St Paul, Minnesota (September 3, 2022) – North Texas SC (12-5-5, 43 points) defeated Minnesota United 2 (8-9-5, 33 points) 2-1 thanks to goals from Bernard Kamungo and Isaiah Parker at Allianz Field on Saturday night.
SWEEP
North Texas SC defeated MNUFC2 three times this season. North Texas scored nine goals and only conceded two in the three matches. Forwards Bernard Kamungo and Tarik Scott each scored two goals against Minnesota.
ROAD RECORD
North Texas SC’s overall record on the road improves to 19-17-11. Tonight’s win earned NTSC’s fifth win on the road in MLS NEXT Pro play. The club has scored 66 goals and conceded 64 goals in 47 matches played.
DEFENDERS WHO ATTACK
Defender Isaiah Parker scored the game-winning goal in the 55th minute of the match. This season, five goals out of the 45 goals scored have come from defenders. Paul Amedume has scored one, Collin Smith and Isaiah Parker have scored two goals each.
UP NEXT: NORTH TEXAS SC HOSTS ST LOUIS CITY2 IN FINAL HOME MATCH
North Texas SC will host St Louis CITY2 for the first time in MLS NEXT Pro play on Sunday, September 11 at Choctaw Stadium in the final home match of the inaugural 2022 MLS NEXT Pro season. The match kicks off at 12PM CT and will be streamed for free on MLSNEXTPro.com
Lineups
North Texas SC — Antonio Carrera; Collin Smith, Lucas Bartlett, Paul Amedume, Isaiah Parker; Carl Sainté, André Costa (Nolan Norris – 86’), Jared Aguilar (Tomás Lacerda – 57’); Bernard Kamungo, José Mulato (Blake Pope – 57’), Hope Avayevu (Luis Miguel – 78’).
Substitutes not used — Felipe Carneiro, Alejandro Araneda, Blaine Ferri, Santiago Ferreira.
MNUFC2 — Fred Emmings; Carlos Leatherman (Veljko Petkovic – 81’), Nabi Kibunguchy, Devin Padelford, Oniel Fisher; Niko Hansen, Ignacio Gutiérrez (Sagir Arce – 68’), Nicholas Mendonca, Justin McMaster (Diogo Pacheco – 68’); Tanitoluwa Oluwaseyi (Thomas Williamson – 68’), Aziel Jackson.
Substitutes not used — Alec Smir, Perry Blay, Juan Mosquera, David Garcia, Loïc Mesanvi.
Scoring Summary:
NTX: Bernard Kamungo (Collin Smith) — 12’
MIN: Aziel Jackson (Tanitoluwa Oluwaseyi) — 49’
NTX: Isaiah Parker (Bernard Kamungo) — 55’
Misconduct Summary:
MIN: Oniel Fisher (caution) — 38’
NTX: José Mulato (caution) — 45’+1’
NTX: Collin Smith (caution) — 46’
MIN: Ignacio Gutiérrez (caution) — 63’
NTX: Antonio Carrera (caution) — 90’+1’
Weather: Clear, 74℉
Referee: Gabriele Giusti
Assistant Referees: Matthew Rodman (1), Zach McWhorter (2)
Fourth official: Brian Wood
North Texas SC Postgame Quotes
Assistant Coach Vikram Virk
Overall thoughts on the match…
“In the first half we felt okay. We wanted to move the ball quicker to be able to find spaces behind the (MNUFC) midfield. In the second half we noticed that they came out flying so we had to dig in as a team. We are proud of the way the boys fought together to get the result. At these stages of the season it's important to grind out and get these results. It wasn’t the prettiest but it was a win that matters a lot. That’s why we are proud of the boys.”
On the defensive adjustments…
“Coming into this game we knew that Minnesota is a good team in transition. We know they like to get it down the line and always cut back with crosses. We talked about preventing those plays and we made a slight adjustment at the half so it would help us out. They still came forward but it was more about the individual commitment. Taking pride in winning duels and match ups is what we looked for.”’
Forward Bernard Kamungo
On the intensity of the game…
“It was a tough one for sure. The second half was difficult because we would struggle to connect some passes and that is not how we are. We have played a lot of games but this one was different. We had a bye-week, and we were coming off a break so that is probably why I felt like we weren’t at our best. We must stay professional and keep on battling till the final whistle.”
On the team’s response after conceding…
“We know of the quality that their (MNUFC2) players have, but we are also aware of the quality and ability that our players have. We had to calm down because there was still a lot of time left after we had conceded. It was early in the second half when they scored on us. I told our guys to calm down and to play the game that we are used to. I knew a goal was going to come sooner or later. We kept hustling, played our game and we were able to score.”
