Girls Development Academy East Conference Recap: April 21-22, 2018

Play in the U.S. Soccer Girl’s Development Academy East Conference resumed over the weekend with several intriguing match-ups across the U-15, U-16/U-17, and U-18/U-19 age brackets. With several top four encounters across the region as well as some major upsets with playoff implications it was certainly a weekend that will go a long way towards determining who receives silverware at the end of the season.

+Full Schedule / Results

U-15

PA Classics (8-12-1, 25 points) earned six points on the weekend with a pair wins over Washington Spirit Academy -Virginia (1-20-4, 7 points) and Cedar Stars Academy -Monmouth (9-13-2, 29 points). On Saturday, Classics put two past the Spirit defense en route to a 2-0 win. Hannah Blodget‘s second half brace (69′ and 75’) gave her side the advantage late, giving goalkeeper Elliott Breech and the back line the breathing room necessary to seal the win and the shutout. On Sunday things were a bit more precarious for PA against Cedar Stars. Although they jumped out to a 2-0 lead early thanks to a brace from Kaitlyn Nguyen (1′ and 13′), Cedar Stars cut the lead to one just before halftime via a goal from Aubrey Silverman (36′).

Despite losing on Sunday, Monmouth did not leave the weekend empty-handed as they defeated FC Virginia (12-10-3, 39 points) 1-0 on Saturday. Shae Yocum gave her side the lead with her goal in the 23rd minute, her fourth on the season. In the second half, the Cedar Stars defense took control, keeping a potent Virginia attack at bay. Goalkeeper Braylee Walters and the back line secured the team’s second clean sheet of the season.

On Sunday, first-place Sky Blue-PDA (18-3-4, 58 points) defeated FCV by a 2-0 scoreline. The Sky Blue attack struck early with midfielders Sophia Cavaliere (13′) and Emerson Elgin (23′) both hitting the back of the net in the first half. Goalkeeper Maggie Ousouljoglou an the back line secured the clean sheet.

In the Northeast Division, FC Stars (13-6-5, 44 points) earned a little bit of breathing room on FC Fury NY (12-9-1, 37 points) with their 7-2 win on Saturday. The Fury went ahead early thanks to a goal from Gianna Paul in the 13th minute. But the Stars attack hit their stride midway through the match, with goals from forwards Megan Putvinski (22′) and Rory Clare (32′ and 46′), and midfielders Kathryn O’Reilly (45′), Jordan Juetten (42′ and 57′), and Ariana Bezanson (53′). The Fury’s second came from Sarah De Freitas in the 54th minute. With their win, the Stars stretched their unbeaten run to nine matches (7-0-2, 23 points).

+READ: Girls Development Academy East Conference Recap | April 14-15, 2018

Top of the table NYCFC (15-6-2, 47 points) faced a tough test on Saturday, drawing 3-3 with Boston Breakers Academy (10-10-3, 36 points). With the two sides having scored a combined 122 goals coming into the match, it’s easy to see why they pulled off a six-goal performance. The two sides matched each other goal-for-goal as well with the lead changing hands three times during the match. Boston scored first with Ava Lanfredi knocking in her fourth goal of the season in the 13th minute. But NYCFC took the lead just before halftime with goals from Isabella Gomez and Shannon McGovern. In the second half, the Breakers earned the advantage early again from a brace by Hayley Houston (43′ and 54′). While the Breakers came close to the upset they would have to settle for the one point as Madeline Pirello tied things up with her goal in the 60th minute. The goal was her 15th on the season.

While they were unable to seal the win on Saturday, the Breakers did pull off the close victory on Sunday squeaking past Oakwood Soccer Club (12-10-2, 38 points) 3-2. Oakwood took the lead twice in the match with goals from defender Ella Fanning (10′) and forward Delaney Farinha (46′). But as they have shown all season the Breakers are never truly out of a match until the game is over, grinding out three goals from Houston’s (78′) and Francesca Yanchuk (17′ and 40′). Yanchuk’s two goals over the weekend raised her season total to 17, a club-best and third most among all U-15 East Conference players. Meanwhile, Houston has 15 goals, second most among her teammates.

In the Southeast Division the Orlando Pride (12-12-3, 39 points) kept their playoff hopes alive with a 5-0 win over Weston FC (14-11-2, 44 points). Goals were scored by Jenna Austin (10′ and 57′), Madison Jones (20′), Audrey Buck (40′) and Lauren Nichols (53′). Goalkeeper Isabella Hernandez and the back line earned their side’s third shutout of the season and gave them just their fourth win in ten matches.

