The Sporting Kansas City under-16 and under-18 Academy teams put their unbeaten runs to the test against perennial powers FC Dallas on Saturday and emerged with a pair of draws in the U.S. Soccer. Development Academy doubleheader held at the University of Tulsa.
The U18's (9-7-4, 7th place) secured a 2-2 tie to remain firmly in postseason contention and extend their undefeated streak to eight games. Sporting KC jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the 24th minute before FC Dallas (11-4-4, 3rd place) responded four minutes later as each team's leading scorers traded goals. Daniel Salloi increased his total to 12 goals for Sporting KC during the 2014-15 season -- fourth most in the Central Conference -- by beating an FC Dallas defense that had shut out opponents in three straight games.
Sporting KC rallied to re-gain the lead courtesy of Alberto Sanchez scoring in the 54th minute on his USSDA debut after arriving from Monterrey, Mexico. The game's final goal would come in the 68th minute in the form of an equalizing effort from FC Dallas to split the points.
The U16's (4-6-10, 9th place) followed suit by holding Frontier Division leaders FC Dallas (15-1-3, 1st place) to a scoreless draw on Saturday. Goalkeeper Steven Tekesky earned the clean sheet in net by standing tall against the top scoring team (61 goals in 19 games) and top scoring player (Devin Vega with 16 goals) in the Central Conference.
FC Dallas entered with an eight-game winning streak dating back to December, including a 9-0 win in their last USSDA outing, but it was Sporting Kansas City who avenged a 3-0 loss in the previous meeting. The U16's -- coming off a strong showing in the Champions Division at the Generation adidas Cup -- are now unbeaten in their last 10 U.S. Soccer Development Academy matches since the start of 2015.
Both Academy teams will next host Texans SC Houston on Saturday, April 25 at Swope Soccer Village in Kansas City, Missouri. Follow @SKCAcademy on Twitter and Instagram for all the latest updates.
