Three is the magic number for your Black and Blue on Matchday 20: three goals, three points, and three Loons on Team of the Matchday. A resounding win over the Houston Dynamo on the Loons’ home pitch ended with a 3-1 scoreline and Minnesota at — you guessed it — third in the West with 33 points.
Bongi Hlongwane flipped the switch on a fruitless first half with an astounding brace to start the second, doubling the Loons’ lead in the span of just a few minutes. Both goals came from Bongi capitalizing on great plays from his teammates, who join him on the TOTM lineup.
The first tide-shifting goal came off a classic long throw-in from captain Michael Boxall, whose ball found Jefferson DÃaz’s head and then Bongi’s heel and sailed right past Houston’s Jonathan Bond to give the Loons the lead. With his mom and little brother stateside for the first time, Bongi jumped the railing to celebrate in what was quite possibly the cutest moment of the season to date.
Boxall joins Hlongwane on the TOTM lineup with his (per usual) excellent defensive performance. Voted into the 2025 MLS All-Star Roster yesterday, he continues to extend his club lead in appearances, starts, and minutes, having been with the Loons since their MLS debut in 2017.
The Loons’ second goal of the night saw Wil Trapp play a long ball up to wingback Anthony Markanich, who slipped it through Houston’s defense to a perfectly-positioned Bongi for a clean shot into the bottom left. Markanich, securing his first TOTM appearance of the season, has logged five goal contributions across all competitions this year.
The Loons next take on the New York Red Bulls in a Saturday night road match. Catch your TOTM 20 trio and the rest of the Black and Blue on MLS Season Pass and Apple TV+, 6:30 p.m. CT.
F: Ramiro Enrique (ORL), Sam Surridge (NSH), Milan Iloski (SD)
M: Bongokuhle Hlongwane (MIN), Evander (CIN), Eduard Atuesta (ORL), Anders Dreyer (SD)
D: Lukas Engel (CIN), Michael Boxall (MIN), Andrés Herrera (CLB)
GK: John Pulskamp (SKC)
Coach: Mikey Varas (SD)
Bench: Sean Johnson (TOR), Anthony Markanich (MIN), Manu GarcÃa (SKC), Djordje Mihailovic (COL), Cristian Espinoza (SJ), Marco PaÅ¡alić (ORL), Jacen Russell-Rowe (CLB), Bruno Damiani (PHI), Chicho Arango (SJ)
