ST. LOUIS (June 28, 2025) – Houston Dynamo 2 fell 1-0 on the road to St. Louis CITY2 at Energizer Park earlier this evening.
St. Louis took the lead in the 86th minute when Mykhi Joyner found Emil Jääskeläinen at the center of the box. The forward took a touch before slotting a right-footed shot into the bottom left corner.
The first dangerous opportunity of the match came in the third minute when forward Stephen Annor created space on the left side of the 18-yard box and fired a left-footed shot that tested goalkeeper Colin Welsh early.
Goalkeeper Pedro Cruz, who was recently selected to participate in the third edition of **Goalie** **Wars** at the 2025 MLS All-Star Skills Challenge, was called into action in the sixth minute when he dove to his right to deny a low shot from Matteo Kidd, who received a pass from Jääskeläinen. The shot stopper made six saves on the night.
Just a minute later, Houston nearly found the back of the net when midfielder Enrique Correa rose to meet a well-placed corner from defender Juan Viveros. His header was on target but found the hands of Welsh.
In the 42nd minute, midfielder Noah Betancourt took his chances from deep after gaining possession through a clearance attempt by CITY2, but the ball was punched away by the home goalkeeper.
Cruz delivered another diving save in the 58th minute, denying a long-range strike from Wan Kuzain, who fired the effort from just outside the box.
Cruz was called into action again in the 70th minute when the Brazilian reacted quickly to deny a close-range header from Joyner, who got on the end of a cross from Jääskeläinen.
The final effort for Houston came in second half stoppage time when Cruz joined the attack for a corner kick. The young goalkeeper connected with a header at the near post off a ball from midfielder Mattheo Dimareli, but the shot was just wide to the right.
Dynamo 2 next travels to face Colorado Rapids 2 on Sunday, July 6, at DICK’S Sporting Goods Park, with kickoff scheduled for 7:00 p.m. CT. Dynamo 2 fans can follow the action live via MLSNEXTPro.com.
