After a late equalizer from Sporting KC II, North Texas SC held on to secure the 2-2 draw and ultimately the shoot-out win at Choctaw Stadium, for their 9th point on the season.
NTSC now sits at 5th in the Western Conference.
Lineups and Tactics
For their rematch against SKCII, North Texas continued with the 3-4-3 formation, which they have utilized in the past two games. A number of changes were made from the previous game, including the additions of Jonah Biggar (CB) and Jaidyn Contreras (RWB) back into the starting lineup.
Midfielder Marlon Luccin got his 1st start for Los Toritos, alongside Timmy Ospina, who made his 6th start of the year at CM. In goal, Eryk Dymora made his 5th start, with Nico Montoya with a place on the bench as the reserve keeper for the first time this season.
The away side went another route, however. Rolling out the same exact lineup from their previous week against NTSC, including the 4-3-3. In goal, Jacob Molinaro earned his 7th start of the season. On the backline, Pierre Lurot made his 7th start of 2026, donning the captain’s armband for the away side.
The away side’s lone goal scorer from their previous matchup, Ty Haas, started the game as a reserve once again. Alongside the team’s newest signing, defender Daniel Russo, who made an appearance on the bench for the first time this season.
The Game
As soon as this game started, Natty James managed to pick up right where he left off from their last game against SKCII.
In the 3rd minute, Contreras played a great through ball to Joshua Torquato, who made a blistering run up the left side of the field. After taking a tumble, he somehow found James in the middle, who buried his third goal of the season from just inside the box to make it 1-0, NTSC.
Just before the end of the first half, SKCII managed to pull one back. In the 40th minute, Zane Wantland played Missael Rodriguez through down the left side, who was able to sneak one past Dymora on the impossibly-angled shot.
Despite a dominant first half from the home team, North Texas found themselves tied going into the second half, at 1-1.
In the 75th minute, a (short-lived) break came for NTSC. Edu Nys drew a foul in the box after a pass from Ospina. Nys stepped up to take the kick, his PK was saved by Molinaro, and that kept the score level at 1-1.
More drama ensued only moments later, and in the 77th minute, NTSC retook the lead. After Molinaro knocked down a cross off a Nys’ corner, James was able to find the ball in the air with his foot and poke it in for his second goal of the night. North Texas led, 2-1, with less than 15 minutes left in the game.
Unfortunately, the NTSC hopes of a second straight win wouldn’t last long. Newly-subbed Tega Ikoba sped past his defender in the 91st minute, danced around captain Slade Starnes, and scored the 2-2 equalizer that the away side so desperately needed.
“When you allow teams to stay close in this game of football, bad things usually happen,” Head Coach John Gall said. “So that was the case. Obviously, they had two shots on goal and scored two goals tonight. And unfortunately, we didn’t do the things we needed to do in the last third of the field to put the game away.”
After 90 minutes of soccer, the game headed to a shootout. North Texas SC was able to come up with a single huge save and take two points from their home rematch against SKCII.
Penalty Kick Results:
SKC – 🟢🟢🟢🔴🟢
NTX – 🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢
After scoring his second (consecutive) brace of the season, it would feel wrong not to highlight Natty James as my Man of the Match. Along with his goal contributions, he won all four of his ground duels and managed to draw two fouls. Another solid performance from the (arguably) best-named player in MLS Next Pro.
“Last week was a real breakout week for him,” Coach Gall said. “It was great to see him with a lot of confidence. And today, he showed quality in the first goal and then the ingenuity with the second goal. We knew what we were getting when Natty came to us, when we had the opportunity to bring him in. We know he’s a quality player.”
Up next, North Texas SC travels to Providence Park to take on Portland Timbers2 on Sunday, April 19th at 3:00 pm CT. The Timbers2 are currently 1-1-2 on the season, with 1 shoot-out win.
