North Carolina FC kept its playoff hopes alive with just two games to go, defeating New York Red Bulls II 3-0 at a neutral site on Wednesday. 

The neutral-site showdown between NCFC and New York was only scheduled at the beginning of this week after both teams had games against Loudoun United FC canceled and with NCFC still having a chance to sneak into the playoffs, the league opted to reschedule this game. Entering the game, the Red Bulls had already been eliminated from playoff contention.

Midfielders Dre Fortune and Ben Speas put NCFC up two within half an hour with Fortune converting from the spot in the 12th minute and Speas finishing off a cutback from Pecka in the 26th. 

Manny Perez pushed the NCFC lead to three when he forced an own goal just before the end of the half.

The 12th-minute penalty was Fortune’s sixth goal of the year. Only two other NCFC players have found the back of the net more than once with Nazmi Albadawi and Robert Kristo each scoring two. Fortune has scored 35% (6 of 17) of NCFC’s goals this season.

The next hurdle for NCFC’s playoff push will be a showdown with the Charlotte Independence on Saturday at 7 p.m. This season, Charlotte has had NCFC’s number, winning the previous three meetings by a combined score of 5-1.