Timbers 2 put up a three-spot on North Texas SC in Mansfield on Saturday night. Portland clinched a playoff spot with the win.
An announced crowd of 3,548 was on hand for the return of Jaidyn Contreras from the Concacaf U-20 Championship, where the US finished 2nd but qualified for the 2027 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan.
North Texas continues its homestand at Texas Health Mansfield Stadium against Austin FC II on Saturday, Aug. 19. Kickoff is set for 7:45 p.m. CT.
North Texas XI
The same XI continued over from the previous game, including Caleb Swann’s continued participation with Los Toritos.
Contreras, Marlon Luccin, Benji Flowers, Da’vian Kimbrough, and Lucas Martins saw action off the bench.
As an expression of the domination by the 2nd in the West Timbers, they outshot NTSC 23 to 12. North Texas managed just a palty 4 shots on target. The Texans struggled to get past midfield, with just one striker, Natty James, having double-digit touches.
“Obviously, we’re disappointed with the result, especially our first loss at Texas Health Mansfield Stadium,” said Coach John Gall. “But we have a quick turnaround against Austin on Wednesday. Nobody is giving up or dropping their heads. Sometimes disappointment fuels the fire, and we’ll use it to push forward.”
With the continued absence of Diego Garcia, the midfield remains light in ability. Daniel Cervantes, Bryce VanVoorhis, and Maximilian Kissel scored for the Timbers.
Captain Slade Starnes tried to shoulder some of the responsibility. “There’s no other word to say than disappointing, especially for myself as an older player and leader on defense. I just feel our organization wasn’t quite there tonight, and we had chances that we didn’t put away, and they did. We want to make Mansfield a fortress, and tonight just didn’t go our way.”
North Texas continues its homestand at Texas Health Mansfield Stadium against Austin FC II on Saturday, Aug. 19. Kickoff is set for 7:45 p.m. CT.