Revolution II Get Back In The Win Column
Revs II surpass 2024 win total following their victory in Columbus!
After a longer-than-expected break in action, Richie Williams and New England Revolution II returned to action Saturday afternoon when they paid a visit to Historic Crew Stadium in Columbus to take on last-placed Columbus Crew 2.
Williams made three changes from the lineup that saw New England pick up one point following a 2-2 draw and a 7-6 shootout loss. JD Gunn got the start in goal following a recent stint with the Panama National Team. Joe Buck got his first start of the 2025 season as he joined Hesron Barry, Gabe Dahlin, and Damario McIntosh to form the backline.
Cristiano Oliveira and Javaun Mussenden sat deeper in the midfield behind Gevork Diarbian, Marcos Dias, and Malcolm Fry. Liam Butts served as the lone striker.
Columbus nearly got on the board in the 23rd minute when a series of passes led Christian Ortiz to break through New England’s backline and advance toward goal. Luckily, Revs II’s defense managed to recover as Barry stepped in front of Ortiz’s shot to deflect it out.
Columbus also had a golden opportunity to find the game’s opening goal in the 40th minute. It started with Brent Adu-Gyamfi driving up the right flank before tapping the ball back into a pocket of space centrally. Ibrahima Sy turned on the jets and ran onto the open ball before rocketing it goalward. Fortunately for Revs II, Sy leaned back too far as his shot sailed over the goal.
New England wasted no time starting the second half. A series of passes inside the box led the ball to the feet of Homegrown Malcolm Fry. He juked his way forward before unleashing a shot to the left side of the net that zipped past Pruter and in to give Revs II the 1-0 lead.
Williams’ first changes came in the 63rd minute when Damorney Hutchinson and Grant Emerhi replaced Butts and Fry. Two more changes were made in the 79th minute as Michael Tsicoulias and Aarin Parjapati replaced Buck and Diarbian. It marked the professional debut of Prajapati.
After withstanding Columbus’ attack for the entire match, things broke down for New England in the 85th minute. It started with Columbus clearing the ball and working up the left flank. After intercepting a pass, Javaun Mussenden passed the ball back and substitute Chase Adams was alert as he ran onto the loose ball and drove at Revolution II’s goal. After evading Dahlin and Barry, Adams snuck a shot under a diving Gunn and in to level the match at one apiece.
Just as it looked like the game was headed to a shootout, Oliveira decided otherwise. It started with Michael Tsicoulias slipping a ball into Oliveira. The midfielder cut to his left to create space and drilled the ball past Pruter to give Revs II the 2-1 lead.
Thanks to Oliveira, Revs II returns to New England with all three points as it ascends to fifth place in the Eastern Conference. Revs II will look to extend their undefeated streak to three games on July 13 when they wrap up a two-game road trip as they face Chicago Fire II.