FC Cincinnati 2 fell to Carolina Core FC Friday night at Scudamore Field at NKU Soccer Stadium by a scoreline of 1-0. The Orange and Blue (13-6-3, 43 points) suffer their first home loss since May 26, but remain atop the Eastern Conference standings entering the weekend. Carolina (6-10-4, 25 points) move up two spots in the conference table and are eight points out of the final playoff spot.
Cincinnati and Carolina battled the elements in a scoreless first half of action. Nico Benalcazar had the best look for either side, striking the frame of the Carolina goal in the 29th minute. Benalcazar fired off two of the Orange and Blue’s three first half shots, while the Cincinnati defense held The Core without a single shot attempt.
But it was the visitors who stole three points late with a second half stoppage time goal through captain Jacob Evans. With the goal, Evans moves into a tie for a team lead, matching Joshua Rodriguez with five goals on the year. The result marks just the fourth time this season the Orange and Blue have been held without a goal.
FC Cincinnati 2 return to action on Sunday, September 1 at 8 p.m. ET against Toronto FC II at Scudamore Field at NKU Soccer Stadium. Tickets for the match can be redeemed with a SeatGeek account through the FC Cincinnati App. Instructions on how to claim tickets can be found here.
The Orange and Blue close out the MLS NEXT Pro Regular Season with ‘Soccer Sunday’ at TQL Stadium on Sunday, October 6, against Orlando City B at 1 p.m. ET. The celebration kicks off at 11 a.m. ET with a number of family friendly activities and a meet and greet with FC Cincinnati players and Gary the Lion. Tickets start at just $5 and can be purchased here.
FC CINCINNATI 2 GAME REPORT
FC Cincinnati 2 vs Carolina Core FC
Date: August 16, 2024
Competition: MLS NEXT Pro
Venue: Scudamore Field at NKU Soccer Stadium
Kickoff: 6:04 p.m. ET
Weather: 83 degrees, cloudy
SCORING SUMMARY: 1-2-F
CIN: 0-0-0
CCFC: 0-1-1
CIN – None
CCFC – Jacob Evans (Derek Cuevas) 90’+2
LINEUPS
CIN: Hunter Morse, Juan Machado, Brian Schaefer, Gaël Gibert, Jesus Castellano, Yair Ramos (Yeiner Valoyes 72’), Nico Benalcazar (C), Amir Daley, Kenji Mboma Dem, Peter Mangione (Ben Stitz 59’), Stefan Chirila (Justin Hylton 77’)
Substitutes not used: Luke Broz, Alejandro Guido, Will Kuisel, Nick Samways, Connor Stout, Lincoln Matuskiewicz
Head Coach: Tyrone Marshall
CCFC: Alex Sutton, Kai Thomas, Aryeh Miller, Daniel Chica (Juan Rodriguez 86’), Cristian Gregoire (Derek Cuevas 67’), Santiago Cambindo, Msunguchi Alenga, Jathan Juarez, Facundo Canete, Jacob Evans (C), David Polanco (Yekeson Subah 67’)
Substitutes not used: Robert Bailey, Ozzie Ramos, Luis Lugo, Drake Hadeed
Head Coach: Roy Lassiter
STATS SUMMARY: CIN/CCFC
Shots: 7 / 2
Shots on Goal: 3 / 1
Saves: 0 / 3
Corner Kicks: 1 / 3
Fouls: 16 / 16
Offside: 2 / 2
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
CIN – Jesus Castellano (Yellow Card) 30’
CCFC – Cristian Gregoire (Yellow Card) 31’
CIN – Gaël Gibert (Yellow Card) 78’
CCFC – Daniel Chica (Yellow Card) 85’
OFFICIALS
Referee: JC Griggs
Ast. Referees: Jacob Little, Jared Kuehl
Fourth Official: Christopher Slane
