MLS NEXT Pro Match Week 30 | Saturday, September 27, 2025
DICK’S Sporting Goods Park, Commerce City, CO
The Big Picture
Colorado Rapids 2 (14-8-5, 48 pts.) fell to Minnesota United FC 2 (11-10-6, 41 pts.) in a 2-1 result at DICK’S Sporting Goods Park on Saturday afternoon.
Rapids 2 kicked off its midday match at the stadium with an eye for three points. The game got off to a hot start with the front three of Antony García, Mamadou Billo Diop and Rogelio Garcia seeking an early goal. However, it would be MNUFC2 who would get on the board first with a goal in the eighth minute.
Colorado Rapids Academy alumni Logan Dorsey would give Minnesota its opening goal of the match and ask Colorado to find the equalizer. On the other end of the pitch, Colorado would end the half with just one shot on goal from Diop and plenty left in the tank for the second 45.
Head Coach Erik Bushey would opt for two substitutions early in the second half with James Cameron and Josh Copeland replacing Antony García and Rogelio Garcia. Cameron would become the playmaker of the match, assisting Mamadou Billo Diop on his 14th goal of the season in the 89th minute.
Despite a few dangerous chances throughout the half, the Rapids struggled to find the back of the net for a second time while Minnesota doubled down on their lead in the 84th minute off a free kick goal.
The match would end 2-1 in Minnesota’s favor and help the team punch their ticket to the 2025 MLS NEXT Pro Playoffs.
Colorado will face Ventura County FC in the final game of the 2025 MLS NEXT Pro regular season on Sunday, October 5. Kickoff at William Rolland Stadium is set for 2 p.m. MT with coverage available on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.
Scoring Summary:
MIN – Logan Dorsey (Momoh Kamara) 8’
MIN – Kendall Starks (OG) 84’
COL – Mamadou Billo Diop (James Cameron) 89’
Notables:
- F Mamadou Billo Diop scored his 14th goal of the season.
- The striker has scored 11 goals in his last 11 appearances for Rapids 2.
- Diop is now tied for the third-most goals in the league so far this season.
- D James Cameron added his first assist of the season on Diop’s 89th minute goal.
- GK Kendall Starks made his professional debut in today’s match against MNUFC2.
Colorado Rapids 2 Quote Sheet
COLORADO RAPIDS 2 HEAD COACH ERIK BUSHEY
Opening remarks...
“I'm pretty sure I can speak for everybody in Burgundy; we're disappointed today with the result. Minnesota is an excellent team, a dangerous team, and they've proven that throughout the season. Against us this season and last, I give them a lot of credit for the game that they played today. I have a massive amount of respect for Logan Dorsey, the first goal scorer. I'm pissed at him, but I'm happy for him. I don't think those that were in attendance today or watching from home got to see the best version of us, we were a little bit too slow out of the gates. I have responsibility to bear in that from the standpoint of we really want to take away their arsenal, some of their weapons. The two nines can play narrow, and any ball forward can be a dangerous ball for them. We wanted to protect the depth. We wanted to make sure we could help our center backs. We lost some of our strength. We can be an exceptional pressing team, and we weren't. That has a lot to do with setting the tone. We didn't do that early and we're chasing much of the game. Not our best performance but something to learn from. We still have time to get better, and that's what we'll do this week.”
On Kendall Starks’ professional debut...
“That's as good a debut as I think the young guy can have. A young goalkeeper coming into that setting, composed with his feet, courageous coming off his line. It's tough to say that when we've conceded two goals, but I agree with you. I don't point to him on either one. I appreciate that being the first question out because for me, that might be the brightest light in that game. Not because there wasn't a lot of light to be shined on it, I thought he was excellent.”
On the message to Kendall Starks after the game...
“He'll know upon reflection. He may feel he could do more. I certainly don't have any debate for him to think that he couldn't. But certainly for me and the group, I don't think anybody looks at him and feels that he is culpable. I was talking midweek to Matt [Pollard] about when a young guy goes up, it could be academy, the second team, the first team, when they go up and they look like themselves, then I think the future is bright. I really do. The situation wasn't too big for him, conceding an early goal wasn't too big for him. He looked like the Kendall that we see every day. I think that's where he's going to be able to draw positives. The occasion wasn't too big, again. We’ll be able to help him.”
On what was missing in the attack...
