Midfielder Alex Moreno scored his first professional goal, but it wasn't enough to see Timbers2 emerge with a result, falling to The Town FC, 2-1, on Sunday afternoon at Providence Park.
PORTLAND, Ore. – Timbers2 fell to The Town FC by a score of 2-1 on Sunday afternoon at Providence Park. Alex Moreno scored his first professional goal, netting it in the second minute, but it wasn’t enough to see T2 emerge with a result. Timbers2 now sit in ninth place in the Western Conference with 32 points and five matches left to play.
Afternoon Notables
Tega Ikoba netted a goal contribution in his fifth straight match with Timbers2, assisting Moreno for the game-opening goal. Notably, the goal scored in the second minute was the quickest T2 has found the back of the net so far this season. Ikoba’s assist was his first with Timbers2, bringing his contribution tally to seven (6G, 1A) across nine appearances (eight starts) with the club. The forward joins Kyle Linhares (8 – 5G, 3A) and Josh Penn (7 – 6G, 1A) as one of three players on the team with seven or more goal contributions this season.
Looking Ahead
Today’s defeat marked only Timbers2’s fourth in their last 16 matches (5-4-7), a run that dates back to a 2-0 win over Vancouver Whitecaps FC2 on May 3. The club still has five games left on its schedule: home against LAFC2 (Sept. 14) and Ventura County FC (Sept. 17) and away against Tacoma Defiance (Sept. 8), Real Monarchs (Sept. 29) and Colorado Rapids 2 (Oct. 6).
Goal-Scoring Plays
POR – Alex Moreno, 2nd minute (Tega Ikoba): After a sequence of possession at the top of the box, the ball found the feet of Tega Ikoba, who layed it into the path of Alex Moreno. The midfielder wriggled through tight coverage in the box before using his right foot to calmly slot the ball into the net.
TTFC – Riley Lynch (Eduardo Blancas), 22nd minute: On a set piece taken from outside the top-left corner of the box, Eduardo Blancas served the ball into the penalty area to find Riley Lynch who headed the ball into the bottom-left corner of goal.
TTFC – Beau Leroux (Riley Lynch), 69th minute: Teed up at the top of the box, Beau Leroux took a few touches before using his right foot to fire the ball into the upper-right corner of the net.
Notes
- Today’s result marks Timbers2’s first defeat since July 14, snapping a six-match unbeaten run.
- T2 went 2-1-4 in that stretch, scoring 13 goals.
- Moreno’s goal in the second minute was the earliest goal scored by a T2 player so far this season.
- Notably, it was the midfielder’s first professional goal.
- Ikoba tallied his first assist for T2.
- The assist by Ikoba marked his seventh goal contribution of the season (6G, 1A).
- The forward now has a goal contribution in five consecutive matches.
- Only Linhares (5G, 3A) and Penn (6G, 1A) have as many goal contributions as Ikoba.
- Timbers2 now sits in ninth place in the Western Conference with 32 points and five matches to play.
Next Game
Timbers2 next travel to face Cascadia foes Tacoma Defiance on Sunday, Sept. 8, at Starfire Sports Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. (Pacific) and will be broadcast on MLSNEXTPro.com.
Timbers2 (6-7-10, 32pts) vs The Town FC (9-6-8, 39pts)
September 1, 2024 – Providence Park (Portland, Ore.)
Scoring Summary:
POR: Moreno (Ikoba), 2
TTFC: Lynch (Blancas), 22
TTFC: Leroux (Lynch), 69
Misconduct Summary:
POR: Clegg (caution), 25
TTFC: Cano (caution), 35
POR: Ikoba (caution), 47
TTFC: Garcia (caution), 89
POR: Eisenberg (caution), 89
TTFC: Jackson (caution), 90+5
Lineups:
POR: GK Muse, D Neville, D Rad (Jura, 61), D Klegg, D Ferdinand, D Pope, M Moreno (Mendoza, 72), M Enriquez, M Neville (Jones-Riley, 72), F Penn (Santos, 79), F Ikoba, F Linhares (Eisenberg, 61)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Bilichuk, D Izoita, M Najib
TOTAL SHOTS: 13 (Eisenberg, 3); SHOTS ON GOAL: 4 (Moreno, Penn, Mendoza, Santos, 1); FOULS: 9 (Clegg, Ikoba, 2); OFFSIDES: 1; CORNER KICKS: 1; SAVES: 3
TTFC: GK Jackson, D Ibarra (Bilter, 65), D Walls, D Cano, D Eisner (Garcia, 65), M Medina, M Mendoza (Donnery, 85), M Leroux (Rajagopal, 85), F Richmond, F Blancas, F Edwards (Lynch, 16)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Sweeney, F Spivey
TOTAL SHOTS: 11 (Leroux, Lynch, 2); SHOTS ON GOAL: 5 (Leroux, Lynch, 2); FOULS: 10 (Ibarra, Blancas, Garcia, 2); OFFSIDES: 4; CORNER KICKS: 5; SAVES: 3
Referee: Adorae Monroy
Assistant Referees: Andrew Hanks, Salvador Reyes
Fourth Official: Justin St. Pierre
All statistics contained in this box score are unofficial.
