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Matchday Report: Sporting Rallies to Big Victory vs. Tulsa

By USLChampionship.com Staff, 06/02/21, 10:06PM EDT

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Hosts record three second-half goals to pull away for 4-1 win at Children’s Mercy Park

KANSAS CITY, Kan. – Sporting Kansas City II broke out for its first win of the season it came back from an early deficit to earn a 4-1 win against FC Tulsa on Wednesday night at Children’s Mercy Park.

Tulsa broke out to an early lead as a turnover in midfield allowed Rodrigo Da Costa to lead a counterattack and feed Lucas Coutinho for his first goal for the club with a low finish to the left corner from 15 yards out. The visitors had a chance at a second soon after, but Marlon slipped as he went to shoot from the top-right edge of the penalty area resulting in an easy save for SKC II’s John Pulskamp.

The hosts almost hit back in the 20th minute as a good piece of interplay in the penalty area saw Cameron Duke set up Felipe Hernandez for a first-time shot that just sliced wide of the right post. Then seven minutes before the break Enoch Mushagalusa showed off some skillful footwork to open up space for a shot from the left side of the penalty area that Tulsa goalkeeper Sean Lewis just trapped onto his near post before the ball was cleared.

Sporting pulled level in first-half stoppage time, however, as Grayson Barber found space on the left side and fired a low cross that Duke fired home first time for his first goal in the professional ranks. Barber then put SKC II ahead four minutes into the second half as a long-range finish by Hernandez was only parried by Lewis, setting up a rebound chance that Barber fired low into the left corner of the net.

The hosts added to their lead five minutes later as after winning a corner kick on the left, Hernandez curled a delivery into the top of the six-yard area where Kaveh Rad was on hand to flick a header into the bottom-right corner of the net. Wilson Harris then almost made Tulsa pay for an errant back-pass, only for Lewis to regain his bearings in time to deflect a close-range finish wide of the right post.

Tulsa almost got back into the game in the 68th minute as Jerome Kiesewetter got onto a headed ball into the penalty area and tapped a header of his own past Pulskamp as the goalkeeper came off his line to challenge. The former U.S. international tried to finish from a narrow angle, but Rad had returned to cover the goal line and cleared away to safety. Five minutes later, though, Sporting sealed all three points as Rojay Smith picked up an attempted clearance 35 yards from goal and after taking a pair of touches launched a blistering shot into the top-left corner of the net.

Kiesewetter had another chance to find the net was his angle was closed down in the right side of the penalty area by Pulskamp as he came off his line to save, and from there Sporting saw out the result comfortably while handing Tulsa its second consecutive defeat.

USLChampionship.com Man of the Match

Kaveh Rad, Sporting Kansas City II – Rad recorded the third goal on the night for the hosts, made a crucial goal line clearance to preserve the side’s two-goal lead, and completed 63 of 71 passes while winning 8 of 9 duels.

Scoring Summary
TUL
– Lucas Coutinho (Rodrigo Da Costa) 14’
SKC – Cameron Duke (Grayson Barber) 45+3’
SKC – Grayson Barber 49’
SKC – Kaveh Rad (Felipe Hernandez) 54’
SKC – Rojay Smith 73’

Full Box Score

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