On Sunday, the New York Red Bulls II (17-6-5) will face Carolina Core FC (8-10-10) in the MLS NEXT Pro Eastern Conference quarterfinal. The Baby Bulls earned the right to pick their opponent for the first two rounds of the playoffs by earning the top seed in the East on the backs of 17 regular season wins– tied for the most in MLS NEXT Pro this 2025 season.
2025 has been very good to the Baby Bulls. They finished first in the MLS NEXT Pro Eastern Conference in just their third year in the league and made the playoffs for the second time in club history. They also scored the second-most goals as a team in MLS NEXT Pro this season with 68.
20-year-old Red Bulls II midfielder Nehuén Benedetti was recently named to MLS NEXT Pro’s Best Eleven for his performance during the 2025 regular season. The Argentinian scored a team-high 11 goals and also provided seven assists which was good for second on the team behind 20-year-old Panamanian forward Rafael Mosquera who had 10.
Benedetti scored his first hat trick on August 31 versus Columbus Crew II and scored three game winning goals this season, including two in the 81st minute or later.
During a recent media availability, Baby Bulls midfielder Nathan Worth described what’s impressed him about Benedetti’s game.
He’s a great player. I came in and he was one of the other eights, and I enjoyed playing with him and training and on the fields on Sundays he’s really performed well. But I’m also really impressed with him just off the field as well. He’s from Argentina, he doesn’t speak the language, and he’s done really well to integrate himself into this system and into just the American culture, but having somebody like Nevi (Benedetti) to play with on the weekends is special, just because of his threat, whether that’s in behind or to feet, he just alone doing what he does, creates space for other players, and it’s only a joy to play next to him and all the other guys.
As for the goaltending matchup, Red Bulls II head coach Michael Bradley will go with Totowa native Aidan Stokes. Stokes finished with six clean sheets on the season, which was tied for the fourth-most in the league this year with none other than the starting goalkeeper of the Carolina Core, Alex Sutton. But, solving Carolina’s goalkeeper is not the only thing captain Adri Mehmeti and his teammates will be trying to do on Sunday– they will also try to keep Carolina’s strong offense at bay.
Like the Baby Bulls, Carolina Core FC has scoring depth. They had nine players register two goals or more in 2025, including midfielders Facundo Canete (nine), Glory Nzingo (eight) and Jacob Evans (five). Michael Bradley recently described the threat that Carolina poses.
Good team, very organized, well coached Donovan Ricketts and Amado Guevara and their staff have done a really good job, and we have huge respect for them. So it’s a team, again, that is very clear in their ideas, their system. And so we’ve spent good time preparing for them, and we know that it’s going to take a big effort on Sunday night, and we need to be at our best.
An intriguing part of this matchup is the age disparity between the two teams. On one hand, the Baby Bulls are just that; they are one of the youngest clubs in MLS NEXT Pro with 16 of the 33 players on their roster under the age of 19. On the other hand, Carolina are one of the oldest teams in MLS NEXT Pro and have 10 players out of the 19 players on their roster who are older than 25. Despite being the younger team, Red Bulls II won both meetings with Carolina this season and the last meeting that Red Bulls II hosted ended in a penalty shootout.
Three current Red Bulls II players (Ibrahim Kasule, Dylan Sullivan and Juan Gutierrez) were part of the 2023 Red Bulls II team that was the last time they made the playoffs. Gutierrez is the only one of those three who has been a starter this season and he has started 21 of his team’s 28 games as a center back.
Bradley described the strides that Juan Gutierrez has made this season and how his experience can factor into his team’s performance tomorrow night.
Juan is an important player for our team. He has experience, he’s been with the club for a few years and has really improved in his time at the club. And his mentality and his commitment and his ability to… just love defending—that part’s important for us. So, he is a guy who we are going to rely on in a big way as we get into the match on Sunday night.
This is a full circle moment for Bradley. He took over the Baby Bulls on June 12 when they were 10-2-1 and guided them to a 7-4-4 record in the second half of the season. Bradley’s first game in charge came at Truist Point Stadium against Carolina. He highlighted the progress his team has made since June 12.
We’ve taken really big steps. I’m really happy with that part. Obviously, coming into a team just about halfway through a season that was doing really well. It was never going to be a case of all of a sudden, turning things upside down overnight. But we tried to keep so many of the things that that the group was good at, and then as we went on, add little bits, add some of my ideas, and the players deserve all the credit in the world, because they have taken it all on in a really good way. And I think we’re a group that has continued to improve every single week over the course of the season. So that part is, is really nice to see. – Red Bulls II manager Michael Bradley
All the success Red Bulls II had during the regular season goes out the window when the playoffs start. Anybody is capable of beating anybody on any given day and that includes Carolina Core FC. Carolina may be an eighth-seed but they can knock off the top seed on Sunday if it’s their night.
Worth was understanding of this fact when he answered a question about meeting those high expectations.
We had a great season, but ultimately it means nothing whether you finish first, second, third or fourth, if you don’t end up winning the whole thing. So our eyes are focused on winning the whole thing. And I think the guys are ready and really pushing for that. Everybody’s mindset is really, really good right now. And we all have that goal of yes, we finished a good season, but now we got more things to do.
The match will take place at 7 p.m. tomorrow night on the campus of Montclair State University. Streaming will be available with MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.
