Chicago Fire FC II (0-1-1-1, 2 points) fell 2-1 against Orlando City B (1-1-0-0, 3 points) Sunday night at Osceola Heritage Park in Kissimmee, Fla.
Defender Jack Sandmeyer tallied his first goal in MLS NEXT Pro as newcomer Tidiane Diawara made his first appearance with Chicago Fire II.
The visitors threatened from the start, with a header by Sandmeyer being parried away at the goal line in the 25th minute. But the hosts tallied first as midfielder Harvey Sarajian dribbled right and cut back to lay off a pass to Pedro Leão, who finished cleanly with six minutes left in the first half.
Sandmeyer got redemption in first half stoppage time as Damian Nigg’s corner kick was struck in the box and parried by goalkeeper Tristan Himes. But the spilled shot fell in front of the center back, who did not hesitate to get his first goal as a professional.
The sides traded chances in a busy second half, but Orlando retook the lead in the 72nd minute. With his back to the goal on the left wing, midfielder Justin Ellis cut into the box to bend a shot to the far post that wound up a game-winner for his side.
NEXT MATCH: Chicago Fire FC II will play at home for the first time, welcoming Chattanooga FC to SeatGeek Stadium on March 15. Kickoff in Bridgeview is scheduled for 3 p.m. CT, with admission and parking free for all fans. The match can be streamed across the globe on OneFootball and MLSNEXTPro.com.
Social: X - @ChicagoFireFCII (Hashtags: #ChicagoFireII) | Instagram - @chicagofirefcii | Facebook
Box Score:
Orlando City B 2:1 Chicago Fire FC II
Goals:
ORL - Leão (1) (Sarajian 1) (WATCH) 39’
CHI - Sandemeyer (1) (WATCH) 45+1’
ORL - Ellis (1) (Rhein 1) (WATCH) 72’
Discipline:
CHI - Berg (Caution) 19’
ORL - Sandy Jr. (Caution) 20’
ORL - Taifi (Caution) 45+5’
ORL - Leão (Caution) 70’
CHI - Sandmeyer (Caution) 74’
Chicago Fire FC II: GK Pratt, D Nagle, D Sandmeyer, D Pfrommer, D Berg (Napoe, 84’), M Fleming (capt.), M Pineda, M Turdean (Villanueva, 62’), F Hlyut (Diawara, 80’), F Poreba, F Damian (Boltz, 61’)
Substitutes not used: GK Molenda, D González, M Clark
Head Coach: Mike Matkovich
Orlando City B: GK Himes, D Yearwood (Amoo-Mensah, 71’), D Taifi, D Sandy Jr. (capt.), D Rhein, M Judelson, M Lasheras (Baczewski, 62’), M Sarajian, M Ellis (Okonski, 87’), M Tsukada (Caraballo, 62’), F Leão (Tsopanoglou, 86’)
Substitutes not used: GK Rojas, M Trombino, F Rodriguez, F Belgodere
Head Coach: Manuel Goldberg
Stats Summary: ORL / CHI
Shots: 16 / 19
Shots on Goal: 7 / 6
Passing Accuracy: 82.5% / 80.8%
Saves: 4 / 5
Corners: 6 / 7
Fouls: 13 / 20
Offsides: 2 / 1
Venue: Osceola Heritage Park (Kissimmee, Fla.)
Referee: Erick Lezama
Assistant Referee 1: Joshua Belk
Assistant Referee 2: Nick Goyette
Fourth Official: Jake Joyce