Day two of the United States Soccer Development Academy U-14 Showcase saw another early morning for the young Black-and-Red. Indiana provided another excellent day for the teams to showcase their talents in front of several U.S. Soccer scouts. The DCU U-14s squared off against a skilled Los Angeles Futbol Academy on Saturday morning.
D.C. United started a bit slow in the first few minutes and allowed Los Angeles to take an early lead. The game went back and forth with each team battling for and keeping possession for minutes at a time. United gained the upper hand in the last ten minutes and put high pressure on Los Angeles. In the 35th minute, Chris Durkin served up an excellent corner to a surging Jacob Velvel, who headed home a fabulous goal to tie the game at 1-1 going into halftime.
The two teams began the second half at a furious pace. Los Angeles struck again in the 60th minute off of a free kick from 20 yards out. United responded well, keeping the pressure high and creating many chances, but were thwarted by the Los Angeles defense until the 79th minute when the referee awarded a penalty kick to United. Chris Durkin converted the penalty to tie and end the game at 2-2.
The USSDA showcase is an excellent place for the U-14s to be scouted and evaluated by U.S. Soccer. The match drew the attention of United States U-14 Head Coach Tony Lepore and U-15 Head Coach Hugo Perez, along with several other U.S. Soccer scouts and assistants.
The last game of the showcase for the DCU U-14s will be against Colorado Rapids on Monday, June 16 at 9:00 a.m. on field 10 at the Grand Sports Complex. Fans can follow along on Twitter (@DCUyouth) for real time updates and can check out photos of the weekend here.
Box Score:
2-2 tie
Goals: Jacob Velvel (Chris Durkin) [35] and Chris Durkin [79]
Starting XI: Luke Campbell, Alexis Cerritos, Chris Durkin, John Eberle, Kyle Frye, Derin Kokuuslu, Andrew Nicholas, Luis Rodriguez-Luna, Chandler Vaughn, Jacob Velvel and Andrew Villanueva
