Now unbeaten in 11 matches, the Sporting KC Academy U-18's are streaking at the most opportune time.
After defeating the San Antonio Scorpions 2-1 on Saturday and cruising past Lonestar SC 4-1 on Sunday, the U-18's (12-7-4) jumped from eighth to fifth place in the 2014-15 U.S. Soccer Development Academy wildcard standings. The top 11 clubs in the wildcard pool—determined by points per game—will join 21 other academy sides for the playoffs in June.
Less than a minute into Saturday's match at STAR Soccer Complex in San Antonio, Daniel Salloi scored his team-leading 13th goal of the season to put the U-18's in early command. Dakota Karns doubled the advantage on the hour mark, and though San Antonio pulled one back through Ruben Garcia in the 69th minute, the U-18's preserved their lead to the final whistle.
Sunday's victory over Lonestar SC at St. Stephens Episcopal School in Austin proved more comfortable. Salloi took his goal tally to 16 with a hat-trick, while Bryce Gibson also found the back of the net in a 4-1 triumph.
The Sporting KC U-16's (6-7-10) continued their strong run of form as well, recording an impressive 3-2 comeback win over San Antonio on Saturday before topping Lonestar SC 2-1 to round out the weekend sweep in Texas.
Facing a 2-0 deficit on Saturday, the team replied with three unanswered strikes from Will Little, Andrew McLeod and Fernando Borges to take all three points from the Scorpions. On Sunday, goals from Ezra Armstrong and John Leisman sparked a 2-1 victory for a team that has lost just once in 13 games dating back to December.
Up next for the Academy clubs is a doubleheader against Andromeda FC this Sunday at Swope Soccer Village. The U-18's will play at 9 a.m. before the U-16's kick off at 11:30 a.m. CT, and both games are free for the public to attend. Follow @SKCAcademy on Twitter and Instagram for all the latest updates.
