With plenty of dramatic goals and surprising scorelines, Matchday 6 provided a thrilling weekend of MLS NEXT Pro action that had fans on the edge of their seats.
Matchday 6 also had the highest-ever average of goals scored per game with 4.1 goals being scored per match.
As the dust settles on an exciting round of games, it's time to take a closer look at the standout performances and notable results from MLS NEXT Pro's rising stars.
Columbus Crew 2 (3) - Inter Miami II 2 (2)
Mataeo Bunbury made a huge impact for Crew 2, entering the match in the 71st minute with Crew 2 down 2-1. Bunbury assisted the tying goal in the 82nd minute, then headed in the winning goal six minutes later to hand Crew 2 the win.
Inter Miami II led 2-0 after a 40th-minute strike from Lawson Sunderland and a 69th-minute goal from Cameron Johnson.
Crew 2 made four substitutions in the 71st and 72nd minutes, which turned the game on its head.
Among the substitutes was Cole Mwroka, a 17-year-old Crew academy player, who scored Crew 2's first goal just one minute after he subbed onto the field. Noah Fuson scored the tying goal 10 minutes later, setting up Bunbury to take the plaudits from a Man of the Match-worthy cameo.
New England Revolution II (5) - FC Cincinnati 2 (5) - (Revs II wins shootout 5-4)
In a historic game for MLS NEXT Pro, New England Revolution II emerged triumphant in a shootout following a high-scoring affair during regulation time. With a total of 10 goals scored between both teams, last Sunday's match between New England Revolution II and FCC2 now stands as the highest-scoring game in league history.
Revs II's Ben Awashie scored the final spot kick as the teams needed six rounds to decide who would take home the extra point.
Damian Rivera led Revs II with two goals and an assist, while Arquimides Ordóñez scored twice for FCC2. Revs II's Marcos Dias also had two goals.
Things got interesting late in the match, as Revs II scored in the 85th minute through a Dias penalty kick. FCC2 tied the game up with an own goal in the 90th minute, forcing the game to the shootout.
ATL UTD 2 (1) - Philadelphia Union II (0)
Karim Tmimi's first professional start was one to remember. The 26-year-old Frenchman scored in the 40th minute, a goal that was enough to seal ATL UTD 2's third win in a row.
ATL UTD 2 goalkeeper Vicente Reyes preserved the clean sheet with five saves.
Chicago Fire FC II (0) - (New York Red Bulls II (0) - (Red Bulls II wins shootout 3-0)
Neither team could find the net during 90 minutes of play at SeatGeek Stadium, but New York Red Bulls II won in the shootout after goalkeeper AJ Marcucci came up big in the shootout.
Marcucci also made seven saves to keep the match scoreless and earn the clean sheet.
Colorado Rapids 2 (4) - North Texas SC (2)
Colorado Rapids 2 surged in the second half to erase a 2-0 North Texas SC halftime lead. Yosuke Hanya led Rapids 2 with a goal and an assist, bringing his total to five goals so far in 2023.
By scoring against North Texas SC, Hanya extended his goal-scoring streak to five games.
A second yellow card for Tyshawn Rose left North Texas shorthanded in the second half. Rapids 2 started to gain momentum after the red card with goals from Blake Malone in the 57th minute and Hanya in the 63rd. One minute later, a goal from Oliver Larraz off a clever feed from Hanya brought Rapids 2 the lead.
Logan Batiste sealed the win for Rapids 2 in the 75th minute, chipping the goalkeeper after meeting a pinpoint long ball from Connor Miller.
The win for Rapids 2 sees them stretch an unbeaten streak to six games.
Orlando City B (3) - TFC II (2)
Moises Tablante scored with a powerful shot from just outside the box in the first minute of stoppage time to deliver Orlando City B its fifth win of the season.
OCB emerged from halftime down 1-0 thanks to a Jesus Batiz goal for TFC II in the third minute of the game. Alex Freeman equalized for OCB three minutes into the second half, but Hugo-Hilaire Mbongue put TFC II back ahead six minutes later.
Abdi Salim would put back things level after scoring the tying goal for the Young Lions in the 84th minute. As the game looked to be heading to a shootout, the 21-year-old Tablante scored game-winner to cap a comeback effort from OCB and give the home side the three points.
Real Monarchs (5) - Timbers2 (1)
Real Monarchs earned its second win in a row, with Diego Luna leading a second-half surge in which Monarchs scored five goals.
