Last year Darwin Espinal used the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup to open a door to a professional career in soccer for a second time.

 

This year the 23-year-old midfielder hopes to use Sunday's 8 p.m. play-in match against the Brooklyn Italians to open the door in the competition for Cosmos B.

 

The two National Premier Soccer League sides will tussle at LIU Brooklyn and the winner will play Lansdowne Bhoys for a first-round match on Wednesday, May 9. Cosmos B would host the next round at Columbia University should the side advance.

 

"It's very important as a team," said Espinal,  the club's NPSL season opener’s scoring hero. "We want to get as far as we can, we want to get as noticed as much we can. If you're doing well as a team, then the players on the field are doing something right, as well as the coach. So, it's very important, not just for me to score, but for us to win."

 

Playing for the South Florida Surf (now North County United), Espinal tallied the opening goal of a second-round match against Miami FC. The Surf dropped a 3-2 decision to the 2017 North American Soccer League regular-season champions, but the former Honduran youth international's performance gave him an opportunity to sign with Reno 1868 FC.

 

"It ended up being a big game," he said. "It was good for us as a team and individually. A couple of coaches were watching the game and I guess they liked what they saw.”

 

Last season was a whirlwind for Espinal, who saw action for a Premier Development League team (Surf), a United Soccer League club (Reno) and a Major League Soccer team (San Jose Earthquakes). He was called up by San Jose to play in a friendly against Eintracht Frankfurt, coming on as a substitute in a 4-1 win.

 

After scoring twice in 13 appearances for Reno, he was released, but opportunity knocked from Cosmos B. Espinal realized it wasn't the first team, which is on hiatus this season, but he didn't hesitate.

 

"The organization itself is behind it, even if it's the B team," he said. "It’s a good opportunity."

 

Not only did Espinal make the squad, he earned a Starting XI spot for the opener against Boston City FC last Sunday. He scored twice -- heading in a Bledi Bardic cross in the 19th minute and slipping home a rebound off a corner kick in the 71st.

 

"Some of the guys I have around me, we clicked early on," Espinal said. "We're all trying to work hard and win games. If we're all trying for the same thing, it's pretty easy to play with each other."

 

Espinal has embraced this opportunity.

 

"Every time a player steps on the pitch, they're playing games to prove themselves, no matter where you are, where you're playing," he said. "You want to prove you're a good player and you belong where you are, or even higher."

 

Cosmos B head coach Carlos Mendes has liked what he has seen.

 

"He's very dynamic and dangerous going forward," he said. "He's got great feet and [there were] combination plays in situations where he got us out of trouble. He'll go at the attacking third at players and complicate it for other teams.

 

"He was probably the man of the match, not just because of the two goals, but for the positions he put himself in. He's a very, very talented kid. If he puts himself in the right spots and we get him in the attacking third, he can be very, very dangerous."

 

Espinal liked what he saw from his teammates.

 

"I think it sets us up for the rest of the season," he said. "Winning 4-0 is good for your confidence. There are some things we need to fix, but I thought overall we had a decent game. It's just moving forward from now on."

 

Scoring twice in his debut helped the attacking player's confidence, but he was more concerned about his performance.

 

"The goals are important," Espinal said. "The overall performance gives me a little more because even if scored a couple of goals and I played bad, then I wouldn't be as confident. I thought I played decent."

 

The 5-11, 163-lb. Espinal forged a reputation as a youth player in Florida and at Darton State College, a two-year school in Albany, Ga. He registered a remarkable 52 goals and 29 assists in 35 games, securing NJCAA All-American honors both years. He turned pro with the Tampa Bay Rowdies (NASL) from 2014-16, scoring four goals in 25 appearances.

 

Espinal has some high hopes for Cosmos B.

 

"To win, to get as far as we can in the U.S. Open Cup and to win the league," he said.

 

And for himself?

 

"Just to play well, to be a good teammate and to build friendships," he said. "We want to score goals, but at the end of the day, it's not what really matters. If you're scoring goals and your team's losing, it means nothing. It's a team effort."

 

Espinal and his teammates will get another chance to showcase their talents against Brooklyn Sunday.