RESULTS

Atlantic
PA Classics 2 | Washington Spirit Academy-Virginia 0 (04/21)
Penn Fusion Soccer Academy| Washington Spirit Academy-Baltimore Armour (04/21)
Virginia Development Academy 1 | Sky Blue- PDA 2 (04/21)
FC Virginia 0 | Cedar Stars Academy-Monmouth 1 (04/21)
PA Classics 2| Cedar Stars Academy-Monmouth 1 (04/22)

FC Virginia 0 | Sky Blue-PDA 2 (04/22)

Northeast
FC Fury – NY 2 | FC Stars 7 (04/21)
Oakwood Soccer Club 0 | Sky Blue-NYSC 2 (04/21)
Boston Breakers Academy 3| New York City FC 3 (04/21)
Empire United 0  | Long Island SC 0 (04/21)
Long Island SC 5 | Empire United 0 (04/22)

Oakwood Soccer Club 2|Boston Breakers Academy 3 (4/22)

Southeast
NTH Tophat | United Futbol Academy (04/21)
Boca United Football Club 2 | IMG Academy 1 (04/21)
United Soccer Alliance | Concorde Fire (04/21)
Orlando Pride  5 | Weston FC  0 (04/21)

NC Courage 0|Charlotte Soccer Academy 0 (4/21)

United Soccer Alliance | West Florida Flames (4/22)

U-16/U-17

In the Atlantic Division, Penn Fusion Soccer Academy (18-4-2, 56 points) maintained their hold on first with a 4-1 win over Washington Spirit Academy – Baltimore  Armour (5-17-1, 16 points). After being held back by a determined Armour side in the first half, PFA broke through in the second forty-five. Midfielders Julia Burnell (47′) and Catherine DeRosa (59′) and forwards Giavanna Vicari (49′) and Gianna Dragoni (74′). The Armour cut the lead to three late with a goal from Madison Matos in the 89th minute but it wasn’t enough to prevent PFA from earning their seventh win in ten matches (7-2-1, 22 points).

FC Virginia defeated Cedar Stars Academy-Monmouth (4-17-2, 14 points) 6-0. Goals were scored by forward Ellis Wheeler (20′ and 75′), midfielder Olivia Migli (57′) and Kenna Zier (89′) and defender Victoria Haugen (33′). Saturday’s positive play set up for a big Sunday for Virginia who defeated Sky Blue-PDA (18-6-1, 55 points) 2-1. Renaya Senhaji gave Sky Blue the lead with her goal in the 36th minute. But Virginia  would not let the match slip away. In the 45th minute defender Kassidy Borden put her side level with the visitors, her second goal of the season. In the second half the two sides traded goal-scoring chances only narrowly being denied. Just when it looked like the match might end in a draw Virginia midfielder Allison Embroski provided the breakthrough in the 90th minute to give her side the win.

+READ: Girls Development Academy East Conference Recap | Spring Showcase 2018

While Sky Blue fell a bit short against FC Virginia, they did not leave the weekend empty-handed. On Sunday they defeated Virginia Development Academy 7-0 with goals from forwards Senhaji (29′ and 43′), Corinna Zulio (84′) and Natalia Ramirez (90′) and midfielders Kylie Daigle (54′),  Jaimi Araujo (73′), and Rebecca Fluchel (75′).

FC Fury NY (15-5-1, 46 points) moved into first place in the Northeast Division with a tough 3-2 win over FC Stars (6-14-3, 21 points). The Fury went ahead 1-0 in just the 6th minute when GiGi Golden‘s shot hit the back of the net. But the Stars found the equalizer just one minute later with a goal from Hayley Long, her ninth on the season. Brianna Jablonowski put the Fury up once again in the 45th minute only to see Cella DeBrocke tie things up once again just ten minutes later. Late in the match the two sides traded goal-scoring opportunities, only to see their respective defenses keep things level. But the Fury found the match-winner in the 59th minute with Julia Hannon putting her side ahead in the 59th minute.

Second-place Boston Breakers Academy (15-7-1, 46 points) and third-place New York City FC (14-7-3, 45 points) played to a 3-3 draw on Saturday. As with their U-15 battle the two sides would trade goals and positions during the match with both teams taking the lead at one point or another. NYCFC was the first to strike with Ellie Johnson putting her side up 1-0 with her goal in the 18th minute. The Breakers responded quickly with a goal of their own courtesy of Jaydah Bedoya in the 20th minute. Cora Creighton gave NYCFC the lead again with her penalty kick goal in the 25th minute. However, just before halftime Boston made it 2-2 with Sophie McCarthy netting her fourth of the season in the 44th minute. The Breakers took the lead early in the second half with Bedoya getting her second of the match in the 54th minute. But NYCFC pulled a result out late with Kailey Brenner knock home her penalty kick chance in the 44th minute. her seventh on the season.

