The first taste of playoff soccer lived up to the hype, with Red Bull New York II mounting a comeback over Huntsville City FC in the Eastern Conference to advance and Earthquakes II surviving in a back-and-forth, eight-goal shootout to advance past Tacoma Defiance.
Now the playoff field is set, with RBNY II facing Crown Legacy FC in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals and Quakes II heading to Austin FC II in the Western Conference Quarterfinals.
Let's take a look back at two dramatic do-or-die performances.
Red Bull New York II 3, Huntsville City FC 1
Zidane Yañez' early goal for HCFC served as a wake-up call for Red Bulls II's attack in a downpour at MSU Soccer Park.
Mijahir Jimenez leveled the match in the 43rd minute.
The decisive goal came in first-half stoppage time, with Pedro Castro launching a perfectly placed free kick into the top corner.
Tanner Rosborough tacked on another goal in the 89th minute to punch Red Bulls II's playoff ticket.
Earthquakes II 4, Tacoma Defiance 4 (3-1 shootout)
A classic featuring two extra-time goals found very little to separate Quakes II and Tacoma Defiance.
"I'm just so happy we won right now," said Bohane. "It wasn't the prettiest game of soccer. That's just soccer for you. I'm happy to get a goal and assist but I'm just really happy we got the win. ... Our keeper Nate came up huge there at the end, so that's just what we needed heading into the playoffs."
Quakes II jumped out to a 2-0 lead thanks to a header from Tomo Allen and a converted penalty by Zachary Bohane.
But by the 51st minute, Defiance leveled things with Rafael Jauregi scoring a brace.
An incredible long-range strike for Allen's second goal gave Quakes II the lead.
A near-post header by Mark O'Neill leveled the match yet again.
In extra time, Jermaine Spivey struck for Quakes II to claim a 4-3 lead in the 104th minute. But six minutes later, Landon Lucero equalized to send the match to a shootout.
"That's my first pro goal," Spivey said after the game. "We needed a goal. We're chasing the game and we needed to win. Just in the moment, the ball came to me and it felt right. I've hit those in practice before, playing around with my brothers, so I was ready."
Quakes II goalkeeper Nathan Crockford then stepped up in the shootout, making two saves to further his team's season.
