Orlando City B (10-7-9, 43 points) defeated New England Revolution II (4-15-5, 21 points) 2-0 this evening at Osceola County Stadium in Kissimmee to inch closer to a spot in the 2024 MLS NEXT Pro postseason. Alex Freeman and Jack Lynn scored goals in the second half to lift the Young Lions to victory.

OCB deployed the same lineup from the 4-1 win over Crown Legacy FC on Sept. 8. The back line in front of goalkeeper Carlos Mercado was Luca Petrasso, Thomas Williams, Nabi Kibunguchy, and Freeman. Imanol Almaguer and Jeorgio Kocevski were the defensive midfielders behind Yutaro Tsukada, Jhon Solis, and Shak Mohammed with Lynn up top.

Despite being in last place and not winning since June 14, the Revs were the better team for most of the game. The visitors came out as the aggressors, creating chances early in both halves. However, they struggled to hit the target, a key factor in the result. Freeman’s goal early in the second half took the wind out of the sails of Revs II, enabling the Young Lions to create more opportunities. That resulted in a second goal that put the game away.

The Young Lions nearly had a chance in the fourth minute when Tsukada found Mohammed in the box. Lynn was making a run to the top of the six, but Mohammed couldn’t control the pass and it went out of play for a goal kick.

The visitors almost had their first shot on the other end when Cristiano Oliveira tried to control a pass near the penalty spot. The ball got away from him, but Kibunguchy’s attempted clearance bounced off of the attacker. It looked like the Young Lions had a goal kick, but it deflected off of Freeman for a corner. Revs II couldn’t create anything from the set piece and OCB cleared.

Despite the Revs struggling offensively for most of the season, they were the aggressors in the early part of the game. Oliveira created more trouble around the 15th minute from the left side, forcing Freeman to block the ball out of play. However, the visitors again were unable to create anything.

The best chance of the first 20 minutes came in the 19th minute when Maciel played a beautiful ball over the back line for Damario McIntosh, who was making a run towards the end line. The right back had two teammates in the box, but he couldn’t find either. The ball went to Eric Klein at the top of the 18, but his shot was deflected out by Solis.

The ensuing corner found the head of Marcos Dias wide open in the box. The forward redirected the cross towards goal, but his attempt was over the crossbar.

OCB got its first shot of the game in the 21st minute when Petrasso played the ball back for Tsukada just inside the box. The midfielder’s first touch was a shot that was blocked out for a corner kick. After the first set piece was headed out for another corner, Kibunguchy was first to the second one. Unfortunately, his header went wide.

Dias got another chance at goal in the 26th minute when Gevork Diarbian found him near the top left corner of the OCB box. New England’s leading goal scorer felt the pressure arriving, so he shot with his left foot instead of his preferred right, but the ball traveled wide of the far post.

Joshua Bolma took an ambitious shot in the 27th minute from outside the box. He was looking to play a teammate through, but nobody in purple closed him down, so the attacker took a chance at goal. Mercado unsuccessfully dove for it, but the ball rolled wide.

The Young Lions tried to break out on a counterattack in the 30th minute, but Diarbian pulled Mohammed down, earning himself a yellow card. The ensuing free kick by Almaguer found the head of Freeman in the box and the right back redirected it on goal. Revs II goalkeeper Maxwell Weinstein did well to get down and make the stop.

OCB nearly found the opening goal in the 35th minute right out of the hydration break. Kocevski lifted the ball into the box for Lynn and the striker came within inches of connecting with it, but the ball was just out of his reach. However, McIntosh knocked the ball out of play for a corner kick.

The ensuing set piece was cleared to the top of the box, where Solis won possession back. His shot was blocked by the foot of Tiago and went directly to Mohammed. The OCB attacker took a touch inside to create space and shot for the near post. It took an excellent diving save by Weintein to keep the game scoreless. Lynn was first to the free ball but was ruled offside, ending the attack.

Freeman dribbled into the box from the right side in the 41st minute. Mohammed set up at the top of the box and the right back laid it off for him. Mohammed’s first touch was a shot, but he sent the attempt over the goal.

New England nearly had a chance in the 43rd minute when Diarbian sent a dangerous ball through the box to the far post. Mcintosh was making a run, but the ball was a bit too far in front of him, traveling wide of the goal.

The final chance of the first half came in the third minute of stoppage time when Dias took a shot from the top of the box. Kocevski got in front of the attempt, deflecting it out for a corner kick. The Young Lions cleared the ensuing set piece and the halftime whistle blew.

New England created more shots in the first half (8-6), but OCB put more on target (3-2). Revs II also had more corner kicks (7-3) and crosses (7-1) and better passing accuracy (92.1%-88.7%) in the first 45 minutes.

Similar to the first half, New England was the more attacking team to start the second 45 minutes. Malcolm Fry made a run to the end line inside the first minute and his cross was blocked out by Freeman for a corner kick. The short corner ended up with McIntosh on the far side and the defender sent a cross into the box. It found the head of Klein, but the midfielder’s header was just wide.

OCB unexpectedly took the lead in the 49th minute with an excellent individual effort by Freeman. The right back was played forward down the right by Mohammed, catching up to the ball before it reached the end line. The defender used a quick change of pace to get past his defender and shot from a tight angle, somehow getting the ball past Weinstein to give the Young Lions the 1-0 lead.

