Vancouver Whitecaps FC Residency teams completed another busy weekend with mixed results on Sunday in United States Soccer Development Academy (USSDA) action, as they faced the academy squads of fellow Major League Soccer club San Jose Earthquakes.
In the early match, the U-18 Residency squad (8W-4L-3D) fell 4-3 off of a last-minute goal against San Jose Earthquakes U-17/18’s at the Mustang Soccer Complex Cytomax Field in Danville, California. The U-16 Residency squad (9W-4L-2D), meanwhile, continued their winning ways with a 5-0 victory over San Jose Earthquakes U-15/16's.
The Residency teams return to action on Saturday, February 18, with a pair of home matches against Strikers FC at Simon Fraser University Field #4. The U-18 ‘Caps play the Strikers U-17/18 side first at 11:30 a.m. PT, followed by the U-16 ‘Caps facing the Strikers U-15/16 team at 2 p.m. PT.
U-18
It was a tough day for the U-18 ‘Caps on Sunday, as they returned to action a day after playing two-men down on Saturday and suffered their first loss in the Northwest Division of the USSDA's West Conference. After going down a goal on 13 minutes, the ‘Caps responded with a strike from Ben Fisk just before halftime to go into the break level at 1-1. The Blue and White then took control of the match early in the second half, with goals from Carlos Marquez on 50 minutes, followed by a second from Fisk a minute later. In the end, fatigue proved too much, as San Jose scored on 75 minutes and 77 minutes to draw level before scoring again on 90 minutes to win 4-3 and deny the young ‘Caps an away point.
"The guys worked very hard and absolutely put in a good effort, but it was tough for them to maintain that effort for 90 minutes after the match on Saturday,” Residency head coach and technical director Richard Grootscholten told whitecapsfc.com. “That’s no excuse, we have to be able to adjust and learn from this. When we’re up 3-1, we have to play smart and kill the game, but this is a learning experience.”
Vancouver Whitecaps FC Residency U-18
Nolan Wirth; Declan Rodriguez, Tim Hickson (Jason van Blerk 68'), Daniel Stanese, Adam Polakiewicz; Ben McKendry, Alex Rowley, Yassin Essa (Titouan Chopin 76'), Ben Fisk; Spencer DeBoice (Wesley Cain 63'), Carlos Marquez
Subs not used: Sam Adekugbe, Marco Carducci, Mitch Piraux, Matthew van der Eyden
U-16
A day after winning 3-0, the U-16 squad impressed again with a 5-0 victory against their northern California counterparts. Jordan Hayes opened the scoring with a goal only four minutes into the match. Brody Huitema then doubled the advantage when he found the back of the net on 15 minutes before Marco Bustos scored on 39 minutes to go into halftime up 3-0. The ‘Caps kept the peddle to the mettle in the second half, as Huitema rounded out a hat-trick with goals on 52 minutes and 80 minutes. Goalkeeper Marco Carducci also stood out, helping the side keep the clean sheet.
“It was a very good game today against a good opponent,” said Grootscholten. “We played very well, especially in the second half, and everybody got playing time this weekend, so it was a great experience for our younger players.”
Vancouver Whitecaps FC Residency U-16
Marco Carducci; Quinton Duncan (Matthew van der Eyden), Alex Comsia (Olamide Ajibike 68'), Jackson Farmer, Sam Adekugbe; Jordan Hayes (Sebastian Cabrera 59'); Liam Elbourne (Elijah Adekugbe 73'), Mitch Piraux (Francesco Saporito 63'), Carlos Patino (Matthew Chow 54'), Marco Bustos; Brody Huitema
