The Sporting Kansas City Academy U-18s and U-16s have kicked off the 2016-17 U.S. Soccer Development Academy season with a pair of four-game unbeaten streaks.
Both teams continued their excellent form this weekend in Commerce City, Colorado, sweeping a pair of doubleheaders against the Colorado Rapids at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park. The U-18s are now a perfect 4-0-0, while the U-16s sit at 3-0-1 in the Central Conference’s Frontier Division.
Saturday: Sporting KC U-18s 4, Colorado Rapids 3
The U-18s were behind the eight-ball at halftime after conceding two penalty kicks, but staged a furious rally to erase the 2-0 deficit. Forward Leroy Enzugusi scored in his third straight game and midfielder Felipe Hernandez produced a spectacular second-half hat-trick to give the U-18s a 4-3 victory. Hernandez, who earned three caps for the U.S. U-19 Men’s National Team in Serbia earlier this month, struck a brilliant 30-yard free kick in the final moments to give his side all three points in dramatic fashion.
Saturday: Sporting KC U-16s 4, Colorado Rapids 0
The U16s would have far less trouble securing their win on Saturday. Mason Visconti fired his team ahead in the first half before Collin Innes buried a penalty kick to double the advantage after the restart. Ryan Fessler scored a sublime third from 30 yards out and Luke Rafanan completed the scoring in the late stages. Goalkeeper Alex Brown notched his second straight clean sheet, having blanked the Texas Rush last weekend.
Sunday: Sporting KC U-18s 3, Colorado Rapids 1
Jon Parry’s men picked up where they left off on Sunday, receiving goals from Mario Magana, Will Little and Enzugusi, who has scored in all four games this season. Hernandez, Roman Knox and Kyle Reese tallied assists as the U-18s moved atop the table in the fledgling Frontier Division standings.
Sunday: Sporting KC U-16s 5, Colorado Rapids 1
Another comprehensive performance from Josh Gardner’s side included a hat-trick from Maxi Rugova and additional strikes from Innes and Abdu Kikhia.
U-14s draw Saturday and lose Sunday
The Sporting KC U-14s also faced the Rapids on back to back days, earning a 1-1 draw on Saturday before falling 5-0 on Sunday. J.P. Pascarella netted the lone goal over the two matches.
Next up: Dallas Texans in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma
The U-18s and U-16s look to remain unbeaten when they face the Dallas Texans on Sunday in a doubleheader at Union High School in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. The U-18s will kick off at 1 p.m. CT before the U-16s take the field at 3:30 p.m. CT. Follow @SKCAcademy on Twitter for live updates this weekend and throughout the 2016-17 season.
