Photo by Philadelphia Union II Communications

After three weeks off, Union II came home to face the independent side Carolina Core FC in MLS NEXT Pro action and earned a 4-1 win for head coach Ryan Richter’s birthday. First teamer and one of last year’s top Union II goalscorers, Stas Korzeniowski, played his first NEXT Pro minutes of the year and scored a first-half brace. The other two Union II goals came from striker Malik Jakupovic and center back Rafael Uzcategui, the captain.

 In advance

Union II had 21 days off before tap-off, having last played on March 22nd at Red Bull II in North Jersey. Homegrown striker Eddy Davis has returned to practice and can be expected to use future Union II games to begin recovering game fitness.

The first team tapped off 24 hours earlier, 450 miles to the north in Montreal, but first-teamers Jakupovic, Andrew Rick, Finn Sundstrom, and Korzeniowski came back in time to get minutes with Union II. 

Last weekend, the Union Academy U18s won the Dallas Cup with a side featuring several academy amateurs who often dress or play with Union II.

 Facial recognition from the team photo of the championship match identifies goalkeeper Alex Smith, center back and defensive midfielder Lennon Harrington, strikers John Ruf and Theo Reed, center back Andrew Craig, defensive midfielders Isaiah “Timo” Mendoza and Matheus De Paula, and attacking midfielder Tyler Gladstone. They were joined for the tournament by 17-year-old Union II attacking midfielder Willyam Ferreira. The other two starters have neither dressed nor played with Union II in games. Two other Union II Academy amateurs appeared off the bench. See PSP’s recap of the Dallas Cup for a match report on that comeback win.

 Carolina Core is an independent side with no affiliation to any MLS parent team. Another challenging game against an older, well-experienced side was therefore to be expected. However, the Core had amassed just two points in the first four matches of the season, each coming from a draw and subsequent shootout losses. While their name encompasses the entire Tar Heel state, they are in the soccer hotbed that is the “research triangle” of the state’s cities and universities, specifically at High Point.

First half

In the opening minutes, Union II looked much like a team that had gone three weeks without playing a match. Carolina had the first prominent attack, having exposed defender Giovanny Sequera on the right flank. With multiple unmarked men in the box, the visitors could not put a shot on target. 

Union II found its rhythm soon after and had a few promising chances. Tyler Gladstone, on his debut, put one just wide, and Malik Jakupovic had another blocked for a corner.  

Jakupovic got his goal in the 20th minute with an incredible touch and volley in the box. Kellan LeBlanc earned the assist, finding the striker wide open on the back post after a confident dribble through traffic. 

Carolina spent a lot of time protesting to the official about fouls that were not called. This lack of focus left plenty of open space for Union II to play into.

Stas Korzeniowski immediately proved he possesses skill beyond the MLS NEXT Pro level. In the 25th minute, he dispossessed a Carolina center back and calmly put the ball into the net. The match was Korzeniowski’s first MLS NEXT Pro appearance of 2026. 

Korzeniowski scored a second goal in the 30th minute after a solo run down the left sideline. He took it from midfield, used a defender to flick it over another defender, and dribbled all the way to the top of the box. His shot deflected of a defender, went off the opposite post from his intention post, and scored. 

Second half

Carolina made two changes at the break, Union II made none.

The visitors had a difficult time keeping the ball in the early minutes of the half. 

Kellan LeBlanc had a shot that hit the post in the 53rd minute after an intelligent headed back pass from Stas Korzeniowski.

Union II scored a fourth goal in the 63rd minute. A Tyler Gladstone corner floated over the box to the head of skipper Rafael Uzcategui, who put it into the side netting. 

Union II’s first change of the match came in the 66th minute. It was a like-for-like change in the defensive midfield line, Oscar Benitez entered for Mamoutou Berthe.

Two academy amateurs joined the action soon after. Center back Andrew Craig, the younger brother of former Union homegrown Brandan Craig, came on for Tyler Gladstone and made his MLS NEXT Pro debut. Nehan Hasan entered for Jordan Griffin. Craig slid Uzcategui to left back, and Hasan replaced Gladstone in the attacking midfield. 

Carolina got a consolation score in the 77th minute. Forward Arnaud Tattevin broke through the Union defensive line and put his shot around goalkeeper Andrew Rick. 

