DALLAS—After securing three points in a hard-fought and controversial 3-2 win over River Plate on Sunday night, the U.S. men’s under-20 national team notched its second consecutive victory in the 35th annual Dallas Cup international youth tournament on Monday afternoon. Goals from Benji Lopez, Zach Pfeffer, and Romain Gall sealed the 3-0 win over the youth team of German side Eintracht Frankfurt, moving the Yanks closer to a spot in the tournament semifinals.

Despite the blustery and unseasonably cold conditions on the campus of Richland College, the U.S. defeated the German outfit in a perfunctory manner. The Americans appeared to have learned the lessons from Sunday’s matchup, where they were put under constant siege for a majority of the first half.

From the onset, Tab Ramos’ side pressed the issue, dominated possession, and showed off some attractive one-touch football through the middle of the park—a necessity given the difficult conditions.

The attacking quartet of Lopez, Pfeffer, and the Tijuana duo of Amando Moreno and Paul Arriola—who joined the team Sunday evening—combined splendidly and were a constant threat. The American Xolos linked up for the first of many chances in the 20th minute, when Arriola fed Moreno with a gorgeous through ball, only for the Tijuana player to send his right-footed shot straight to the hands of the Eintracht keeper.

Playing front and center in Ramos’ constantly shifting lines, Lopez was the offensive fulcrum early on. Capping a furious first-half finish, Lopez rattled the crossbar with a powerful header in the 41st minute—an impressive effort. Thirty seconds later, the RSL homegrown product made up for the miss, converting a Zach Pfeffer layoff for an easy back-post tap-in and a one goal advantage heading into the break.

With the turbulent Texas storm passing, the skies parted for the second half and the Americans responded in kind. Seconds after the restart, a beautiful cross-field ball by Moreno opened up Lopez again on the right flank, who fed Lynden Gooch for a deflected effort that fell easily to Pfeffer for a simple finish and a 2-0 lead.

As regular time expired, substitute Romain Gall would put the match to bed with a well-placed header off of an Arriola cross. In all, it was an academic result for the under-20s, as Eintracht offered only a fraction of the skill and inventiveness seen from River Plate on Sunday. Besides an impotent free kick and a shaky moment or two from Santiago Castano, the opposition was never able to mount any type of meaningful pressure. Looking rudderless and bereft of ideas, the U.S. dominated the ball and were content to funnel the German side into a series of half—or perhaps just quarter—chances.

The quick turnaround from Sunday’s match also gave Ramos license to experiment with his lineup, as only Shaquell Moore and Gooch reprised their roles in the starting XI on Monday. Through two matches Ramos has given significant minutes to his entire 21-man roster, with the exception of prospective starting center back Matt Miazga, who was recalled to New York Red Bulls in the wake of a recent injury crisis. According to U.S. Soccer officials, he is slated to return to the team for the tournament’s final matches.

In other action—played simultaneously, and some 20 yards from each other—River Plate defeated UANL Tigres 1-0 in the day’s second Super Group Bracket C matchup. Though currently on top of the table with six points, by virtue of a River win, the Americans still have everything to play for against Tigres on Wednesday, including the trophy that has continually eluded the American representatives at this tournament.

For Ramos however, as World Cup qualifying approaches, it’s strictly business.

“Were just here to see our players and give everyone an opportunity. The more pressure we can see the players under the better.”

ASN Contributing Editor Josh Deaver is a former academic turned soccer obsessive. Follow him on Twitter already.