MATTHEWS, N.C. (June 18, 2023) - New York Red Bulls II (6-4-4, 24 pts.) left Charlotte with a point against Crown Legacy FC (9-2-3 32 pts.) in a 1-1 draw. Crown Legacy won the shootout 6-5 over eight rounds at Mecklenburg County Sportsplex to take the second point in the standings.
Both teams came into yesterday’s match on completely different paths, with New York having lost to NYCFC II and Crown Legacy coming off a 2-0 win in Philadelphia. Red Bulls II at 23 points were sitting at 5th in the Eastern Conference Standings with Crown Legacy FC looking down on them from first in the Conference with 30 points.
The first half was slow when it came to play in the final third, but the buildup play from the two sides was quality all around. Ibrahim Kasule had the best chance of the first half for New York, after striking the crossbar with a shot right in the middle of the Crown Legacy box courtesy of a cross sent in by O’Vonte Mullings. A.J. Marcucci made his usual tough saves to keep New York level after the first forty-five minutes.
Going into the break, New York needed to get more opportunities in the final third to try and grab three points on the road.
Right from the second half whistle, both teams were clearly motivated to try and find the first goal of the match. More high-quality chances were created, but it wasn’t until the 70th minute that the ice was broken.
New York began their attack on the left side of the field with defender Omar Valencia carrying the ball down the wing. The ball found the foot of Frank Ssebufu, who played a cross into the middle of the box for a running Ibrahim Kasule looking for the header. A high foot from the Crown Legacy defense on the header attempt led to New York’s sixth penalty shot of the season. Kasule stepped up to take the shot and nailed it to give Red Bulls II the 1-0 lead in the match.
Now down at home, Crown Legacy began to play with a bit more urgency. More chances were created in the final 20 minutes of the match, but Marcucci was up to the task, making save after save. After 90 minutes were played, the fourth official called for seven minutes of added time, and Crown Legacy were able to use that time to their advantage. In what was the last play in regulation, a scramble around the net led to Vinicius Mello finding the back of the net to tie the match.
With the two sides having already secured one point, the match went into a shootout to determine who would leave with the second.
Shootout:
- NY: Alexandre (Goal)
- CLT: Pedro (Save)
- NY: Sofo (Goal)
- CLT: Poreba (Miss)
- NY: Dija (Goal)
- CLT: Rodrigues (Goal)
- NY: Kasule (Miss)
- CLT: Mayaka (Goal)
- NY: Reid (Save)
- CLT: Mello (Goal)
- NY: Recinos (Goal)
- CLT: Williams (Goal)
- NY: Berkley (Goal)
- CLT: Cruz-Garcia (Goal)
- NY: Gutierrez (Save)
- CLT: Scardina (Goal)
New York Red Bulls II earn a point on the road and hold onto the fifth spot in the Eastern Conference. Crown Legacy add to their lead and now sit at the top of the standings with 32 points on the season.
New York will return home to face FC Cincinnati II on Sunday, June 25. Kickoff at MSU Soccer Park is scheduled for 7:00 P.M. ET. Coverage will be on MLSNEXTPro.com, the New York Red Bulls app and NewYorkRedBulls.com.
Scoring Summary:
- NY - Ibrahim Kasule (PK) 70’
- CLT – Vinicius Mello (unassisted) 90’ +10’
Misconduct Summary:
- CLT – Philip Mayaka (caution, foul) 14’
- NY – Copeland Berkley (caution, foul) 42’
- NY – Juan Gutierrez (caution, handball) 48’
- CLT – Erik Pena-Boardman (caution, foul) 62’
- NY – Mohammed Sofo (caution, time wasting) 74’
- CLT – Vinicius Mello (caution, foul) 83’
- NY – Bento Estrela (caution, foul) 90’ +2’
- NY – Bento Estrela (ejection, foul) 90’ +4’
- NY – A.J. Marcucci (caution, time wasting) 90’ +6’
New York Red Bulls II: A.J. Marcucci, Omar Valencia (Arian Recinos 83’), Juan Gutierrez, Jayden Reid, Copeland Berkley, Erick Ruiz (Davi Alexandre 90’ +2’), Bento Estrela, Ibrahim Kasule, O’Vonte Mullings (Dija, 83’), Dylan Sullivan (Mohammed Sofo 59’), Frank Ssebufu
Unused Subs: Will Meyer, Ricardo Gorday, Aiden Jarvis
TOTAL SHOTS: 10 ; SHOTS ON GOAL: 4 ; FOULS: 24 ; POSSESSION: 30.7; CORNER KICKS: 2 ; SAVES: 4
Crown Legacy FC: George Marks, Jack Neely, Andrew Privett (Erik Pena-Boardman 33’) (Josue Rodrigues 78’), Joao Pedro, Nick Scardina, David Poreba, Philip Mayaka, Jacob Williams, Chris Hegardt (Marko Filipovic 33’) (Ervin Cruz-Garcia 78’), Iuri Tavares (Brando Bedolla 77’), Vinicius Mello
Unused Subs: Isaac Walcer, Gurman Sangha,
TOTAL SHOTS: 10 ; SHOTS ON GOAL: 5 ; FOULS: 19 ; POSSESSION: 69.3 ; CORNER KICKS: 3; SAVES: 3