Freeman finishes from the tight angle 📐

1-0 @OrlandoCityB pic.twitter.com/LL8gAJiIdS

— MLS NEXT Pro (@MLSNEXTPRO) September 15, 2024

Freeman has been on a tear in recent weeks. He’s now scored in four straight games and has five goals in those four games.

“It’s good that I’m able to go forward and I think I’m more clinical now. So I’m able to go score goals and I’m feeling really good,” Freeman said about his recent goal streak. “Makes my confidence go up and now it’s just building on it. And being able to continue scoring. Not only scoring, but helping my team.”

“The key for his success is the defensive part he’s doing,” OCB Head Coach Manuel Goldberg said about Freeman. “Although he’s contributing a lot in the offensive part, he’s doing a big, big, big, important part in the defensive part. So we’re happy for that for him.”

Mohammed sent Almaguer into the box in the 52nd minute and his layoff was knocked over the end line by Fry for a corner kick. Lynn got his head to the ensuing set piece, redirecting it on goal, but the header was right to Weinstein.

The Young Lions nearly had a second in the 56th minute when Lynn got behind the back line and Freeman played a good ball in for him. A simple tap-in by the striker would’ve doubled the advantage, but he sent the shot over the crossbar.

McIntosh was sent into the OCB box in the 60th minute and his shot was blocked into the outside of the net by Freeman. The ensuing set piece resulted in a ball forward that Mercado was able to cover.

The outlet pass by Mercado resulted in OCB’s second goal of the game. Quick passing by Kibunguchy, Freeman, and Mohammed enabled Kocevski to play a long ball for Lynn making a run behind the back line. After failing to convert on an easy finish minutes earlier, the striker didn’t miss his second attempt. He slipped the ball by Weinstein and into the corner to give his team a 2-0 lead.

Lynn doubles the @OrlandoCityB advantage 🦁 pic.twitter.com/Dw3OUFtHEe

— MLS NEXT Pro (@MLSNEXTPRO) September 15, 2024

The Young Lions continued to press forward, trying to extend their lead. In the 65th minute, Mohammed took a shot from the top of the box. The ball went through multiple defenders before rolling wide of the far post. It looked like it might’ve come off a defender, but referee Alejo Calume gave Revs II a goal kick.

Dias tried to get his team back into the game in the 69th minute when the forward used some nifty footwork to avoid a pair of defenders. However, rather than dribbling closer to goal, he took a shot from the top of the box, sending the attempt over the top.

The first two substitutions for OCB came in the 71st minute. Wilfredo Rivera and Yeiler Valencia came into the game for Lynn and Tsukada.

Rivera and Freeman worked well together to create a chance for the right back in the 74th minute. It started when Rivera sent the ball out wide for Freeman. He made a run towards the top of the box and Freeman found him before continuing behind the substitute. Rivera laid it off for Freeman and the defender shot from outside the box, sending the attempt over the goal.

OCB made two more changes in the 81st minute, replacing Mohammed and Petrasso with Favian Loyola and Tahir Reid-Brown.

New England had a great chance in the 84th minute to get back in the game when Olger Escobar sent a pass between Kibunguchy and Freeman to Bolma. The attacker was in on goal, but Mercado came off his line to cut down the angle and make the stop.

The final OCB change came in the 86th minute, as Manuel Cocca replaced Solis.

Cocca nearly made an immediate impact, sending Valencia down the left in the 88th minute. The substitute midfielder got around Sage Kinner and was free on goal. However, he shot right at Weinstein, enabling the goalkeeper to block the attempt.

Dias kept trying to find a way past Mercado, taking another long-distance shot in the 89th minute. It was a strong shot that forced the OCB goalkeeper to dive to his left, but the attempt was wide.

The fourth official showed five minutes of stoppage time and the visitors had a chance in the first of those minutes. Escobar made a run towards the box and shot before reaching the 18. The shot forced Mercado to tip the ball wide, a good save by the OCB shot stopper. The ensuing corner kick found a head, but went wide of the far post.

The visitors had one last chance to convert in the final minute of stoppage time. A long cross into the box was headed away by Cocca for a corner kick .The set piece was headed on goal, but Mercado made the catch. Calume called a foul on the play, awarding OCB a free kick. Immediately after the free kick, the final whistle blew and the Young Lions claimed a 2-0 win.

At full time, New England had more shots (17-15), corner kicks (12-4), and crosses (17-1), and better passing accuracy (90.6%-88%). However, OCB put more chances on target (8-6) and converted on two of those on their way to all three points.

“It was really tough the first half. We knew that this team was going to come really strong, even though in the circumstance they are in the standings. So we were prepared for that,” Goldberg said about the game. “It was, as we planned, very tough. But in the second half we were able to get a little bit of extra energy that we needed to step up.”

“I feel like, obviously the first half, I think it was a little slow for us. I don’t think we got the chance that we wanted and we were defending most of it. But I think the second half we came out strong,” Freeman added. “Got an early goal. We just kept pressing, kept pressing. Our press got better and we just cut the ball a little more. We were able to get two, and then after that we were comfortable. We were just able to keep the ball and control the game.”

The three points go a long way towards helping the Young Lions claim a playoff spot for the second consecutive year. Only two games remain in the season, with the final game coming away to FC Cincinnati 2, which sits in front of OCB.

---

The Young Lions will end their 2024 MLS NEXT Pro regular-season home schedule on Sept. 23 as they welcome Chicago Fire II to Osceola County Stadium.