The Seattle Sounders Academy U-16 and U-18 squads kicked off Day One of the group stage of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy playoffs in barnstorming fashion with a pair of crucial victories.
Only the top 32 teams in the country qualify for the end-of-season tournament. These teams are then divided into eight groups of four, with the winner of each group advancing directly to the quarterfinals, while the remaining three teams are eliminated.
Needing a positive result to advance from the hyper-talented Group H, the U-16s began the playoffs with a massive 2-1 victory over BW Gottschee. The young Sounders came flying out of the gates against the New York club, and it paid off handsomely in the 23rd minute when center back Sakari Carter, who spent the last couple months playing up on the U-18s, headed home Dylan Teves’ corner kick. Striker Azriel Gonzalez doubled the lead in the 46th minute when Alfonso Ocampo-Chavez dribbled past several defenders and squared a pass for Gonzalez to fire into an empty net.
Placed in Group C alongside the New York Red Bulls, Beachside Soccer Club and reigning champions FC Dallas, the U-18s knew they needed to start the playoffs with three points. Their opening match against NYRB appeared gridlocked for long spells of play with both sides exchanging blows but unable to score. That changed in the 62nd minute when striker Felix Chenkam found the back of the net from a tight angle just four minutes after entering as a substitute. Facing a back line run ragged by starting striker Gregory Sutton, the Cameroonian found a pocket of space in the final third, received a short pass from Paul Rothrock and quickly finished at the back post.
“The first match is always important,” said Academy Technical Director Marc Nicholls. “The players can be anxious, and so it is nice that both teams got off to good starts. The matches went to the wire and the players showed good resilience and togetherness.”
Both squads are in excellent standing entering Day Two of the group stage, with the FC Dallas U-18s suffering a surprise upset loss to Beachside SC, while the Sockers FC U-16s and Red Bulls U-16s dropped points in a 1-1 draw.
The U-18s’ upcoming match against FC Dallas will be live-streamed on the USSDA’s Facebook page. The full match of the U-16s win over Gottschee can be found here, while the U-18s game against NYRB can be viewed here.
Day One Results
- Sounders FC U-16 2 vs. BW Gottschee Academy U-16 1 (6/22/17)
- Sounders FC U-18 1 vs. New York Red Bulls U-18 0 (6/22/17)
