With all of the professional leagues underway, we now get to the best part of the season - the amateur leagues! Host of League Two The 2how, Ryan Stallings, is joined by several members of our staff to pick out the games which seem most interesting to us as we head into the first weekend of fixtures.

The USL League Two Season Preview proved to be too big for just one article, so we split it into two parts!
This part, Part 2, includes these divisions: Great Lakes, Lone Star, Metropolitan, Mountain, Nor Cal, South Atlantic, South Central, South Florida, Valley, and the Mid-South Division.

Great Lakes Division Matches

May 13th - AFC Ann Arbor vs Kalamazoo FC

Last season, Kalamazoo won the Great Lakes Division by a single point, while AFCAA was third back, three points short of KFC. This early matchup in the season could be a big deal in the final standings. If Ann Arbor hopes to change the course of the division, this home match is vital.

- Dan Vaughn

May 19th - Kalamazoo FC vs Flint City Bucks

There’s a trend in recent years of former NPSL clubs, regular postseason features there, making the move to League 2 and struggling in their initial seasons there to adjust to the depth of the competition. Eschewing that trend with an exact reversal in fortunes in making that change is Kalamazoo FC. The southwesterly Michigan side that never finished higher than fourth out of eight in NPSL contention has found new life in their new league home since 2021, winning the Great Lakes Division in each of their seasons there.

And they’re not winning due to lack of competition either. One of 2022’s most hotly contested division title races was in Michigan, as the final week of the season’s results was what finally separated Kalamazoo from rivals Flint City Bucks and AFC Ann Arbor.

And it’s those FC Bucks that stand in the way of Kalamazoo messing around and winning a third straight divisional crown. The Bucks have actually advanced further than Kalamazoo in the postseason the past two years, but they’ll be circling their meetings with the defending Great Lakes champs in hopes of regaining their place atop the divisional standings. They get their chances early, the first one coming in the second week of the season in Kalamazoo. The title won’t be won that night, but pole position in the weeks to follow certainly can be claimed.
- Ryan Stallings

Lone Star Division Matches

June 17th - Corpus Christi FC vs AHFC Royals

Corpus is a hidden gem in Texas and has been top competitors in each league they have been in. AHFC Royals have a strong program on both the men’s and women’s side and will put up a fight.
- Danielle Gawronski

June 17th - Brazos Valley Cavalry FC vs Houston FC

A rematch of the top two teams in the Lone Star Conference from the 2022 season. Brazos went on a 5 game win streak last season, let’s see if they can bring that same energy and stay in the top spot.
- Danielle Gawronski

After winning division titles in 2018 and 2019, Brazos Valley Cavalry suffered through an anomalous 2021 season and eighth place finish before returning to the top of the Lone Star division in 2022. After a first round bow-out in the US Open Cup, the Cavalry set their sights on maintaining consistency at that position while fending off an increasing number of would-be challengers around their Texas competition.

Chief among them is Houston FC. A consistent low place finisher in the division from 2016-2021, HFC began fielding second and development sides year-round in the UPSL and regional competitions a few years ago. That dedication to building team depth, chemistry and identity began paying dividends in a big way last season as Houston climbed the divisional table to second place.

Between the sides, Houston actually proved the better foe in 2022, winning two of the three matches against BVCFC while the third meeting resulted in a draw. Each lineup knows an early victory against the other will go far in setting the pace, and creating less doubt, for their divisional fortunes in 2023. They have their first chance (of three) chances to do that when the Cavalry charge southward into Edible Field on June 17th.
- Ryan Stallings

Metropolitan Division Matches

July 8th - Long Island Rough Riders vs Manhattan SC

One of the bigger surprises in the league last season was Manhattan SC’s ascendency to postseason contention. A ferocious divisional campaign that saw MSC master the art of close victory (eleven of their twelve victories decided by two or fewer goals) and suffer just two losses, the side will be looking to recreate their 2022 magic and stake claim to as the new kings of the Metropolitan Division.

