The Swope Park Rangers kicked off their 2019 USL Championship campaign on Saturday with a 3-1 road loss to New York Red Bulls II at MSU Soccer Park in Montclair, New Jersey.
Sporting Kansas City Academy product Felipe Hernandez unleashed an excellent volley in the 44th minute to pull the Rangers level, but Red Bulls II rode to victory behind a Tom Barlow brace and a long-range strike from Marcus Epps.
Second-year head coach Paulo Nagamura handed six players their SPR debuts, including a first professional appearance for 16-year-old Sporting KC loanee Tyler Freeman. Starters Alexsander, Ayyoub Allach and Jerome Ngom Mbekeli also donned a Rangers uniform for the first time, joining four other players in the starting lineup who were loaned down from Sporting—namely Eric Dick, Jaylin Lindsey, Graham Smith and Wan Kuzain Wan Kamal.