Making their first road appearance of the 2011-12 United States Soccer Development Academy (USSDA) league season on Saturday afternoon, Vancouver Whitecaps FC Residency earned a pair of positive results against two tough opponents from the California Developed Academy at Del Oro High School in Loomis, California.
U-16:
Vancouver Whitecaps FC Residency U-16 (1W-1L-0D) captured their first ever USSDA victory, defeating California Development Academy U-15/16 by a score of 5-0 after a complete team effort saw their offensive talent produce on multiple occasions.
Leading the charge for Vancouver was Brody Huitema who scored his first ever USSDA hat trick to ensure victory for his U-16 squad. SamAdekugbe also chipped in with a tally of his own. But while Vancouver’s offense was firing on all cylinders, what was especially pleasing was the defensive effort that led to the shutout.
Whitecaps FC Residency technical director and head coach Richard Grootscholten was excited about the team’s progress from last weekend and told whitecapsfc.com about the major improvements and adjustments made against California. “We played absolutely well. We played as a unit today and not as individuals,” said Grootscholten. “This was something we focused on in training throughout the week and it was good to see.”
U-18:
Vancouver Whitecaps Residency U-18 (1W-0L-1D) opened their first road fixture with a commanding offensive display in California, scoring two goals in the first twenty minutes to take an early 2-0 lead. However, they would eventually have to settle for a 2-2 draw against California Development Academy U-17/18 in a result leaving the squad wanting more.
Caleb Clarke continued his scoring run in USSDA competition, tallying his third goal of the season to open the scoring for Vancouver. Wesley Cain then chipped in with his own effort, and it appeared that the ‘Caps would breeze to another easy victory. However, California fired back with two goals of their own before halftime and Whitecaps FC were unable to finish multiple second-half opportunities, ending the match with their first draw.
Whitecaps FC Residency head coach and technical director Richard Grootscholten was pleased with his team’s effort, but knows the squad needs to better handle leads against their opponents. “We started fantastic. We played how we wanted to play. We had a lot of chances in their six-yard box, but we were a bit unlucky,” said Grootscholten. “We were better, absolutely better, but we need to learn to put matches like this away.”
With two matches now in the books, both the U-16 and U-18 Whitecaps FC Residency squads now have the next two weeks off before returning to action with a home match-up against Crossfire Premier U-15/16 and U-17/18. The matches are open to the public and will take place at 11:30 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. PT at Simon Fraser University, Field 4 (Turf).
