New Haven, CT (July 19, 2026) — CT United FC continued its charge toward the playoffs with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Red Bull New York II at Reese Stadium on Sunday in MLS Next Pro play.
The Coywolves’ red-hot offense got started immediately. After an Alex Monis shot was saved, Rickson van Hees got to the loose ball first and squared it to Dylan Lacy, who redirected it in with his left foot to make it 1-0 in just the 2nd minute. It’s the first assist for van Hees this season, who came forward for the right back position.
After exchanges of chances and quality defense from both sides, a 26th minute Christian Gallagher cross found Dennis Nelich for New York. He shot near-post and put it in the back of the net, levelling the match at 1-1.
The rest of the first half saw both teams unable to break away. Despite 15 shots between the sides in the half, the score was level at 1-1 going into the break. Timely blocks and clearances from both defenses along with two saves for each goalkeeper maintained the deadlock after 45 minutes.
The second half opened with solid play from both sides. The first big chance of the half came in the 62nd minute. A header at the back from New York was tracked down by Barnabas Tanyi with room toward goal. Tanyi drove forward and his low-driven shot slid just outside the left post of Tobias Szewczyk’s net.
The Coywolves would be the ones to come through in the 90+2 minute. After a grueling second half, Robbie Mora played a perfectly timed ball to Barnabas Tanyi running through on goal. Tanyi’s shot was saved by Szewczyk, but a trailing Lacy was there to finish the rebound for his brace and a 2-1 Coywolves lead.
CT United held onto the lead and secured all three points in New Haven. The Coywolves have won seven of their last nine games and are now level with 8-seed NYCFC II on 28 points. The Coywolves look to continue their surge into the postseason against Columbus Crew 2 at Reese Stadium on July 26th.
CONNECTICUT UNITED FC GAME REPORT
Red Bull New York II vs CT United FC
Date: July 5, 2026
Competition: MLS NEXT Pro Regular Season
Venue: Reese Stadium | New Haven, CT
Kickoff: 6:03 p.m. ET
Weather: 78 degrees, Sunny
SCORING SUMMARY: 2-1-FT
CTU: 1-1-2
RBII: 1-0-1
CTU – Dylan Lacy (Rickson van Hees) 2’, Dylan Lacy 90+2’
RBII – Dennis Nelich (Christian Gallagher) 26’
LINEUPS
CTU: Gunther Rankenburg, Andre Applewhaite, Michael Boamah (Jahvar Stephenson 45’), Lukas Kamrath, Rickson van Hees, Dylan Lacy, Warren Agostoni (Robbie Mora 64’), Ernesto Gómez, Barnabas Tanyi (Laurie Goddard 90+3’), Daniel D’Ippolito (Cauã Paixão 64’), Alex Monis (C) (Ibrahim Kasule 76’)
Substitutes not used: Anthony Ramos, Ibrahim Kasule, Jeremy Medranda, Giovanni Corsetti, Niko Koloniaris
Head Coach: Shavar Thomas
RBII: Tobias Szewczyk, Dennis Gjengaar, Jason Bori (Aimar Sanchez 77’), Shunya Sakai (Malik Odeyinka 90+3’), Aimar Modelo, Deven Cadigan, Paul Sokoloff (Makan Sissoko 78’), Sekou Kone, Dennis Nelich, Christian Gallagher (Benjamin Rodriguez 67’), Sean Baitinger
Substitutes not used: Malik Odeyinka, Abdellahi Nasser Dine, Marco Morigi, Josh Munson, Aidan Betances, Erick Londoño
Head Coach: Dominik Wohlert
STATS SUMMARY: CTU/RBII
Shots: 12 / 13
Shots on Goal: 8 / 5
Saves: 2 / 5
Corner Kicks: 2 / 5
Fouls: 9 / 18
Offside: 3 / 3
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
RBII: Christian Gallagher (Yellow Card) 25’
CTU: Andre Applewhaite (Yellow Card) 61’
RBII: Jason Bori (Yellow Card) 64’
RBII: Sekou Kone (Yellow Card) 72’
RBII: Benjamin Rodriguez (Yellow Card) 82’
CTU: Ibrahim Kasule (Yellow Card) 90+5’
OFFICIALS
Referee: Andrew Porada
Ast. Referees: Tom Felice, Domenico Giardina
Fourth Official: Achal Awasthi