Headliner: Crows Refuse to Lose
Minneapolis City 3-2 St. Croix
Header: The Minneapolis City Futures starting XI prior to kickoff. Courtesy of Minneapolis City Futures.
Sunday, June 4, saw two of the three sides tied up for first place ahead of the weekend, Minneapolis City Futures and St. Croix SC, meet at Edor Nelson Field for a massive clash that lived up to expectation as it transformed into a five-goal comeback thriller. By the end of Sunday night, Minneapolis City Futures, somehow, were still undefeated this season, and last season.
Sam Lynch and Owen Johnson came up big in the first half, scoring two early goals to give St. Croix a 2-0 lead at halftime. The scoreline teased a result that, if it had been maintained, would’ve seen Minneapolis City Futures on the back-foot in the race for the best spots in the conference playoffs. The Crows had other ideas.
Less than 10 minutes into the second half, Noah Hermanson created an own goal to make it 2-1. Hermanson then fully bridged the gap with a goal of his own, assisted by Camel Htoo, to make it 2-2.
The match then stood in a deadlock for almost 20 minutes as both teams looked for a third goal of the night. The hosting Crows were the first to answer that call, as Alvaro Arce scored in the 82nd minute with an assist from Minneapolis City veteran Zach Susee to make it 3-2.
The victory makes Minneapolis City Futures sole holders of first place for the week, distancing themselves from St. Croix and Superior City. While Vlora did move closer this same weekend, it’s a massive shift of momentum for the Crows, who are setting themselves up for an ideal start to the coming conference playoffs.
Around the Conference: Onward & Upward for Vlora
Vlora 4-0 Worthington Community
Vlora rocketed back into the title race this week with a confident home win over Worthington, featuring goals from Robert Cooper, Jibril Muse, Chamoe Loo, and goalkeeper Mitch Wolff. The result moved Vlora up to second place, two points behind Minneapolis City.
FC Minneapolis 1-0 Maplebrook
The City Lions earned their second win of the season, their first at home, to make it six points from their last two games. Methembe Mzizi scored the winner in a game of thin margins as the year continues to improve for FC Minneapolis.
Superior City 0-2 St. Paul Blackhawks
Superior City hit another road bump on the late side of their impressive first season in the league with a home loss to the St. Paul Blackhawks, helped by goals from Carrera and Ndaw. The result moved Superior to fourth place, while St. Paul sits in fifth just four points away and with a game in hand.
Twin City 5-1 Austin Villa
In what is easily one of the club’s biggest ever results in UPSL history, Twin City beat Austin Villa 5-1, featuring a hat-trick from the aptly-named Ayoze Perez. The club now have six points from six games and just two total losses this season, a pretty serious improvement in their competitiveness from 2022.
Table as of June 6:
David Naylor 
Jeremy Rushing