Sporting KC II Sinks St. Louis with 3-1 Home Win

July 21, 2024 – MLS NEXT Pro (MLS NEXT Pro)
Sporting Kansas City II News Release

Sporting Kansas City (7-7-4, 27 points) earned a suberb 3-1 home win over rivals St. Louis City 2 (11-4-2, 36 points) on Sunday at Rock Chalk Park in Lawrence, Kansas.

Fantastic first-half goals from Sebastian Cruz and Cielo Tschantret gave Sporting a 2-1 lead to protect before Roberto Hategan came off the bench to seal the result with a goal of his own in the 80th minute.

The hosts were first to threaten inside three minutes as Jake Swallen slipped an incisive pass through to Beto Avila, whose curler at the top of the box fizzed narrowly over the crossbar. Shortly thereafter, a well-worked Sporting attack saw Avila tee up a 15-yard shot for captain Ethan Bryant that was bobbled but saved by St. Louis goalkeeper Nick Bishop.

At the opposite end, St. Louis went worryingly close to drawing first blood in the 19th minute. Forward Mykhi Joyner received a pass on the left edge of the penalty area and dragged a shot goalward. SKC II goalkeeper Jacob Molinaro sprawled low to get a touch on the ball and steer it onto the frame of the post and back into play, where it was ushered clear.

Sporting suffered an injury blow midway through the first half as Swallen was forced off with a leg injury, summoning midfielder Danny Flores as his replacement. Less than two minutes after the change, head coach Benny Feilhaber’s side almost opened the scoring with Bryant making a late run into the box and poking a shot just wide off a clever feed from Cruz.

In the 32nd minute, Cruz lifted Sporting into a deserved lead with a brilliant goal on the counter attack. Tschantret did well to win a tackle at midfield and play forward to Bryant, who sprung SKC II free with a long ball down the right side for Cruz. The Sporting KC Academy product did wonderfully from there, shaking free of his marker with an excellent move inside the box and rifling a shot high into the roof of the net for his fourth goal of the 2024 campaign.

St. Louis restored parity two minutes from halftime. After Sporting failed to clear their lines in a dangerous area, Matteo Kidd pounced into possession near the penalty spot and finished low on a shot that Molinaro could only get his glove on.

The last laugh of the half, however, belonged to SKC II in the third minute of added time. Maouloune Goumballe was played into space down the right channel, dashed goalward, cut centrally and pinged the ball to the top of the box for Tschantret, who…