Recap: Sporting KC II falls 2-1 at home against St. Louis CITY2

Sporting Kansas City II (5-17-4, 20 points) fell 2-1 at home to St. Louis CITY2 (10-7-9, 43 points) on Saturday night at Victory Field at Swope Soccer Village. After an early goal from Tega Ikoba in the fifth minute, St. Louis was able to draw level before halftime thanks to Zachary Zengue's first goal of the night. 

The City2 forward was able to add a second goal 13 minutes into the second half, which would prove to be the game winner.

Ikoba opened the scoring five minutes into the game after a free kick from the left sideline was lofted into the area by Missael Rodriguez. Daniel Russo was able to flick the ball across the box to Ty Haas who expertly held up play before sliding a pass to Ikoba. The forward settled the ball with his right and fired the ball off the post and into the back of the net with his left to give Sporting KC II a one goal advantage.

SKC II kept their foot on the gas with Rodriguez nearly finding a second in the 19th minute. Nate Martinez made an athletic save however, punching the ball over the bar. Five minutes later, Zengue leveled with a right footed strike from 20 yards out, inside the arc. Patrick McDonald picked up the assist after cutting in from the right side of the SKC II defensive third. 

Rodriguez tested Martinez again right before the halftime whistle, but again, the keeper was positioned well enough to deny the SKC II winger. With the score even at one, head coach Lee Tschantret made one change after the break, bringing on Jack Francka for Trevor Burns. Rodriguez continued his relentless pursuit for his eighth goal of the season but again was denied. This time it was a desperate effort from Zach Lillington to block a rocket from Rodriguez from close range, ending in another of SKC II's seven corners. Rodriguez returned the favor a minute later, blocking a shot himself in SKC II's box.

McDonald and Zengue nearly combined again in the 55th with Zengue having a golden opportunity right in front of goal. Somehow, the forward pushed his shot wide of the mark. He made up for it in the 58th after another Martinez save of Rodriguez. This time, Nighte Pickering slipped Zengue into space inside the 18 where the CITY2 man took advantage of the space and netted the match winner.

St. Louis stayed on the attack and broke free looking for a third an hour into the contest. Luca Antongirolami made sure that the game stayed within reach with a heroic, clean tackle to shut down a fast break. That proved to be the future Homegrown's last action as he was subbed out for Mitch Ferguson in the 66th minute. 

The substitute came agonizingly close to an equalizer two minutes into his shift. Fighting through contact, the tall center back redirected a corner kick towards goal and off the crossbar. The ball fell in the box and was hammered away from the goal mouth before St. Louis regained control. Tschantret made two more changes, bringing on Sam Worcester for Daniel Russo in the 78th and Edson Brooks for Ty Haas in the 87th. Kansas City was unable to mount another advance at goal and CITY2 escaped with their seventh straight result and three points.

Sporting KC II will play their 2026 MLS NEXT Pro home finale on Sunday, September 13 against LAFC 2. Tickets for the 7 p.m. CT showdown are on sale at SeatGeek.com and the game can be streamed in the OneFootball app or at MLSNEXTPro.com.

Sporting Kansas City II: Jack Kortkamp; Alex Cunningham, Pierre Lurot, Luca Antongirolami (Mitch Ferguson 66'), Daniel Russo (Sam Worcester 78'); Blaine Mabie, Trevor Burns (Jack Francka 46'), Shane Donovan; Ty Haas (Edson Brooks 87'), Tega Ikoab, Missael Rodriguez

Subs Not Used: Brady Krysiewicz, Zane Wantland, Finn Dean, Johann Ortiz, Brixton Welsh

St. Louis CITY2: Nate Martinez; Christopher Pearson (C), Zack Lillington, Tahir Reid-Brown; Riley Lynch (Andrew De Gannes 86'), Alexander Jundt (Trip Clancy III 63'), Jack Wagoner, Tyson Pearce (Sidney Paris 63'); Patrick McDonald (Lorenzo Cornelius 87'), Nighte Pickering, Zach Zengue

Subs Not Used: William Burckhardt, Emiliano Chavez, Owen Jorgensen, Samuel Goldstein, Brendan McSorley

Scoring Summary:

SKC - Tega Ikoba 7 (Ty Haas) 5'
STL - Zachary Zengue 3 (Patrick McDonald) 24'
STL - Zachary Zengue 4 (Nighte Pickering) 58'

Referee: Nicholas Strednak
Assistant Referee: Ethan Buege
Assistant Referee: Braxton Williams
Fourth Official: Jose Lara