Houston Dynamo 2 closed a two-game homestand with a 1-0 victory over Earthquakes II at Aveva Stadium this evening.
Dynamo 2 wasted little time opening up the scoring in this game courtesy of a header from forward Papa N’Doye. Forward Beto Avila won a free kick in the 6th minute outside the box, midfielder Marcelo Palomino, who scored the game winner off a free kick last week, crossed the ball into the box. After knocking off an Earthquakes defender, the ball fell to N’Doye, who headed it into the back of the net in the seventh minute for his first professional goal.
N’Doye nearly scored a brace in the 20th minute, when he took a free kick from the right side of the 18-yard-box that forced the Earthquakes’ goalkeeper into a leaping save that then had to be cleared off the line by a defender at the last second.
In the 23rd minute, Palomino nearly became the first Dynamo 2 player to score in back-to-back games, when he got the ball on the wing and maneuvered his way past the defense to create enough space to get a shot off. The shot was on target and forced the keeper to make a diving save that sent the ball out of bounds for a Houston corner kick.
This match featured the debuts of defender Sterling Penniston-John, defender* Reese Miller* and forward Joyner Castillo. Castillo missed Houston’s opening game due to a training camp with the U-20 Honduran National Team.
Dynamo 2 travel to Kansas next Sunday for their first road trip of the season. The team will face Sporting KC II in Lawrence, Kansas at 6 p.m. CT and fans can watch the stream on MLSNextPro.com. Dynamo 2 will return to action in Houston on April 16 as part of a doubleheader with the Dynamo first team against the Portland Timbers. For tickets and additional information, visit HoustonDynamoFC.com.
