FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – New England Revolution II (1-0-0) opened the 2021 USL League One season with a victory in their first-ever trip to face Fort Lauderdale CF (0-1-0) on Saturday night, 1-0. Forward Ryan Sierakowski provided the scoring for New England, notching a goal in his club debut in the 50th minute of the contest with an assist from Revolution Academy midfielder Hikaru Fujiwara (2003 – Lexington, Mass.).

“To be able to provide a goal in my debut for such a great organization is an honor and it couldn't be possible without my teammates and their performance,” said Sierakowski. “It's been a long offseason so I'm so excited to just get back on the field once again after a long few months.”

Revolution II saw five players make their professional debut, including two current Revolution Academy players – Noel Buck and Cole Dewhurst – along with Academy graduate Dennis Ramirez. Buck (2005 – Arlington, Mass.), who earned a spot in the starting lineup, became just the fourth Academy player to start a match with Revolution II.

“Noel [Buck] has been good all preseason,” said Revolution II Head Coach Clint Peay. “He's a young guy and we see a lot of promise in him so we wanted to get him on the field. And he's earned it. I thought, for a first professional game, he made a good account of himself and grew into the game as the game went on so we're very pleased with his performance.”

In addition, nine current and former Revolution Academy players made an appearance, including five active Academy players and two Homegrown Players.

Goalkeeper Joe Rice made his return to the Revolution II lineup for the first time since Sept. 26, 2020 and made one save in his fourth-career clean sheet performance.

New England returns to action on Saturday, April 17 as Revolution II kicks off its home schedule hosting Richmond Kickers at Gillette Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 5 p.m. and is available on ESPN+.

New England Revolution II 1, Fort Lauderdale CF 0
April 10, 2021 – DRV PNK Stadium (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)

Five Revolution II Players Make Their Professional Debuts on Saturday

• New England saw five players appear in their first professional match, with Sean O’Hearn, François Dulysse, and Noel Buck all starting and Dennis Ramirez and Cole Dewhurst both making a substitute appearance.
• Buck, who earned his first professional start, played the full 90 minutes and finished the night with eight possessions gained and two clearances in the midfield.
• Ramirez, a Revolution Academy product, signed with Revolution II in March 2020 before missing the entirety of last season with a shoulder injury. He played 14 minutes.
• Dewhurst entered the match in the 82nd minute, recording an interception and completing his only pass.
• O’Hearn and Dulysse were both signed by New England early in the offseason and made up the center back tandem in the season opener. O’Hearn factored in with seven clearances, four recoveries, three tackles, and two interceptions while Dulysse recorded a team-high 11 clearances.

Five Revolution Academy Players Feature in Season Opener

• Defender Cole Dewhurst, midfielders Hikaru Fujiwara, Noel Buck, Morris Matthews, and forward Michael Tsicoulias comprised the quartet of Academy players to feature for Revolution II on Saturday.
• Buck and Fujiwara earned a spot in the starting lineup, with the former playing 90 minutes and the latter coming off in the 76th minute after recording an assist.
• Dewhurst, Matthews and Tsicoulias each earned a substitute appearance, including a professional debut for Dewhurst while Matthews and Tsicoulias both made their professional debuts with New England last season.

Homegrown Players Rennicks and Rivera See Action for Revs II

• Forwards Justin Rennicks and Damian Rivera both started for Revolution II in their season opener. The two first-team players were both key contributors for New England in 2020, combining for six goals and two assists over the last eight games.
• Rennicks played 65 minutes, finishing the night with one shot and four duels won, while Rivera was subbed off in the 76th minute, recording two shots with one on target and a key pass.

Sierakowski Opens His Account for the 2021 Season

• Forward Ryan Sierakowski, signed by New England on March 26, scored a goal in his club debut – the first of the USL League One season – to give Revolution II the lead early in the second half.
• Sierakowski, who set the program scoring record in four years at Michigan State, finished his club debut playing 81 minutes, registering a shot on target and two duels won.

Six Returning Members of Revolution II Earn Starting Spot

• New England had six players from their 2020 roster feature in the starting lineup on Saturday night, including Homegrown Players
• Justin Rennicks and Damian Rivera, Revolution Academy midfielder Hikaru Fujiwara, and USL signed players Joe Rice, Ryan Spaulding, and Connor Presley.
• Fujiwara, who recorded his second career assist, made his 11th professional appearance, second-most among Academy players for the club.
• Rice kept a clean sheet in his first game since Sept. 26, 2020, making just one save along with a goalkeeper clearance.
• Spaulding recorded a team-high three interceptions to go along with three recoveries and two clearances.
• Presley made his first career start at right back after playing primarily at forward last season, making five tackles and six recoveries.

GAME CAPSULE

Referee: Elvis Osmanovic
Assistant Referees: Diego Lucio (AR1) Juan Pablo Casas (AR2)
Fourth Official: Alejo Calume
Weather: 77 degrees and partly cloudy

Scoring Summary:
NE – Ryan Sierakowski (Hikaru Fujiwara) 50’

Misconduct Summary:
NE – Jake Rozhansky (Yellow Card – Persistent Infringement) 54’

New England Revolution II: Joe Rice; Ryan Spaulding, Sean O’Hearn, François Dulysse, Connor Presley; Jake Rozhansky (Morris Matthews 76’), Hikaru Fujiwara (Dennis Ramirez 76’), Noel Buck; Damian Rivera (Meny Silva 76’), Ryan Sierakowski (Cole Dewhurst 81’), Justin Rennicks (Michael Tsicoulias 65’).

Substitutes Not Used: Marzuq Puckerin, Collin Verfurth.

Fort Lauderdale CF: Luis Zamudio; Christian Lue Young, Modesto Mendez, Ethan Hardin ©, Noah Allen; Joshua Saveedra (Francisco Raggio 71’), Drew Hardin, George Acosta (Braxton Najib HT); Edison Azcona (Cesar Cuellar HT), Shaan Hundal (Roberto Poplawski 60’), Abel Caputo (Frank Nodarse 88’).

Substitutes Not Used: Andre Zuluaga.