FC Cincinnati 2 and New England Revolution II played to an exhilarating 5-5 draw Sunday night at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. The ten combined goals set an MLS NEXT Pro record for the most scored in a single match. The Orange and Blue earned a point from the match, falling in the shootout, 5-4.
New England scored the first goal of the night in the 16th minute as Damián Rivera netted his second of the season. Rivera stepped around Bret Halsey at the top of the Cincinnati box before beating Paul Walters with a well struck shot. Jack Panayotou assisted on the goal.
The Revolution would double their lead three minutes later, in the 19th minute, as Marcos Dias converted on a penalty for his first goal of the season.
Arquimides Ordoñez responded with his fifth goal of the season to get the Orange and Blue back in the match in the 22nd minute. Jordi Govea created the chance after forcing a turnover with a sliding tackle, pushing the ball into the path of Ordoñez. Ordoñez jumped on the loose ball and drove into the box, keeping his composure and putting it past Maxwell Weinstein.
It didn’t take long for Ordoñez to grab his second of the match, a wonderful individual effort to dance past New England’s defense, firing off a shot from a tight space at the top of the area in the 31st minute to make it 2-2. Ordoñez now has six goals on the season and has scored two goals in each of his three total appearances for FC Cincinnati 2 this season.
New England regained the lead in the 41st minute when Jordan Adebayo-Smith notched his third of the season for the Rev’s. Rivera played the crucial ball in as Adebayo-Smith pushed past Joey Akpunonu inside the Cincinnati box and slid an off balanced shot past Walters at the near post.
The half finished 3-2, in favor of New England, and would set the stage for an equally thrilling second 45 minutes of play.
Midfielder Salim Adams scored his first goal for FC Cincinnati 2 to bring things level at 3-3 in the 53rd minute. A soft pass out of goal from Weinstein allowed Adams to challenge Joshua Bolma as the New England midfielder tried to secure possession. Adams’ forced Bolma into a turnover, popping the ball to Jesus Castellano, who was positioned inside the New England box, and the forward played back to Adams who finished with confidence.
Kai Thomas scored his second goal in as many matches to give FC Cincinnati 2 their first lead of the game in the 61st minute. Like last week against Sporting Kansas City II, Thomas rose above the defense on a corner kick and delivered a perfectly placed header, with the power and pace to match, into the top left corner of the net.
However, New England would respond with two more goals of their own to reclaim a 5-4 lead late in the second half. Rivera scored his second of the match with Dias adding an assist before converting on his second penalty of the night. Dias and Rivera finished the match with three goal contributions each for New England.
It looked as if FC Cincinnati 2 would go home empty handed, but a 90th minute own goal from New England tied the match once again, this time at 5-5. Nicholas Samways forced the own goal, whipping in a dangerous cross from the right side that was redirected into the New England net by Pierre Cayet.
The match ended 5-5 and moved to a shootout to determine who would leave Gillette Stadium with and extra point. New England converted on five of their six attempts as the hosts snapped a two-match losing streak.
FC Cincinnati 2 stay on the road next week as they take on Toronto FC II on May 7 at York Lions Stadium. The Orange and Blue took three points in a 4-2 Matchday 1 win against Toronto at Scudamore Field at NKU Soccer Stadium. The match can be streamed live on MLSNEXTPro.com.
FC CINCINNATI 2 GAME REPORT
FC Cincinnati 2 at New England Revolution II
Date: April 30, 2023
Competition: MLS NEXT Pro Regular Season
Venue: Gillette Stadium
Kickoff: 5:03 p.m. ET
Weather: 50 degrees, rain
SCORING SUMMARY: 1-2-F
NE: 3-2-5
CIN: 2-3-5
NE – D. Rivera (J. Panayotou) 16’, M. Dias (PK) 19’, J. Adebayo-Smith (D. Rivera) 41’, D. Rivera (M. Dias) 75’, M. Dias (PK) 85’
CIN – A. Ordoñez (J. Govea) 22’, A. Ordoñez (S. Jimenez) 31’, S. Adams (J. Castellano) 53’, K. Thomas (J. Govea) 61’, P. Cayet (OG) 90’
LINEUPS
NE: M. Weinstein, P. Miller, P. Cavet, S. Suárez (C. Quiñónes, 71’), V. Souza, M. Dias, J. Bolma (B. Awashie, 63’), J. Panavotou, M. Fry, D. Rivera, J. Adebayo-Smith
Substitutes not used: B. Bueno, N. Greenidge-Duncan, J. Rozhansky, J. Akanyirige, Weverton, N. Campuzano
Head Coach: Clint Peay
CIN: P. Walters, J. Govea (H. Conteh, 77), I. Foster, J. Akpunonu, K. Thomas, B. Halsey (N. Samways, 63’), S. Jiminez, S. Adams, G. Valenzuela (B. Stitz, 77’), J. Castellano, A. Ordoñez
Substitutes not used: H. Morse, D. Turcios, D. Garcia
Head Coach: Tyrone Marshall
STATS SUMMARY: NE/CIN
Shots: 23 / 19
Shots on Goal: 9 / 10
Saves: 6 / 4
Corner Kicks: 5 / 10
Fouls: 8 / 13
Offside: 2 / 9
Possession: 43.2 / 56.8
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
NE – B. Awashie (Yellow card) 72’
CIN – S. Jimenez (Yellow card) 79’
OFFICIALS
Referee: Abdou Ndiaye
Ast. Referees: Justen Lopez, Robert Cordrey
Fourth Official: Kenneth Rojas
