Know When to Hold ‘Em
Prinx Tires USL Cup, Group 4 — Union Omaha vs Fort Wayne FC — 2026
Match Recap & Analysis
Fort Wayne Football Club rallied from two goals down to level a much-changed side at Union Omaha, then watched the league leaders pull away after halftime in a 4-2 USL Cup defeat.
Union Omaha 4 – 2 Fort Wayne FC · Prinx Tires USL Cup 🏟 Morrison Stadium 📅 June 6, 2026 ⚽ Botello Faz (15’), Gavilanes (17’), Tekiela (66’, 85’) / Oyetunde (41’), Becher (45+1’) 📋 USL Cup Group 4: 0-2-1 · 1 pt
The Match
Fort Wayne Football Club rallied from a two-goal hole to draw level by halftime before Union Omaha pulled away after the break for a 4-2 win in Prinx Tires USL Cup Group 4 play at Morrison Stadium. Mike Avery made eight changes from his previous lineup, with several regulars absent from the matchday squad altogether.
Omaha struck in the 15th min. Allen Gavilanes intercepted a pass at midfield and sprang forward, releasing Pato Botello Faz through the middle to finish past the onrushing Aurie Echevarría. Two minutes later the lead doubled. On the counter, Aarón Gómez slipped a through ball in behind the Fort Wayne defense, and Gavilanes finished low for 2-0.
Fort Wayne answered before the break. In the 41st min, Anthony Hernandez found Daniel Oyetunde down the left. Oyetunde held off his marker into the box, opened his body, and curled a finish around Cole Jensen for the first professional goal of his career.
The leveler arrived in first-half stoppage time. Kabiru Gafar drove into a dangerous area and squared the ball for Ryan Becher, who finished against his former club. Becher scored nine goals in 22 matches for Omaha in 2025 and was making his first start since an injury suffered at Chattanooga Red Wolves SC on April 11. The sides went in level at 2-2.
The second half belonged to a substitute. Kempes Tekiela entered just past the hour and struck twice. In the 66th min he met a Gavilanes cutback from the right, set himself, and sidefooted a finish through Echevarría for 3-2. He sealed it in the 85th, played in down the left by Ryen Jiba and finishing into an open net for the 4-2 final.
The defeat leaves Fort Wayne at 0-2-1 in USL Cup Group 4, with one point and a single group match remaining, at home against USL Championship side Detroit City FC on July 11.
The Defender’s Verdict
Javier Armas, Taig Healy, Tiago Dias, and Michael Rempel, four players central to how Fort Wayne FC functions, did not suit up for this match. Bernd Schipmann watched from the bench, and Lilian Ricol did not appear until the hour mark. Eight changes in all. This is what you’d describe as the spine of the team and the names you’d put in ink on gameday.
The first two goals were self-inflicted: a telegraphed giveaway, a center back pulled out of position and a midfield caught too high, an offside trap sprung late. Good teams punish mistakes at this level, and Omaha did.
We did end the first half on an encouraging note, down 2-0, this young squad fought back to tie the game to keep things competitive going into the second half. Daniel Oyetunde scored his first professional goal with Fort Wayne FC, and minutes later Ryan Becher found the back of the net before coming off at halftime. For me, Gafar was a standout on the night: pacy, physical, and increasingly sharp in the final third, he looks to be settling into the professional game rather than auditioning for it. There was a debut in here too, with Nico Burns earning his first professional minutes off the bench.
The second half belonged to Omaha’s bench. Kempes Tekiela entered and produced a finisher’s finish twice; calm and collected, the way you would like your forwards to produce.
Fort Wayne will play Omaha again, at least twice, and like a hand of poker, we got to keep our cards face-down. The next time these sides meet, Fort Wayne will have a different look, new faces and new tactics. Call it a slight edge for the next meeting, a bit of patient play that will hopefully end in some delayed gratification. Pocket aces yet to be shown. Omaha is a good team, well coached and well drilled, technically gifted and full of seasoned professionals. They have earned the position they are in. I’m looking forward to the next few matches against this club.
One last note, and a fond one. Reid Sproat captained the side in his record 60th appearance, and across the pitch stood Omaha’s Dylan Borczak (pictured above), once his teammate at Oakland University. Back in 2021, they shared a field against Northern Illinois’ Markanich brothers, who have gone on to have successful professional careers. Anthony Markanich was just named to the 2026 MLS All-Star Game First XI this season with Minnesota United FC. It has been a pleasure to watch these players develop into professionals over the years, and this game was a reminder that hard work and dedication can turn soccer dreams into reality. Reid Sproat has always had that “captain material,” and tonight he got to wear that armband.
Always FWD