“We really wanted to do a bit more in terms of playing behind their last line. I don’t think we were aggressive enough there. If I was to point to one place early on, it would be that. Maybe the player on the ball in the build wasn't looking for it at the right time. Maybe when the player on the ball in the build was looking for it, the team was resting, or somebody else didn't quite get on the same page. There should have been more aggression straight away. I would have wanted to see a little bit more of us getting behind, turning around, getting pissed off I didn't get the ball and riding guys. That emotion would have helped. We talk a lot about emotional control, but at that moment, I think there might have been room for it. That was a big focal point. What's difficult about that is we are a young team learning, and we still have time to learn. I already said that. We've grown so much in the last few months in our ability to control games with the ball, and we don't want to lose this part of our model. It's important for our club, this intensity, this desire to get behind it. This control has been so good over the last few months, and we're looking for more of this and maybe a couple of guys are caught in two minds. There's time that we can correct that, but when I think about the attack, that's the first thing I look to.”
On the message to the team during the final regular season matches...
“All the above. Let's be correct here, we are one of the better teams heading into the playoffs. There's no doubt Minnesota is tough. We talk about the big win in Tacoma last week because their life from a season standpoint was on the line. They were devastated because after that loss there was no more. That was it for them. Their desperation, backs against the wall, their claws came out, and we had to fight against that and come out on top. Beautiful. We'll talk consistently in these periods where we've qualified that our desire must exceed their need. I don't think that happened tonight. If I'm to be fully transparent, our desire must exceed that of the opponent's need to win. They needed to win, and our desire, we're capable of providing more there. We aren’t done because we're still seeking number two. We can't get to number one, but we could get to number two. We don't control that fate, but we were still searching. That's an opportunity for growth and grow we will. That'll be the challenge. That would be the challenge placed on the guys. It's a fair question but mentality will reign supreme, and every game is a big game.”
On James Cameron’s performances this season...
“Well, his energy is contagious. We put him [James Cameron] and [Josh] Copeland in to give us a little bit more of that, and they did a good job. James has done it for the last four, five, six weeks, and he's brought production with it. He has the ability to change a game coming off the bench. Just a wonderful mentality. We're talking about a willingness to mix it up and we’re really not afraid of anything. He deserves a lot of credit for the impact he's had in games. A great spirit. He’s willing to use his physique. He's desperate to produce and to win. It's a pretty good combination.”
On Charlie Harper being a vocal leader...
“It’s a big strength of his. The more he can do that, the more he can lead. The more impact he can have. He has an extreme and very good personality. He has a lot of life in him, and we need his presence. We need a spirit from the back. We need his leadership from the back. There's room to grow for him there. He has a lot to offer in that way.”
COLORADO RAPIDS 2 DEFENDER CHARLIE HARPER
Opening remarks...
“Obviously a bit disappointing. I think we played into their system and couldn't really show our identity, but I was happy at the grit and fight that the boys showed at the end."
On his message to Kendall Starks before the game...
“Before the game in the huddle, we told him we know you're ready for this. We think he's a great keeper. And in practice, he showed this for the past, I don't know how many, few months. So me personally, I'm super proud of his performance today."
On the feeling of the team after the match...
"I mean, there's a physical aspect. I think there was a lot of back and forth with the counters, putting the numbers up high. Mentally, we were on a streak for a bit, and we dropped Houston, and now this game. It's not an ideal situation to be in before playoffs."
On the learning opportunities after losses...
“At the start of the season, I think we were doing pretty poor, but we didn't let that define us, and after weeks of hard training and really believing in our soccer, we created that streak. I think in soccer, any team, it's a wave. I think we might be at the bottom of the roller coaster right now, but I think right before playoffs, we aim to go back up."
On areas he has improved in...
"I mean, honestly, I speak to my dad about this a lot. I think since February, me as a player personally, I think I've really developed like I've never developed before. I think it was exponential. It's definitely playing and seeing the first team players, but being surrounded by the coaching staff here, with coaches like Erik [Bushey] and [Collen] Warner. I think defensively, some positioning and stuff like that that maybe I wasn't so aware of in college, I think I was able to learn here."
On his vocal leadership...
“As a center back, I always have a 180 degree view, so definitely I'm always communicating, telling guys where to stand and to create second attacks. Mentally, I wanted to be a leader. Even when we went two-nil down, I really wanted to encourage the boys to get back up there."
On Mamadou Billo Diop as a player...
“Yeah, he definitely was a bit quiet at the start of the season, but I think he's one of those players where once he's on a roll and he has that confidence, he excels. I think it was part of our job to encourage him. And like you saw against Tacoma, he didn't win the penalty against Tacoma, but we made sure to give it to him, to give him that confidence back. I'm happy that it paid off."
On his relationship with Andreas Maxsø and Rob Holding...
"The one thing I learned from them is just composure defensively. I think with the ball, that's one thing, but I saw with [Andreas] Maxsø, [Rob] Holding, no matter how bad the situation is, defensively very, very calm, getting the lineup, organizing guys, and I tried to replicate that today."
