HOUSTON (June 16, 2026) – Houston Dynamo 2 travel northwest for midweek action at Tacoma Defiance on Wednesday, June 17, marking the second and final regular season meeting between the two sides this season.
Kickoff is set for 9:00 p.m. CT at Starfire Sports Complex, and fans can follow the match live via MLSNEXTPro.com and OneFootball.
Dynamo 2 hosted Tacoma earlier this year at SaberCats Stadium, earning a dominant 4-0 shutout victory on March 8. The match was highlighted by a first-career MLS NEXT Pro brace from attacker Mattheo Dimareli, whose performance earned him MLS NEXT Rising Star of Matchday 2 honors. Defender Gavin Wolff and forward Austin Brummett also found the back of the net. First team goalkeeper Blake Gillingham added seven saves to secure the team’s second consecutive clean sheet, which was part of a streak of four shutouts to open the season. Notably, Dos held Tacoma to just one shot on target from eight total attempts during the match.
Houston is coming off their first defeat of the season on June 6, falling 3-1 on the road to Ventura County FC, marking their first loss of the 2026 season and snapping their 11-game unbeaten streak, the longest undefeated streak run to start an MLS NEXT Pro season in Club history and the second longest in league history. Defender Vinicius Silva scored Houston’s lone goal of the match.
During the team’s 11-match undefeated streak to open the 2026 season, they recorded 31 points, 28 goals and 20 assists, while leading in fewest goals conceded in open play (four) during that stretch. Despite the result in Southern California, Dynamo 2 still leads the league with just eight goals conceded overall.
Dos currently sit atop the Western Conference with a 9-1-2 (WLD) record. Individually, goalkeeper Pedro Cruzis tied for first in the MLS NEXT Pro in clean sheets (five), while Brummett is tied for third in goals scored (seven). Striker Arthur Sousa leads Dynamo 2 with three assists.
Tacoma closed the month of May with a 2-2-1 (WLD) record and is coming off a 1-0 loss at Portland Timbers2 on May 31. They currently sit 11th in the Western Conference with 14 points and 3-7-3 (WLD) record. Yu Tsukanome leads the team with five goals, while Charlie Gaffney leads the team with three assists.
Notably, forward Jahmani “JJ” Bell returned from international duty last week after representing the Jamaica’s U-20 national team in the Pre-World Cup Kick-Off games in Lauderhill, Fla.
Houston next travels to face LAFC2 on Sunday, June 28 with kickoff scheduled for 9:00 p.m. CT. Fans can watch the match live via MLSNEXTPro.com and OneFootball.
