CINCINNATI (Oct. 6, 2024) – Orlando City B (11-8-9, 46 points) fell to FC Cincinnati II (16-8-4, 54 points) in a 3-1 match on Decision Day at TQL Stadium on Sunday afternoon. The loss and wins by Inter Miami CF II and Chicago Fire FC II drop the young Lions to fifth place in the final Eastern Conference standings of the season.
With the expanded ‘pick-your-opponent' format, OCB will find out its postseason fate on Oct. 8 when the top four teams in the conference choose their first-round opponent. The Lions will have a week off before getting ready for the Eastern Conference quarterfinals, which will be played on Oct. 18-20.
Defender Alex Freeman was the lone goal scorer for OCB. The newly named MLS NEXT Pro September Player of the Month scored his eighth goal of the season and has scored in five of the last six matches for the Lions. Forward Shak Mohammed provided his second assist of the 2024 campaign on the Freeman finish.
Scoring Summary:
2’ Gerardo Valenzuela (Stefan Chirila) – CIN 1, ORL 0
It didn’t take long for the home side to get the scoring started. Jesús Castellano led a Cincinnati attack down the left wing and sent a pass to Stefan Chirila down towards the Lions’ endline. Chirila found Gerardo Valenzuela just inside the box and the FC Cincinnati forward dribbled through the OCB defense before curling a shot around goalkeeper Carlos Mercado.
11’ Gerado Valenzuela – CIN 2, ORL 0
FC Cincinnati doubled its lead less than 10 minutes later. After building another attack, Amir Daley’s initial shot was saved by Mercado. The deflection went to Valenzuela who was able to work around a Lions defender in the middle of the box and drilled a shot into the net for his second goal of the match.
53’ Alex Freeman (Shak Mohammed) – CIN 2, ORL 1
The young Lions cut into the Cincinnati lead early in the second half with a goal from defender Alex Freeman. Shak Mohammed gained control in the Cincinnati defensive zone and sent a pass back to Freeman. Freeman dribbled through multiple defenders to get into the box and sent a hard shot past goalkeeper Paul Walter to bring OCB within one goal.
63’ Gerado Valenzuela (Kenji Mboma Dem) – CIN 3, ORL 1
FC Cincinnati 2 pushed its lead back to two goals on Valenzula’s hat trick. Kenji Mboma Dem secured possession and led Valenzuela out wide in the OCB box. Valenzuela took a quick touch and hit a shot that rolled off Mercado and found the back of the net.
Match Notes:
- Defender Alex Freeman scored his eighth goal of the season early in the second half. The MLS NEXT Pro Player of the Month has scored in five of the last six matches for OCB.
- Forward Shak Mohammed recorded his second assist of the season on the Freeman finish.
- Head Coach Manuel Goldberg made two changes to his starting lineup from his side’s last match against Chicago Fire FC II with Jeorgio Kocevski and Yutaro Tsukada getting back into the starting XI.