Any coronation may have to wait until July 8th, when MSC visits the site where lore might say they claimed the 2022 divisional prize. That site would be Mitchel Athletic Complex, home of storied Long Island Rough Riders. The rival on the south side of the East River may have had one of their most successful seasons in 2022, etching ‘national finalist’ in the annals of club history, but every returning Rough Rider probably vividly remembers their 0-1 home loss on 6/15/22 to Manhattan. That loss proved the difference in Manhattan claiming the divisional championship over Long Island by just TWO points.
The Metropolitan Division is one of the deepest in the league at ten member clubs, and anyone is capable of making a run through the traffic of that depth to contend for the title. The smart money however is on the victor of that 7/8 date at Mitchel dictating who that champion will be.
- Ryan Stallings

Mountain Division Matches

July 15 - Park City Red Wolves vs New Mexico United U23

New Mexico will start the season off with four consecutive home matches and another one just a few weeks after that - one might think they’d have a home field advantage, but all five of those will be played at a different “home” venue as the team does a tour of the great state of New Mexico. Whether that is a feature or a bug remains to be seen, but last year they did the same thing and finished 3rd place in their division - losing two out of three to the eventual division winners, Park City Red Wolves.

Park City Red Wolves are a very well run component of the Chattanooga Red Wolves organization and won the Mountain Division last year with 8 wins and 2 draws from 12 matches played. Their +12 goal difference was also tops in their division. They’ll look to repeat the effort this season and this matchup will be a critical one at the end of the season when the two squads with parent teams in higher leagues, will be hopeful to make the League Two playoffs.
- Joshua Duder

Nor Cal Division Matches

July 9 - Academica SC vs Project 510

Last year Academica SC played their matches in the NPSL - finishing 5th in the Golden Gate Division with 4 wins, a draw, and just +1 Goal Difference. They are a remarkably well-run organization and own their home field, The Academica Soccer Fields, which is a priceless asset for any club at any level in the world. They’ll host Project 510 in July in what will likely be a key game for the visitors - last year the Oakland Roots’ developmental side won their division with 8 wins and 2 draws from 12 matches and +12 goal differential. There’s a good chance they will be competing for the title again, but Academica SC will be fighting to show they belong in the league and could surprise the champions.
- Joshua Duder

July 15 - San Francisco City FC vs SF Glens

Lowkey, this is one of the biggest rivalries in all of USL League Two - SFCityFC supporters straight up don’t like SF Glens and it was the Glens who did the double over City last year; winning 4-1 at Kezar, City’s home digs. Due to Covid, they did not play in 2021 or 2020, but if you go back to 2019, City did the double over Glens and they split them back in 2018. Historically, this has been a very even fight and despite City finishing in 8th place with just the one win last year, there’s no reason the supporter-owned club from the City by The Bay can’t exact revenge. This end of schedule fixture may be a season-defining match by the time all is said and done.

South Atlantic Division Matches

June 17th - NC Fusion Pre-Pro vs West Virginia United

In a league structure that sees most clubs build rosters almost exclusively around available collegiate players for short summer seasons, there are few constants. One of the few that there is though, is the side formerly known as the Carolina Dynamo featuring deep into the postseason. The last two years have only solidified that point, with NC Fusion U23 finishing as national finalists in 2021 and national semifinalists in 2022. A roster that consistently restocks and reloads while drawing from talent rich North Carolina is hard to pick against furthering that competition streak in 2023.

They won’t lack for competition in the South Atlantic Division working to bring that end about though. While Charlotte Eagles could solve their early season setback/late season charge puzzle and make a serious run at the defending division champs, it’s likely on West Virginia United’s shoulders the best hopes of unseating NCF Pre-Profesional (as they are now designated on the League 2 site). In straight-up competition, the two sides found no separation from one another, splitting the results 1-1-1 while even on goal differential.

WVU will look for some daylight to exploit to break the deadlock in 2023. If a point can be found that shifts title winds in their favor, it’ll come June 17th in Browns Summit, North Carolina. - Ryan Stallings

South Central Division Matches

June 13th - Asheville City sc vs SC United FC

One Knoxville, League 2 expansion side and South Central Division Champion in 2022, has departed to test its fortunes at the professional level in League 1, leaving fledgling rivals not unhappy to see them go. However, the division they’ll compete for this year looks very different from the one One Knox took by storm. The division struck by the most churn since the last league campaign, newcomers North Alabama SC joins from the NPSL, while South Georgia Tormenta FC 2, Tri-Cities Otters and Peachtree City MOBA have folded their operations.

