The Sporting Kansas City Academy played a pair of tripleheaders in Colorado this weekend as the stretch run of the 2017-18 U.S. Soccer Development Academy season continued.
The Sporting KC U-15s, U-17s and U-19s each collected victories in a clean sweep of the Colorado Rush on Saturday at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park. Sunday’s matches against Real Colorado provided sterner tests, as the U-17s and U-19s earned 1-1 draws while the U-15s took a narrow defeat.
U-15s Trending Upward
The Sporting KC U-15s (5-8-2, 17 points) collected their third win in four tries on Saturday, defeating the Rush 3-0. Stefan Bilinac converted a penalty kick in the 28th minute, Coby Jones struck twice in the early stages of the second half and goalkeeper Nathan Gabris posted the shutout. The U-15s suffered a narrow 1-0 defeat the following afternoon despite a strong showing in which Osvaldo Cisneros forced Real Colorado’s goalkeeper to make multiple saves.
U-17s Extend Unbeaten Run
The Sporting KC U-17s (11-6-2, 35 points) improved to 4-0-1 over their last five Development Academy matches, prevailing 2-0 against the Rush on Saturday before settling for a 1-1 tie with Real Colorado on Sunday. These results leave Sporting KC in third place in the Frontier Division, the final automatic qualifying slot for the Development Academy Playoffs in June.
Saturday’s win was effectively sealed in the 22nd minute on a penalty kick from Gabe Findley. Jonathan Munoz doubled the lead on 56 minutes and goalkeeper Eli Crow notched the clean sheet. In Sunday’s tightly contested battle with Real Colorado, Gyuwon Chong scored a dramatic equalizer for Sporting KC in the 88th minute after the hosts had surged ahead on Cade Cowan’s 34th-minute strike.
U-19s Stay in Second Place
The Sporting KC U-19s (11-5-3, 36 points) kept hold of second place in the Frontier Division standings thanks to a 4-1 win over the Rush and a 1-1 draw with Real Colorado. Head coach Jon Parry’s men sit four points behind division leaders FC Dallas, whom they face next Saturday in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
The U-19s jumped out to a 3-0 lead before halftime on Saturday, landing the first punch in the 11th minute on a strike from forward Wilson Harris. Midfielder Roman Knox buried a penalty kick on the half-hour mark to make it 2-0 and midfielder Isaac McGinnis added a third on the stroke of intermission. Forward Reagan Mugume Rice scored Sporting KC’s fourth in the 72nd minute, but a shutout eluded the visitors when Kevin Peterson put the Rush on the board with two minutes remaining. Sunday’s 1-1 draw saw Real Colorado score in the seventh minute through Jovany Herrera, but Harris provided a quick equalizer six minutes later.
Up Next: Sporting KC to tango with FC Dallas in Tulsa
The Development Academy campaign resumes this Saturday when the Sporting KC U-15s, U-17s and U-19s face fellow MLS counterparts FC Dallas in a tripleheader on the campus of the University of Tulsa. The U-15s will kick off at noon CT, followed by the U-17s at 2:30 p.m. and the U-19s at 5 p.m. FC Dallas holds a commanding lead of first place in the Frontier Division at the U-17 and U-19 levels.
Follow the Sporting KC Academy on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat (skcacademy) for live updates Saturday and throughout the year.
