MATCH NOTES
- Alejandro Urzua scored his first professional goal
- FC Dallas Academy forward Jared Salazar registered his first professional assist
- Goalkeeper Antonio Carrera registered seven saves
- MLS NEXT Pro Box Score
LAWRENCE, Kansas (June 25, 2023) – North Texas SC (5-6-5, 20 points) shared a point with Sporting KC II (5-4-5, 23 points) after 1-1 draw, but fell in the extra point shootout 5-4 on Sunday night at Rock Chalk Park.
FIRST GOAL
Midfielder Alejandro Urzua registered his first professional goal in the 41st minute of the match. Urzua is the 13th different goal scorer this season for NTSC and helped end the club’s goal drought of 221 minutes.
EXTRA POINT SHOOTOUT
North Texas SC is now 0-5 in the extra point shootout this season. The club has an all-time record of 2-8 when contesting the shootout.
UP NEXT
North Texas SC hosts Los Angeles Football Club 2 for the first time ever on Sunday July 2. The match will kick off at 7:30PM CT and will be available on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.
Lineups
North Texas SC — Antonio Carrera; Tyshawn Rose, Manuel Caicedo, Amet Korça (Yeicar Perlaza – 63’), Alejandro Araneda; Nolan Norris (Theo Ferreira – 79’), Alejandro Urzua, Diego García; Jared Salazar (André Costa – 67’), José Mulato (Hope Avayevu – 79’), Tomas Pondeca (Nayrobi Vargas – 81’).
Substitutes not used — Julian Eyestone.
Sporting KC II — John Pulskamp; Nati Clarke, Robert Voloder (Nassim Mekideche – 73’), Chris Ridnov, Lucas Rosa; Ethan Bryant, Danny Flores (Vitor Dias – 81’), Felipe Hernandez (Alenis Vargas – 73’); Ozzie Cisneros, Stephen Afrifa (Pau Vidal – 46’), Sebastian Cruz (Bakary Bagayoko – 84’).
Substitutes not used — Enzo Mauriz, Josh Coan, Jahon Rad, Ethan Bandre.
Scoring Summary:
NTX: Alejandro Urzua (Jared Salazar) – 41’SKC: Pau Vidal (Danny Flores) – 57’
Misconduct Summary:
NTX: Amet Korça (caution) — 50’NTX: Nolan Norris (caution) — 70’
Weather: Sunny, 88°F
Post Game Quotes
Head Coach Javier Cano
Thoughts on the match…
“I am repetitive, but I will keep on saying that this group is still growing. The first half tonight was one of the best I have seen the group play in a while. We started a little slow and they (Sporting KC II) were trying to take advantage of it. Once we started to break their lines and get confidence, their perspective of us changed. If José (Mulato), Diego (García) and Manuel (Caicedo) had scored in their chances, this game would have been different. In the second half the opponents adjusted and brought on Pau Vidal. We did not control him and he took advantage of it and scored. They added more guys in the attack and I would like to thank Antonio (Carrera) who had a great match and kept us in the game with all of us saves. I don’t know if we are cursed or not, but we are close to getting a win.”
On the pressure of the second half of the season…
“I don’t feel any pressure. The front office and first team staff know of our process. They know what our goal is and how we want to achieve it. We tell our guys that there is no pressure from us, they need to enjoy the game and play without pressure. In this league if you win two games, you climb up, but if you lose two games that can bring you down. We will always push for a playoff spot, but we will do it our way. The next couple of games during July will be important for us heading into the third quarter of the season.”
Midfielder Alejandro Urzua
On scoring his first professional goal…
“Scoring my first professional goal in the middle of the season felt like a relief point. It helped shift the momentum to our side during the match. I am happy that the goal helped us get a point on the road.”
On the improvements made throughout the season…
“We have been unfortunate the past few weeks giving up points late in the match. Overall I feel like our game has improved since the beginning of the season. We still need to work on managing the last minutes of the match and close out the games where we have the advantage. The extra point shootouts are 50/50 because it’s about having luck on your side.”
