FC Cincinnati 2 suffered a 3-1 loss to Inter Miami CF II on Thursday night at DRV PNK Stadium. MLS NEXT Pro’s only Thursday night matchup sees the Orange and Blue (3-5-3, 13 PTS) move down one spot to 10th while the Herons (4-8-1, 13 PTS) jump FC Cincinnati 2 into ninth.
Lucas Meek scored his fourth goal of the season in the fourth minute of play to put the Herons up 1-0 early in the match. Harry Neville began the move, making a long run into Cincinnati’s half from his right back position. A low cross in from Neville found Meek in the middle of the box as the forward collected and finished with ease.
Ryder Mills, making his second start of the season, had Cincinnati’s first real chance of the match in the 12th minute, a curling effort that was saved by Miami goalkeeper Owen Finnerty. The U-19 academy product led all Cincinnati players with three first half shots.
And it was Mills who brought things level for the Orange and Blue in the 42nd minute with his second goal of the year. Bret Halsey picked up his third assist of the year to put Mills in on goal, slipping a well-weighted pass through the middle of the Miami backline. Mills kept his composure and beat Finnerty just before the break.
Mills’ goal capped a strong final ten minutes of play for the Orange and Blue who finished the half with six shots, three of which were on target.
It was Inter Miami CF II who grabbed the first goal of the second half as Bryan Destin opened his MLS NEXT Pro scoring account in the 52nd minute. A bad giveaway in Cincinnati’s defensive third led to the goal with Lawson Sunderland pouncing and finding Destin who held off Kai Thomas on his way to goal.
After creating Miami’s second goal of the match, Sunderland capped off the opening hour of play with his second goal of the campaign. Israel Boatwright connected with Sunderland as the midfielder broke in behind the Cincinnati defense and put it in the back of the net.
Miami’s Abel Caputo was sent off in the 65th minute after picking up his second yellow card on the night. It was a physical battle in South Florida as the teams combined for 29 fouls and nine yellow cards.
A moment of chaos in Miami’s box nearly saw the Orange and Blue pull one back six minutes from the final whistle. Miami’s Finnerty looked to clear an attacking move from Cincinnati but pushed his pass no further than Mills, who returned the errant clearance off the crossbar.
The subsequent rebound found its way to the feet of Ben Stitz, who avoided a recovering Finnerty, and had an open look at goal from near the penalty spot but his shot was cleared off the line by the Miami defense and the match would finish 3-1.
FC Cincinnati 2 get set for a quick turnaround as they play their second match in four days against Orlando City B on Sunday, June 11 at Osceola Heritage Park.
FC CINCINNATI 2 GAME REPORT
FC Cincinnati 2 at Inter Miami CF II
Date: June 8, 2023
Competition: MLS NEXT Pro Regular Season
Venue: DRV PNK Stadium
Kickoff: 7:03 p.m. ET
Weather: 82 degrees, cloudy
SCORING SUMMARY: 1-2-F
MIA: 1-2-3
CIN: 1-0-1
MIA – L. Meek (H. Neville) 4’, B. Destin (L. Sunderland) 52’, L. Sunderland (I. Boatwright) 60’
CIN – R. Mills (B. Halsey) 42’
LINEUPS
MIA: O. Finnerty, N. Sessock, F. Sar-Sar, T. Hall, H. Neville (I. Boatwright, 46’), B. Taghvai-Najib (J. Convers, 69’), L. Sunderland (A. Flores, 61’), L. Meek (R. Robinson, 78’), A. Caputo, M. Perkovich, B. Destin (K. Gorbell, 78’)
Substitutes not used: C. Jensen, C. Jensen, L. D’Agostini, R. Montenegro
Head Coach: Federico Higuaín
CIN: P. Walters, I. Foster, K. Thomas, D. Garcia (S. Jimenez, 76’), B. Halsey, S. Adams (H. Conteh, 65’), M. Dreas (D. Turcios, 85’), M. Marshall, G. Valenzuela, R. Mills, B. Stitz
Substitutes not used: H. Morse, O. Noverr, N. McHenry
Head Coach: Tyrone Marshall
STATS SUMMARY: MIA/CIN
Shots: 16 / 16
Shots on Goal: 5 / 5
Saves: 3 / 2
Corner Kicks: 3 / 6
Fouls: 21 / 8
Offside: 1 / 2
Possession: 50.5 / 49.5
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
CIN – R. Mills (Yellow card) 21’
CIN – D. Garcia (Yellow card) 22’
MIA – A. Caputo (Yellow card) 32’
CIN – G. Valenzuela (Yellow card) 36’
MIA – L. Sunderland (Yellow card) 62’
MIA – A. Caputo (Red card) 65’
CIN – K. Thomas (Yellow card) 71’
MIA – J. Convers (Yellow card) 85’
MIA – R. Robinson (Yellow card) 88’
CIN – H. Conteh (Yellow card) 90+1’
OFFICIALS
Referee: Gabriele Giusti
Ast. Referees: Albert Escovar, Sean-Michael Kemp
Fourth Official: Anya Voigt