Timbers2 struck first, converting a penalty kick in the 11th minute. However, Luna turned things around by the 65th minute, when he scored the tying goal. Luna found the ball at his feet again in the 74th minute, using a slick dribbling move to fake out a defender and finish strong into the left side of the goal.
Ilijah Paul and Tyrone Mondi each helped Monarchs seal the win with a goal and an assist each.
St Louis CITY2 (2) - Whitecaps FC 2 (1)
A Sergio Rivas header in the 84th minute proved enough for St Louis CITY2 to take three points from an in-form Whitecaps FC 2 squad. Rivas connected for the game-winning goal on a set piece played in the box by Max Schneider.
Faysal Bettache equalized for CITY2 in the 17th minute after Whitecaps FC 2's Antoine Coupland opened scoring in the ninth minute.
After today's result, CITY2 are beginning to shed a difficult start to the 2023 season. The club won in a shootout last weekend against Colorado Rapids 2, and now add its first win of the season.
LAFC2 (0) - Earthquakes II (1)
Earthquakes II took all three points from an end-to-end match which featured 25 total shots. The difference for Earthquakes II came in the 81st minute, when Eduardo Blancas scored the game's only goal with a heads-up play, rushing forward to intercept the ball deep into LAFC's territory.
Quakes II snapped a two-game losing streak and scoring drought with the win.
NYCFC II (1) - Crown Legacy FC (4)
Crown Legacy FC continues its undefeated start to the season with Sunday night's win at Belson Stadium. NYCFC II was shorthanded for much of the match, and Crown Legacy's attacking talent shined. Nikola Petkovic notched a goal and an assist in the first half for Crown Legacy.
Crown Legacy gained a major advantage in the 15th minute, when Rio Hope-Gund received a red card for a foul denying an obvious goal scoring opportunity. Crown Legacy went up 2-0 in the 36th minute with a goal from Iuri Tavares.
With tonight's result, Crown Legacy FC have now accumulated five wins in a row. NYCFC II snapped a three-match unbeaten streak with the loss.
Josué Rodrigues, who turned 19 years old on Sunday, celebrated his birthday by scoring Crown Legacy FC's final goal of the match.
Sporting KC II (1) - Houston Dynamo 2 (4)
Four different players scored for Dynamo 2 on Sunday as the team from Houston grabbed three points on the road, taking a 4-1 win at Rock Chalk Park.
Diego Gonzalez, Papa Ndoye, Isaiah Reid and Yair Gonzalez each scored for Dynamo Dos. Gonzalez was Dynamo Dos's Man of the Match with a goal, an assist, plus two key passes.
SKC II's Pau Vidal continued his impressive form in the match, netting his fifth consecutive goal in as many games and securing his team's only goal of the day.
Dynamo 2 rebounded from last week's loss to Tacoma Defiance with more strong play away from home. The team has claimed eight points from the last four games.
Tacoma Defiance (3) - LA Galaxy II (1)
In a Western Conference battle, Tacoma Defiance took all three points in 3-1 victory over LA Galaxy II to wrap up Matchday 6. Defiance started strong with goals from Hal Uderitz and Paul Rothrock to give the hosts a 2-0 lead at the 70th minute mark.
Aaron Bibout got Galaxy II back into the game by converting a penalty kick in the 78th minute. However, the one-goal deficit didn't last long before Defiance responded two minutes later when Rothrock connected with Braudílio Pina Rodrigues in the box to make it 3-1.
After providing an assist on Sunday, Rockrock's now leads the league in assists this season with five.
With the win, Defiance improves from last week's loss to Austin FC II and now sits in third place in the Western Conference with 11 points.
Friday's Match
Austin FC II (1) - MNUFC2 (1) - (Austin FC II wins shootout 6-5)
Austin FC II held on to force Friday's lone match into a shootout despite a red card in the 61st minute leaving them shorthanded. After a 1-1 draw across 90 minutes, Austin FC II triumphed after eight rounds of a shootout.
MNUFC2's Diogo Pacheco added his fifth goal of the season in the 53rd minute to open scoring.
Despite the team playing with 10 men since early in the second half, Austin FC II's Emmanuel Johnson equalized in the 86th minute to send the game to a shootout.
Damian Las provided the heroics in the shootout, making a diving save to the bottom left corner to save the decisive spot kick and Austin FC II the shootout victory.