Union II used its final substitution window to bring on academy defensive midfielder Lennon Harrington for Kellan LeBlanc. Harrington’s introduction moved Matheus De Paula to play the attacking mid for the final ten minutes of the match. 

Next match

 Union II plays next on the fifth day, Friday, April 17, at Toronto FC  II. 

Three points + two

1. Stas Korzeniowski made his first MLS NEXT Pro appearance of 2026 and looked miles ahead of the level of his competition. His holdup play and physicality proved so much for Carolina to handle that by the end of the match, their striker, the most physically imposing player on their team, had to come back to try and mark him.
2. Tyler Gladstone made his professional debut and first professional start after his standout performance at the Dallas Cup. He impressed on set pieces and assisted on Union II’s fourth goal from a corner kick. 
3. Andrew Craig made his long-awaited pro debut after captaining the Union Academy U18s to the Dallas Cup final last weekend. 
4. Restoring full 90 minute match fitness  had to have been one of the reasons why Korzeniowski and Jakupovic both played the full 90 minutes plus stoppage time.
5. Coach Richter turned 37 years old today.

 B O X S C O R E

Lineups

Union II (4-2-2-2, L-R). Head coach Ryan Richter. 1st – 4+0; U II – 5+3; AA – 2+5. Starters’ Average age = 19.1

Starters: Andrew Rick; Jordan Griffin (Nehan Hasan– 72’), Rafael Uzcategui, Finn Sundstrom, Gio Sequera; Mamoutou Berthe (Oscar Benitez– 66’), Matheus De Paula; Kellan LeBlanc (Lennon Harrington– 80’), Tyler Gladstone (Andrew Craig– 72’); Stas Korzeniowski, Malik Jakupovic

Rick	Griffin	Uzcategui	Sundstrom	Sequera	Berthe
1st	U II	U II	1st	U II	U II
20.2	17.5	21.5	19.4	20.1	19.3
De Paula	LeBlanc	Gladstone	Korzeniowski	Jakupovic
AA	U II	AA	1st	1st
17.4	18.1	16.8	23.2	16.8

Unused substitutes: Pierce Holbrook; Oliver Pratt, Timo Mendoza, John Ruf

Holbrook	Pratt	Craig	Harrington	Mendoza	Hasan
U II	U II	AA	AA	AA	AA
23.0	22.4	18.6	17.8	16.8	17.8
Benitez	Ruf
UII	AA
21.9	16.9

 Carolina (4-3-3) Head coach Donovan Ricketts. Overall squad average age = 23.7 per Transfermarkt.

Starters: Nicholas Holliday; Nolan Evers, Tim Zeegers, Jair Caiza (Dominique Colon– 81’), Charles Orbaugh (Santiago Yepes– 46’), Ricardo Montenegro, Thomas Raimbault, Mehdi Zerkane (Msunguchi Alenga– 67’), David Diaz (Arnaud Tattevin– 46’), Anthony Sumo Jr., Dyllan John (Nelson Martinez– 67’)

Unused substitutes: Trevor Jackson; Jesus Ibarra, Mohamed Diakite, Nathan Brown

Goals
UII: Jakupovic– 20’ (LeBlanc)

UII: Korzeniowski– 25’ (Unassisted)

UII: Korzeniowski– 30’ (Unassisted)

UII: Uzcategui– 63’ (Gladstone)

CC: Tattevin– 77’ (Raimbault)

 Yellow Cards

CC: Orbaugh– 12’

UII: De Paula– 31’

CC: Raimbult– 33’

CC: Caiza– 51’

CC: Alenga– 68’

CC: Tattewin– 75’

UII: Korzeniowski– 87’

 Whistle & Flags

REF: Izlen Peksenar, AR1: Jessica Carnevale, AR2: Ariel Raban, 4TH: Nick Karnovsky.

 Stats

UII	Statistic	CC	UII	Statistic	CC
17	Shots	9	0	Offsides	3
8	Shots on goal	3	2	Goalkeeper Saves	4
4	Blocked shots	3	9	Clearances	6
314	Total Passes	310
80.6	Pass Accuracy %	82.3	13	Fouls	18
6	Corners	5	2	Yellow Cards	5
3	Total Crosses	6	0	Red Cards	0