MLS NEXT Pro Matchday 8 action continued on Friday night when Huntsville City FC traveled to Chicago to face off against Fire II, while North Texas SC visited Earthquakes II in San Jose.
Here's a rundown of how the two games unfolded on Friday night:
Chicago Fire II (1) vs. Huntsville City FC (1) - (Huntsville City FC win shootout 4-1)
Huntsville City FC left the Windy City with a valuable extra point after besting Chicago Fire II by 4-1 in a shootout. The match was a closely contested affair, with both teams having their fair share of chances throughout.
It was Huntsville City who broke the deadlock in the 48th minute, thanks to a well-executed penalty kick by their first-ever team signing, Isaiah Johnston.
Fire II responded quickly with Harold Osorio netting a penalty kick to level the score in the 65th minute. With his goal against Huntsville City, Osorio has now found the back of the net in successive Matchdays.
Despite several close calls in the second half, neither team was able to find a winner during regulation time, and the game was ultimately decided by a shootout.
Huntsville City's player-coach, John Berner, proved to be the hero of the night, denying a crucial kick from the mark to secure the extra point for his team.Â
With their shootout victory on Friday night, Huntsville City has taken the lead in MLS NEXT Pro for the most shootout victories in the league with three.
After earning two points tonight, Huntsville City will now look forward to their home opener against Crown Legacy at a jam packed Joe Davis Stadium on May 19th.
Chicago Fire II will travel north of the border next week to face off against Toronto FC II.
Earthquakes II (0) vs. North Texas SC (0) - (Earthquakes II win shootout 5-3)
Following a goalless 90 minutes, Earthquakes II prevailed in a penalty shootout, winning 5-3 against North Texas SC.
Despite coming off a convincing 4-1 victory in their previous match, North Texas SC struggled to find the back of the net against a determined Earthquakes II defense. The home side controlled most of the match, dominating possession and accumulating 19 total shots, although with only five of them being on target.
In the shootout, Earthquakes II's goalkeeper Eric De La Cerda made a crucial save to deny Nolan Norris and secure the extra point for his side.
The win comes as a boost for Earthquakes II, who had lost three of their last five matches, and now sit in a mid-table position in the Western Conference with 11 points.
Meanwhile, North Texas SC will aim to bounce back from the loss when they host cross-state rivals Houston Dynamo 2 in their next fixture on Matchday 9.
