Academy Update

As the spring portion of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy (USSDA) league approaches, D.C. United’s Academy teams will log some time on the field this week in a few friendlies. Meanwhile, the Pre-Academy squads are set to participate in the 2013 Potomac President’s Day Pre-Academy Showcase this weekend.

The U-18s will play the Aegean Hawks men's league team tomorrow at 8 p.m. in Arlington, Va., and the U-16s, split into two squads, will scrimmage two Freestate Soccer Alliance teams at 6 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., respectively. The spring season officially kicks off on March 2 for the United Academy teams, with the U-18s and U-16s set to take on Baltimore Bays Chelsea in Owings Mill, Md., at 1 p.m. and 3:30 p.m., respectively. In the 2012-13 season thus far, the U-16 squad has not lost a single match, sporting a record of 11-0-2, notching 40 goals and conceding only 10, with leading scorer Gerson Umana (Lorton, Va.; Prince William Soccer, Inc.) collecting 10 goals in the process. The U-18s possess an 8-4-1 mark, with Denis Najar (Alexandria, Va.) leading the offensive charge, having already tallied six strikes on the season. The U-16s sit in first place in the Atlantic Division while the U-18s hold third place.

This weekend, five teams from D.C. United’s U-13, U-14, and U-15 Pre-Academy will feature in a President’s Day tournament, held at the Maryland SoccerPlex in Boyds, Md. The showcase’s schedule is such that all of the United Pre-Academy teams will play three matches in as many days and will offer exposure to U.S. Soccer scouts looking for young talent in the area.

Last year, the U-15s and U-14s performed well at the tournament, going 2-0-1 and 1-1-1, respectively. This year, those squads will split, and the U-13 Pre-Academy team will also feature in the tournament, for a total of five participating Black-and-Red squads. United’s U-15s will look to have a better showing against a familiar foe in FC Westchester, the team that handed them its only loss in last year’s tournament. Both of the U-15 squads will have a crack at the New York club, once on Saturday, Feb. 16 and again on Sunday, Feb. 17.