ST. PAUL, Minn. — Minneapolis City SC needed a draw, at minimum, to make its quest to secure its first division title since 2021 as easy as possible. Thirteen minutes into its game, away to RKC Third Coast on Wednesday, it trailed 2-0.
Twice, Michael Ramirez had assisted Nicholas Cenek. Twice, RKC had cut through a reshuffled back line, as the Crows navigated injury and availability concerns.
In the 22nd minute, there came a bit of hope. And the sequence had been foreshadowed three-minutes prior.
Deputized defender Joey Tawah picked out Mizael Harris in space, down the touchline. The Augsburg incoming-senior was able to drive across his marker, and into the Seagulls’ penalty area. His shot had keeper Daniyal Rana watching on, but the crossbar got the better of Harris.
Then, when a turnover led to a quick Crows counter, Harris struck. Cutting in from the keeper’s right, once again, the winger’s shot, driven into the far upper corner, pulled the Crows to back within one.
In the 33rd minute, having twice assisted Cenek, Ramirez saw the favor returned, and RKC’s lead was restored to two goals.
Changes at halftime saw the introduction of Carson Kowalski. A late-season addition, the defender made a strong showing in his Crows’ debut, and allowed Curtis Wagner to push out to his familiar grounds on the left edge of City’s back three. With a make-or-break match on Saturday, a Minnesota Super Cup semifinal, and League Two playoffs ahead, Kowalski’s arrival should be a welcome one.
“I think Carson Kowalski went in and gave us 45 amazing minutes, and did a great job. It was just a very steadying presence back there,” said City head coach Justin Oliver. “I think our back line was super solid and super strong. And, yeah, just, I thought Carson did a good job, which was a part of it. Otis went in and gave us a great 30 minutes at centerback as well.”
Otis Anderson, Sullivan Twill, Elijah Fearing and Preston Kipnusu were called off the bench as the second half unfolded; the latter pair having previously contributed late heroics as substitutes in other matches this summer. But ultimately, while City defended much better after the break, its best scoring chances remained behind in the first half.
“I definitely think we were more dangerous, and that was when a bigger chunk of our chances came. I just think in the second half you got to see that RKC was a lot more content to sit a little bit deeper, with the 3-1 lead, and put numbers behind the ball,” Oliver said. “The ball was probably in play for under half of the half. It was just very choppy, tons of fouls. Couldn’t really find our rhythm. And then, whenever we got into a good opportunity and good spot, our final ball or our service wasn’t good enough. So just some small things like that.
“On the flip side, I think we got a little bit unlucky. There were some moments where… Preston had a shot blocked. Morgan [Olson] had a swivel-volley hit right at their keeper, Just some of those that could have been a little bit more. But, I think that’s definitely a fair and accurate sentiment. I would just chalk it up to professionalism, some gamesmanship that kind of took place, which is, again, not a wrong way to try to kill off the game.”
Six-plus minutes of added time prolonged faint hopes of a result. Ramirez, on a goal and two assists, added a red card to his night’s tally following a scuffle after a foul. But RKC’s reduction to 10 men occurred in the match’s dying moments, and did not leave City time to capitalize on the briefest of advantages.
The final whistle came, and Minneapolis had dropped just its second game of the year.
“I think it was a game of just critical mistakes and not executing,” said Oliver. “This talk is so similar to a bunch of other ones. I thought that we massively controlled and dictated where the game was played, and how it was played. I think we had double their shots, double their corners, double the free kicks, foul count was probably like 15-to-three. We were checking all of the right boxes. But we just kept gifting them the ball in some bad areas, and just didn’t execute in some critical moments.”
After three losing seasons in the City of Lakes, already having qualified for the postseason last Sunday, and now holding a 7-2-2 record, the mood is quite far from doom-and-gloom for the Crows. But, Saturday’s ask at home against division-leading Sueno FC has just gotten a bit larger.

Race for the Heartland
City’s hopes for silverware are still alive. The Dreamers and Crows have already clinched the division’s pair of playoff berths. On Saturday, at Edor Nelson Field in Minneapolis, they will meet to determine which is the Heartland Division’s champion.
Minneapolis trails by 3 points in the standings, and must get a win.
The first tie-breaker is head-to-head record, and having lost away to Sueno, to even the season series, City must get a win.
The second tie-breaker is goal differential. A two-goal victory by the Crows would raise their differential to plus-14, and lower the Dreamers’ to plus-13.
The requirement is clear: beat Sueno at home by at least two goals on Saturday, or cede the division trophy to the visitors.

“You can make it sound like more daunting,” said Oliver. “With that said, we always needed to win on Saturday, no matter what. So if you’re gonna win a game, winning it by one’s easier than two. But, it doesn’t change anything for me. Maybe now the emphasis is, ‘All right, let’s just try to give ourselves 95 minutes to win by two. And if not, let’s just keep attacking it five-to-10 minute segments.’
“But make no mistake: our team, as always, is capable of scoring a few goals.”
Oliver closed his postgame with a message for Crows fans.
“I would love to see a packed Nelly with everybody in there. Part of what makes this club so great, so special, is that we have fans and people that attend our games, instead of playing in front of empty bleachers. I would love to see a thousand… two-thousand people; whatever number we can get in there and fill it up. I would love to see the Nelly roaring and trying to help us come away with 3 points, and definitely a two-goal win, to help us win a championship.”