While Boston came up just a bit short on Saturday against NYCFC, on Sunday they showed why they are one of the toughest teams in the USSDA by coming back from a goal down to earn the 2-1 win over Oakwood Soccer Club (11-12-1, 34 points). Oakwood took the lead in the 36th minute when defender Jessica Hinton buried her chance in the back of the net. The goal was her fourth of the season. Oakwood held back the Boston attack for close to an hour, until Claire Grover made things level in the 59th minute with her sixth goal of the season. Just one minute later, they found their game-winner with Mia Otero putting her side ahead. Otero’s goal was her ninth of Boston’s 2017-2018 campaign. With their four points on the weekend, Boston continues their torrid run through league play in 2018. They have yet to lose in the calendar year (8-0-1, 25 points) with Saturday’s draw the only time that they have yet to pick up the full three points.

+NCAA Women’s Soccer Commitment Announcements: April 2018

NTH Tophat (18-4-2, 56 points) stayed at the top of the Southeast Division table after their 2-0 win over the United Futbol Academy (5-14-7, 22 points). Nicoletta Bario gave Tophat the lead just before halftime with her goal in the 39th minute. In the second half Tophat received an insurance goal in the 65th minute from Julia Schulke to put the match out of reach. Schulke’s goal was her first of the season. While NTH’s attack was a major reason for their success on the day so too was their defense. Saturday’s shutout was their 11th on the season and third in four matches.

Things got a bit close late but in the end the United Soccer Alliance (17-7-1, 52 points) pulled out the victory Sunday, defeating the West Florida Flames (4-21-1, 8 points) 4-3. It was a tale of two halves as USA jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first 45 with a goal from Sarah Brunner (14′) and a hat trick from Olufolasade Adamolekun (19′, 42′, and 43′). Adamolekun’s three on the day gives her 20 on the season, seventh most in the U-16/U-17 age bracket. While it looked like the game might be out of reach, the Flames came storming back in the second half. Mason Schilling‘s brace (53′ and 81’) and Abbey Nottingham‘s strike in the 68th minute made for a nervy final few minutes for USA. But their defense held up and gave their side their third consecutive victory.

RESULTS

Atlantic
PA Classics 0 | Washington Spirit Academy-Virginia 5 (04/21)
Penn Fusion Soccer Academy 4| Washington Spirit Academy-Baltimore Armour 1 (04/21)
Virginia Development Academy 0 | Sky Blue- PDA 7 (04/21)
FC Virginia 6  | Cedar Stars Academy-Monmouth 0  (04/21)
PA Classics 0| Cedar Stars Academy-Monmouth 5  (04/22)

FC Virginia 2  | Sky Blue-PDA 1 (04/22)

Northeast
FC Fury – NY 3 | FC Stars 2 (04/21)
Oakwood Soccer Club 2 | Sky Blue-NYSC 0 (04/21)
Boston Breakers Academy 3| New York City FC 3 (04/21)
Empire United 2 | Long Island SC 1 (04/21)
Long Island SC 0 | Empire United 1 (04/22)
Oakwood Soccer Club 1|Boston Breakers Academy 2 (4/22)

Southeast
NTH Tophat 2 | United Futbol Academy 0 (04/21)
Boca United Football Club 0 | IMG Academy 4 (04/21)
Orlando Pride  1 | Weston FC  1 (04/21)
NC Courage 0|Charlotte Soccer Academy 1 (4/21)
United Soccer Alliance 4 | West Florida Flames 3 (4/22)

U-18/U-19

FC Virginia (15-6-1, 46 points) started the weekend in fine fashion defeating Cedar Stars Academy-Monmouth (6-14-1, 19 points) 2-1 to keep pace in the Northeast Division. Midfielder Renee Kohler gave Virginia the lead with her goal in the 53rd minute, her eighth on the season. While Cedar Stars tied things up with a Margot Ridgeway goal in the 80th minute, the deadlock was short-lived as Virginia Powell scored just four minutes later to put Virginia on top. Over the course of the 2017-2018 season, Powell has been one of the most consistent goal scorers in the U-18/U-19 age bracket. Her 20 goals on the season has her in ninth place among all scorers in the U-18/U-19 age group and account for 34 percent of Virginia’s total goals (59) in 2017-2018.

Things would not be as easy for Virginia on Sunday, falling to Sky Blue-PDA (17-3-2, 53 points) 2-0. Forward Amelia Paternoster scored her fifth goal of 2018-2019 with a strike in the eighth minute. Sky Blue would make it two just before halftime with a goal from midfielder Mackenzie Pluck. In the second half Sky Blue’s defense would pull out the result thanks to some excellent marking from defenders Shea Holland and Kaitlyn Madden.

