Photo Philadelphia Union II Communications
The Philadelphia Union II remained undefeated, beating Orlando B in the shootout on penalty kicks 7-6, after drawing 1-1 in regulation. The shootout win allowed the reserve team to move to third place in MLS NEXT Pro Eastern Conference Standings.
The Other Boys in Blue were led by Frank Westfield, David Vazquez, and Andrew Rick, all of whom continued their fast start to the 2024 season. Westfield saved the team from going down 1-0 when Orlando B’s Jhon Solis’ header off a set piece was cleared by Westfield as he smartly backed up Rick. This created a counterattack that saw Sal Olivas get in between two Orlando defenders to put Westfield’s pass into the net.
At the 30 minute mark, Orlando forward Wilfredo Rivera equalized off a Yutaro Tsukada feed. Then the match took a physical turn with three yellow cards issued in the next 15 minutes of play.
The first half stats showed a tight contest; however, this would not be the case in the second half. The Philly side dominated the second half but could not get the ball into the net. The final whistle blew with the score remaining tied and the match went to penalty kicks. In the 14th round Oliver Rick made a fine foot save on Zakaria Taifi to end the game. Union II has a quick turnaround as they face an away match against Atlanta on Monday at 7:30 p.m.
Line Ups: Union II: O. Rick, Berdecio, Wetzel, O. Makhanya, Westervelt, Onely, Parino, Olivas, Vasquez, Davis, and Ngabo.
Subs used: Sequera, Rojas, Tucker, and Zellefrow.
Orlando B: Otero, Freemen, Salim, Williams, Taifi, Guske, Almaguer, Tsukada, Solis, Rivera, and Mohammed.
Subs Used: Ellis, Bowe, and Loyala
Refs:
Ref: Gary Gutierrez
AR1: Alexandru Focea
AR2: Jennifer Dumanie
4th: Marie Durr
Hopefully Curtin took notice as Orlando City B showed a way around one of the new MLS rules. One of the Orlando defenders got hurt and needed treatment so he had to leave the field for 2 or 3 minutes before he could return. As soon as he was ready to return, but before the mandatory time was up, the Orlando keeper went down “injured” and let the time pass in order for his teammate to return once the medical staff was through with him.
Thanks for your write-up, However, you have some mistakes that should be noted.
It’s not Frank Westervelt – the players correct name is Westfield; Frankie Westfield. Also, the Union’s goalkeeper’s name is Andy Rick – not Oliver Rick. They’re pretty key components to the U2 squad as Frankie is the captain & leader and Andy is the #1 keeper. You might want to correct your article to reflect the inaccuracies.
JC
Thanks for your input. Bad mistakes. Thanks for pointing them out