MLS NEXT Pro Matchday 12 provided surprising results and outstanding goals. Amid the shocking upset results, several teams such as NYCFC II and Houston Dynamo 2 continued excellent runs.
Let's take a look back at the action from MLS NEXT Pro Matchday 12.
Columbus Crew 2 (2) - Crown Legacy FC (1)
Crew 2 snapped its three-game losing streak in a huge way, knocking off Eastern Conference leader Crown Legacy FC in a come-from-behind 2-1 victory.
Noah Fuson turned in an excellent performance for Crew 2, scoring the equalizer in the 16th minute and assisting Coleman Gannon's 50th-minute goal which proved to be the winner.
Patrick Agyemang opened scoring for Crown Legacy in the 10th minute. Agyemang, who scored Saturday in Charlotte FC's 3-3 draw with the Seattle Sounders, became the first player in league history to score an MLS goal and an MLS NEXT Pro goal in the same weekend.
Crown Legacy lost only its second match all season, and the club remains top in the East. Crew 2 looks to rekindle its form earlier this season, with this victory allowing it to maintain a top-four spot.
Inter Miami II (1) - TFC II (1) (TFC II wins shootout 5-4)
TFC II picked up an extra point with two saves from goalkeeper Greg Ranjitsingh in the shootout. Both teams endured a lengthy weather delay that broke up a meeting between evenly matched teams.
Lawson Sunderland put Inter Miami II ahead in the 38th minute, as he cut toward the middle of the field and finished into the lower right corner. Jesus Batiz equalized for TFC II in the 50th minute by converting a penalty kick.
Each team has now gone two games unbeaten. TFC II continues to fight to improve in a competitive Eastern Conference, and the club has now picked up eight points from the previous five matches.
Orlando City B (4) - FC Cincinnati 2 (0)
Four goals from four scorers in the first half allowed Orlando City B to lock up a home win against FC Cincinnati 2. Jack Lynn moved into a tie for second among MLS NEXT Pro leading scorers with his seventh goal of the season in the 26th minute.
Juninho kept OCB going four minutes later, scoring from an impressive free kick from about 20 yards. Shakur Mohamed finished at the back post to make it 3-0 in the 37th minute, and Jorge Almaguer added another goal in the 44th minute.
OCB bounced back from last week's road loss with a home win, and have now earned nine points from the past four games. FCC2, on the other hand, have dropped two straight matches.
Huntsville City FC (4) - St Louis CITY2 (2)
Huntsville City FC picked up three points in an eventful win over St Louis CITY2 at Joe Davis Stadium. HCFC earned a quick advantage with a goal by Jonathan Bolanos only nine seconds into the match. Bolanos' goal ties the record for fastest goal in MLS NEXT Pro history.
Akil Watts and Wan Kuzain scored to bring CITY2 in front. Three minutes into the second half, 18-year-old Nashville SC academy member Adem Sipic scored in his first start for HCFC.
Finally, Kemy Amiche took over, converting a penalty kick for the 3-2 lead in the 65th minute. Amiche scored again three minutes later.
HCFC brought CITY2's five-game unbeaten streak to an end, while ending a run of two straight defeats of its own.
MNUFC2 (1) - Houston Dynamo 2 (4)
Houston Dynamo 2 moved up the Western Conference table with a dominant road performance in a win against MNUFC2.
Yair Gonzalez opened scoring for Dynamo Dos in the fourth minute. Diego Gonzalez added his fifth goal of the 2023 season in the 13th minute, and Juan Castilla pushed his side even further ahead with a free-kick goal in the 17th minute.
Rory O'Driscoll pulled a goal back for MNUFC in the second half. However, Sebastian Rodriguez furthered Dynamo Dos' dominance with a fourth goal in the 89th minute.
Dynamo Dos improves to five games unbeaten, including four wins in that span. MNUFC2 fell to a third straight loss.
NYCFC II (3) - New York Red Bulls II (1)
NYCFC II exacted revenge on New York Red Bulls II, evening the season series between the city rivals. Piero Elias provided the finishing touch for NYCFC II, scoring twice.
Elias scored first, putting NYCFC II up 1-0 in the fifth minute after a clever assist from Francesco Di Ponzio. Jonathan Jimenez doubled the lead with a header in the 23rd minute, while Red Bulls II's Frank Ssebufu pulled a goal back three minutes later. NYCFC II earned some insurance with another Elias goal in the 84th minute.
NYCFC II stretched a win streak to four games. Meanwhile, Red Bulls II lost its second match in the previous three matches. The rivals are separated by one point on the Eastern Conference table, with NYCFC II in sixth place and Red Bulls II in fifth place.
Earthquakes II (1) - Tacoma Defiance (1) (Earthquakes II wins shootout 6-5)
Earthquakes II triumphed in a shootout to take two points from a home match against Western Conference contenders Tacoma Defiance. The shootout went two sudden-death rounds, with Earthquakes II
Earthquakes II's William Richmond scored in his second game in a row, while Jack Skahan provided his second assist in as many games. Reed Baker-Whiting equalized in the 56th minute by cutting into the 18-yard box from the left side and launching an accurate shot into the bottom right corner.
Quakes II made it two games unbeaten with the shootout win. Defiance have gone five games without a win, and have picked up five points from the previous five matches.
Los Angeles Football Club 2 (0) - Colorado Rapids 2 (1)
MLS NEXT Pro leading scorer Yosuke Hanya shined again for Colorado Rapids 2, bringing his season goal total to eight as Rapids 2 extended its historic unbeaten streak.
Hanya scored in the 61st minute, dribbling past two defenders at the top of box before finding just enough space to score into the lower left corner.
Rapids 2's unbeaten streak, which is the longest in league history, reached 12 games. Rapids 2 remain top of the Western Conference.
New England Revolution II (2) - Chicago Fire FC II (2) (Revs II wins shootout 4-3)
Esmir Bajraktarevic helped New England Revolution II earn two points by scoring the winning penalty in a back-and-forth match capped off by a frenetic shootout.
Noeh Hernandez put Fire II ahead in the 14th minute with a strong finish from inside the 18-yard box. Revs II's Jack Panayotou equalized three minutes later. Jordan Adebayo-Smith capitalized on a defensive miscue in the 21st minute to put Revs II back in front.
Fire II had an answer again, however. Richard Fleming scored with a powerful shot from the left side of the field to put 10-man Fire II into contention at 2-2.
Fire II continue with a two-game unbeaten run. Revs II solidified its standing in second place in the Eastern Conference, and is now unbeaten in five of the last six matches.
