A busy, busy MLS NEXT Pro Matchweek 7 saw 21 matches unfold and no shortage of heroics in what was a double-fixture week for 13 clubs in the league.
The Tacoma Defiance rattled off back-to-back 4-1 wins in four days to earn their second Team of the Matchweek honor this season.
Timbers2 striker Gage Guerra scored all three goals in a hotly contested 3-2 win on the road at Ventura County FC to earn his first Player of the Matchweek honor.
A true MLS NEXT Rising Star? Atlanta United Academy's Gabriel Wesseh put ATL UTD 2 on his back in his first-ever professional start and quickly earned a second start in their final match of the busy week.
Read more about Matchweek 7's winners below.
MLS NEXT Pro Team of Matchweek 7: Tacoma Defiance
An expertly handled double Matchweek kept the Defiance well-positioned in the early Western Conference playoff picture.
To the surprise of few, striker Ozase De Rosario scored three goals across two 4-1 wins (at Sporting KC II, vs. St Louis CITY2) in the four-day span. De Rosario has been the cape wearer for the Defiance with eight goals in five league games this season.
The schedule will remain busy for head coach Hervé Diese and Co. They'll balance MLS NEXT Pro play along with representing the last team in the league standing in the 2025 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.
Winners of Team of the Matchweek 4, the Defiance earn their second honor as a team in the 2025 season and are up for nomination for Team of the Month in April.
MLS NEXT Pro Player of Matchweek 7: Gage Guerra
It's hard to argue with a hat trick, making Timbers2 striker Gage Guerra the undeniable Player of the Matchweek winner.
The 22-year-old opened the scoring in the 33rd minute and put in the go-ahead and match-winning goals in the second half before coming off in the 80th minute.
His heroics helped T2 shake off back-to-back losses and build momentum in their effort to remain in striking distance of the playoff line in the West.
Guerra, a 2024 MLS SuperDraft selection from the University of Louisville, signed with Timbers2 ahead of the 2025 season and earned a first-team call-up for the Timbers' MLS home opener in February.
MLS NEXT Rising Star of Matchweek 7: Gabriel Wesseh
It won't be hard for Atlanta United Academy winger Gabriel Wesseh to remember the date he achieved three significant milestones in his pro career.
April 23, 2025. Wesseh got his first professional start, assist, and goal all in the same match, and his contributions were necessary for a 2-2 tie, leading to a shootout win over Carolina Core FC.
ATL UTD 2 also had a double-fixture Matchweek 7, and Wesseh started again and was good for 83 minutes in Sunday's 0-0 draw at FC Cincinnati 2.
Wesseh, 16, joined the Atlanta United Academy in October after starting his career in the Philadelphia Union Academy.
