0-1, 4 points) will host Houston Dynamo 2 on Sunday, April 10 at 6 p.m. CT in the club's home opener and inaugural match at Rock Chalk Park. The match will be available to stream at MLSNEXTPro.com, as are all MLS NEXT Pro matches throughout the season.
Tickets for the match can be purchased at SeatGeek.com with tickets starting as low as $10.
Last Sunday, first-year head coach Benny Feilhaber and SKC II took part in the MLS NEXT Pro Game of the Week against MNUFC 2 and took home a 2-0 victory. Team captain Collin Fernandez scored in the second minute, and Sporting KC Academy product Mataeo Bunbury scored his first professional goal on the other side of halftime to secure the win.
Sunday’s Sporting KC II starting XI was bolstered by a quartet of Sporting KC first-team loanees. Goalkeeper Kendall McIntosh started in goal, made five crucial saves and earned his first clean sheet of the season. Right back Kayden Pierre started in his usual spot with Ozzie Cisneros and Kaveh Rad starting in the midfield alongside one another.
Week one goal scorer T.J. Fatah earned his first professional start, beginning the match on the right wing and pestering the Minnesota backline for the first 45 minutes of the match before making way for Bunbury at halftime. Earlier this week, Bunbury received the call up to Canada's U-20 Youth National Team Camp taking place later this month.
The defensive trio of Spencer Glass, Aljaz Dzankic and Jahon Rad was tough as ever last Sunday. The three of them have shown terrific chemistry early in the MLS NEXT Pro season. Another key contributor to SKC II’s early success is winger Julian Vazquez who leads SKC II in assists with two. He assisted on Fatah’s goal against Rapids 2 in week one and helped to start the scoring against Minnesota with his second-minute assist to Fernandez.
Now, SKC II will welcome the red-hot Houston Dynamo 2 to Rock Chalk Park. As SKC II officially becomes the first-ever professional franchise to make Lawrence, Kansas its home on Sunday, Dynamo Dos is out to rain on the parade.
Houston is the only 2-0-0 team in MLS NEXT Pro through the first two weeks, with wins against Whitecaps FC 2 and Earthquakes II to start the season. Led by head coach Kenny Bundy, Dynamo Dos has posted back-to-back 1-0 victories with goals from Papa Ndoye and Marcelo Palomino.
An early, consequential Frontier Division duel looms on Sunday. SKC II currently occupies third in the division and fourth in the west with Houston leading in both. Fans wanting to experience SKC II’s first match at Rock Chalk Park can purchase tickets at SeatGeek.com.
For information regarding Rock Chalk Park and MLS NEXT Pro policies visit this link here.
Match Information
MLS NEXT Pro: Match 3*
Date:* Sunday, April 10
Kickoff: 6 p.m. CT
Location: Rock Chalk Park (Lawrence, Kansas)
Live Stream: mlsnextpro.com
Sporting Kansas City II: 1-0-1, 4 points
Houston Dynamo 2: 2-0-0, 6 points
SOCIAL TAGS:
Match-specific hashtag: #SKCvHOU
Twitter: @SportingKCII
Instagram: @SportingKCII
Twitter: @houstondynamo2
Instagram: @houstondynamo2
