The Sporting Kansas City Academy U-18s and U-16s continued their respective playoff pushes in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy on Saturday, facing Lonestar SC at Rouse High School in Leander, Texas. The U-18s left it late but emerged with an all-important 2-1 victory, while the U-16s took a 4-3 loss in a back-and-forth encounter.
The Sporting KC U-18s started brightly and grabbed the lead within 10 minutes. Chase Bromstedt broke into the attacking third and played the ball wide to Joe Corner, who picked out Paul Whitener for the opening goal. Whitener, Bromstedt, Felipe Hernandez and Johnny Leisman each came close to doubling the advantage before halftime, but Lonestar would equalize against the run of play in the 41st minute through Antonio Lopez.
The U-18s remained on the front foot after the break, with Corner and Leisman forcing Lonestar goalkeeper Jaden Greenberg into a pair of impressive saves. Yet Sporting KC side would find the game-winner in the 82nd minute when a free kick was awarded outside the penalty area. Hernandez's free kick rattled the woodwork, but Levente Illes, who had entered the match six minutes earlier, was on hand to poke the rebound into the net.
Saturday's win solidifies Sporting KC's fourth-place position in the Frontier Division of the Central Conference. The top three teams qualify automatically for the USSDA playoffs in June, while the fourth-place side enters a wildcard pool with teams from other divisions across the country. The top 11 wildcard teams receive playoff berths, and Sporting KC (12-7-3, 39 points) currently sits sixth in the wildcard pool with four regular season matches still to play.
The Sporting KC U-16s continued their playoff push as well, and looked poised to claim a road victory after scoring the first two goals of the match. Collin Innes slid Mason Visconti through on goal for the breakthrough in the 36th minute, and just two minutes later Visconti had his brace after collecting a pass from Grayson Barber.
Lonestar responded with a resounding comeback, scoring four consecutive goals between the 50th and 79th minutes. Barber gave coach Jon Parry's team a lifeline with a 90th-minute strike, but time ran out on Sporting KC's comeback bid.
Currently third in the Frontier Division, the U-16s (11-8-3, 36 points) are four points ahead of Texas Rush for the final playoff spot with four matches remaining. Should Sporting KC fall to fourth by season's end, they would enter a wildcard pool with the top 11 teams advancing to the USSDA playoffs, which commence June 22-26 in Frisco, Texas for the U-18 and U-16 divisions.
Both Academy sides return to USSDA action on May 14, meeting the Dallas Texans in a doubleheader at Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Follow @SKCAcademy on Twitter for updates throughout the season.
