BRADENTON, FL – Vancouver Whitecaps FC U-16 Residency (9W-1L-3D) picked up their second straight result at the United States Soccer Development Academy (USSDA) Winter Showcase on Monday morning, playing to a hard-fought 1-1 draw with New York Red Bulls U-16 (10W-0L-2D).
Striker Daniel Sagno got the ‘Caps on the board early, and they held that 1-0 lead until the final seconds, before New York equalized at the death.
At the 14-minute mark, midfielder David Norman delivered a beautiful free kick from 20 yards out, dropping a diagonal ball perfectly to Sagno, who beat his marker and nodded the ball down past the Red Bulls keeper.
The ‘Caps dominated the ball for the first 60 minutes of the match, but couldn’t break through for an insurance marker. The flow of play evened out over the final half an hour, but the Blue and White did well to neutralize any pressure from New York until the final seconds.
Seven minutes into stoppage time, the Red Bulls sent a long ball into the ‘Caps box, and it found a target. A New York attacker collected the ball and made no mistake, evening up the score on the final kick of the match.
Even with the untimely goal against, U-16 Residency head coach Rich Fagan spoke highly of his squad’s efforts on the pitch.
“I am very proud of the team - we showed a lot of class and quality today," Fagan said. "It was a great learning game for everyone and we’ll be better for it going forward."
The U-16s side will play their final match of the showcase on Wednesday against Montreal Impact U-16.
Scoring Summary
14’ – VAN – Daniel Sagno (David Norman)
80+7’ – NYRB –
Vancouver Whitecaps FC U-16 Residency
42.Luciano Trasolini; 32.Kadin Chung, 31.Frazer Poulter, 4.Matthew Baldisimo, 33.Michael Baldisimo; 45.Munir Saleh, 13.David Norman; 36.Cole Morokhovich (48.Terrell Smith 80’), 28.Thomas Gardner, 37.Nick Apostol (52.Gabriel Escobar 58’); 27.Daniel Sagno