The most logical side to choose to sit atop this new look South Central is Asheville City SC. The western North Carolina side fell just three points shy of Knoxville’s mark last season, and the Blues are a near certainty to return another talent rich, deep roster to compete this campaign.

Challenging them may fall to South Carolina United, which, while suffering an uncharacteristically poor 2022 League 2 campaign, has developed their club’s depth through their Bantams side in in UPSL campaigns the past two seasons. That experienced lineup and team chemistry, with a few additional key pieces, might be a serious dark horse contender for far more than a division title this year.

We’ll know better whether it's North Carolinian expectation or South Carolinian usurpation that wins out when the sides compete mid June at Memorial Stadium.
- Ryan Stallings

May 23rd - North Alabama SC vs Tennessee SC

North Alabama SC joins USL League One after a fairly average 2022 NPSL season. While the move from NPSL to USL League Two is seen as a lateral move, we will see what “average” is between the two leagues with North Alabama SC vs Tennessee SC. Tennessee SC finished middle of the pack, but like North Alabama SC, finished their last two matches unbeaten. How will the two stack up in a much different South Central Division?
- Kaylor Hodges

South Florida Division Matches

May 17th - FC Miami City vs Weston FC

With the expansion to twelve league sides in Florida, the Southeast Division was split ahead of the 2023 season, and the South Florida Division was born.

While there isn’t much to go in predicting a new division, with ⅓ of its teams being expansion sides, intuition says FC Miami City will find itself near the top of the group, and their local rival Weston FC right in the mix with them.

We’ll know if that hunch bears out in the teams’ season opener on May 17th. The victor there has a good opportunity to gain early control of the standings while much of the rest of the division is still getting their feet under them.
- Ryan Stallings

Valley Division Matches

May 13th - Ft Wayne FC vs Kings Hammer FC

The South Bend Lions, 2022 Valley Division champions, have packed up and left for the bigger challenges and foes of the Great Lakes. In their wake, Kings Hammer FC and Fort Wayne Fc appear poised to vie for the title in 2023.

For Kings Hammer, a title would be the pinnacle of their steady rise from a third place finish in 2021 and second place result in 2022. For Fort Wayne, the divisional crown would cap a meteoric improvement from near bottom of the table two years ago to knocking on the door of earning a postseason berth

Both sides will make their case to write a title achieving story this year early on, as Fort Wayne welcomes KHFC to Bishop John D’Arcy Stadium in the teams’ season opener this Saturday.
- Ryan Stallings

May 26th - King’s Hammer vs FC Buffalo

I have to admit, I love me some FC Buffalo. Good people, doing good things. FC Buffalo, who are kicking off their firest season in USL League Two, will be competitive from first kick. Or so I’d expect from such a quality organization. Last season, King’s Hammer and South Bend Lions finished one and two in the division. This season, Lions were shifted to Great Lakes Division, leaving King’s Hammer the obvious choice (in a VERY top heavy division) to get things done in 2023. Can FC Buffalo put a stamp on the season early on, particularly against the expected favorites?
- Dan Vaughn

Mid South Division Matches

May 20th - Mississippi Brilla vs Texas United

Mississippi Brilla vs Texas United is a battle between 2022’s 1 vs 2 in the Mid South Division that we get Week 1. Brilla and Texas come in with new head coaches, but much of the same talent. Will both teams be able to keep their same success?
- Kaylor Hodges

June 7th - Little Rock Rangers vs Texas United

Texas United solved the Mississippi Brilla puzzle in 2022, breaking through the Mid South Division and unseating the 2021 divisional champs en route to the Texas side’s most successful season. Their on-pitch success, paired with the post match bravado and notable obnoxious behavior by some of their former staff, marked them for special enmity with rival fanbases, none more so than in Little Rock.

The Rangers have been a middling side at best since making the leap to League 2 from the NPSL. Lacking a true rival for the past two seasons has likely frustrated the fanbase there as much as the lacking results. Replete with a new staff of their own, look for the Stags to be a dark horse contender in the Mid South, and for both the players and supporters at War Memorial Stadium on June 7th to make TexU’s journey to Little Rock an unpleasant visit.
- Ryan Stallings

Missed Part 1? Check it out HERE
by The Protagonist Staff