(W. DES MOINES, IOWA) — A historic season comes to a heartbreaking finish in the first round of the USL League Two Playoffs presented by VensureHR.
Peoria City headed to Valley Stadium, home to Great Plains rival Des Moines Menace, for the Central Conference Quarterfinals.
The Menace hosted a pod of four teams the weekend of July 18-20, and Peoria City vs. Minneapolis City SC headlined the first match in the weekend.
Minneapolis would start the scoring just four minutes in.
Less than ten minutes later, Playoff Luke Persenico (Clarke) was reignited, rocketing a shot past the keeper and into the back of the net. The match is tied 1-1.
That score would last through halftime.
Early on in the second half, Minneapolis was awarded a penalty kick after a foul in the box.
Lucas Fontana (Peoria Notre Dame, Chicago State) would come up big for the Carp, diving right and blocking the shot.
A second PK would be awarded in the second half, this time to Peoria City.
Who other than Luke Persenico? Persenico would step up to the spot, sailing it right past the Minneapolis keeper. Peoria takes the lead, 2-1.
Minneapolis would tie the game, forcing the score to be 2-2 at the end of 90 minutes.
Peoria vs. Minneapolis would continue into extra time, with two 15-minute extra time periods. No “golden goal” rule would apply, the final score at the end of the two 15-minute periods would either end the game, with the leading team standing victorious. Or the match would head to PKs, and the latter is what happened Friday afternoon.
That’s where the story ends for Peoria City’s 2025 campaign. The Carp would fall 1-4 in PKs, ending another historic season.
Peoria City would like to thank all of our fans, sponsors, partners and staff for their unwavering support in the 2025 season.
There are a lot of things to be proud of that happened in the 2025 USL League Two season.
- Undefeated in international play, after defeating both Chivas de Guadalajara U23 and Atlas FC U23
- Making the USL League Two Playoffs for the third time in four seasons
- Outscoring opponents 29-11 in the USL League Two regular season
- DJ Koulai (Bradley) tallying ten goals in the regular season
- Peoria City goalkeepers earning five clean sheets (no goals allowed)
Stay up-to-date with Peoria City activities and news on Peoria City’s social media channels.
Instagram: @peoriacitysoccer
Facebook: Peoria City Soccer
TikTok: @peoriacitysoccer
X: @PeoriaCityUSL2 and @PeoriaCityWPSL
YouTube: @PeoriaCitySoccer
#UpTheCarp