+READ: Concacaf Women’s U-17 Championship cancelled for safety concerns

Sky Blue left Sunday’s match with six points on the weekend after having previously beaten Virginia Development Academy (4-14-3, 15 points) 6-0 on Saturday. Paternoster (1′) and Pluck (38′) both scored early in the first half to give their side the 2-0 advantage.  Forward Kayla Lee added a third just before halftime with her goal in the 43rd minute. In the second, Sky Blue continued to pile on the pressure against VDA, getting a second from Lee (72′) and additional goals from midfielders Jenna Royson (82′) and Shaye Shaffert (90′). With their two wins on the weekend, Sky Blue extended their perfect run in 2018 (6-0-0, 18 points). During that span they have outscored their opponents 26-2.

Perhaps the biggest result of the weekend though came on Saturday as Washington Spirit Academy: Baltimore Armour (7-9-4, 25 points) upset Penn Fusion Soccer Academy (15-5-1, 46 points) with a 4-1 road result. Leyah Hall-Robinson continued her prodigious scoring streak netting a hat trick (12′, 40′, and 83′) to give her 14 goals in 13 matches. Talia Gabarra also found the back of the net for the Armour with her goal in the 35th minute, her second of the 2017-2018 season. With the win Armour helped erase a little bit of the sting of their previous encounter with PFA, an 8-1 loss at home back in September.

The Boston Breakers Academy (17-3-0, 51 points) expanded on their hold of first place in the Northeast Division by earning six points on the weekend. First on Saturday they defeated second place New York City FC (12-7-2, 38 points) 6-1. Catherine Barry scored all six goals (3′, 33′, 38′, 80′, 83′, and 90′) for the Breakers in the match. Boston have now scored 11 goals against NYCFC this season having already defeated their New York neighbors 5-3 back in December. NYCFC have allowed just 31 goals all season.  Their lone goal came from Audrey Lee in the 90th minute, her seventh on the season.

Boston followed Saturday’s impressive result with another solid victory on Sunday, this time defeating Oakwood Soccer Club (10-9-1, 31 points) 3-2. In the half, Boston jumped out to a 3-0 lead with a goal from MaryKate McGuire (36′) and two via Barry (41′ and 49′). With her eight goals on the weekend, Barry upped her total to 32 goals on the season, an impressive number considering she has played just nine matches. Oakwood cut their lead to one in the second half with forwards Maddie Kelly (59′) and Leah Barbieri (90′) scoring for the visitors. But the Breakers held on to stretch their unbeaten run to 14 matches.

The weekend wasn’t a complete wash for Oakwood though, as they did defeat Sky Blue-NYSC (4-14-1, 17 points)  6-0 on Saturday. Barbieri (58′), Lauren Smida (6′ and 36′), Gigi Gorgone (62′ and 83′), and Izzy Lachcik (78′) supplied the goals for Oakwood, the most the side has scored since a 7-1 win over FC Fury NY in September. Meanwhile Oakwood’s defense continued their stellar recent run of form. Their shutout on Saturday was their third in five matches a credit to the work that goalkeeper Seraphina McKiernan and their defense led by Lachcik, Erin Goss, and Meghan O’Shaughnessy have done in recent matches.

Finally in the Southeast Division, remains NC Courage (21-0-2, 65 points) remains undefeated having beaten Charlotte Soccer Academy (12-7-4, 40 points) 3-1 on Saturday. CSA actually took the lead midway through the first half with a goal from Savanna Lueck in the 33rd minute. But the Courage tied things up just after halftime with a goal from Isabella Brown in the 47th minute. They took the lead thirty minutes later courtesy of a goal by Camryn Dixon, her fifth of the season. Brown added one more in the 82nd minute to put things away for the Courage raising her goal total on the season to 12. The Courage currently occupy the number two seed in the U-18/U-19 playoffs, just slightly behind first-place Crossfire Premier in terms of Points per Games Played (2.8947 to 2.8261).

RESULTS

Atlantic
PA Classics 2 | Washington Spirit Academy-Virginia 1 (04/21)
Penn Fusion Soccer Academy 1 | Washington Spirit Academy-Baltimore Armour 4 (04/21)
Virginia Development Academy 0  | Sky Blue- PDA 6  (04/21)
FC Virginia 2  | Cedar Stars Academy-Monmouth 1  (04/21)
PA Classics 1 | Cedar Stars Academy-Monmouth 1  (04/22)
FC Virginia 0 | Sky Blue-PDA 2 (04/22)

Northeast
Oakwood Soccer Club 6 | Sky Blue-NYSC 0 (04/21)
Boston Breakers Academy 6| New York City FC 1 (04/21)
Empire United 1 | Long Island SC 1 (04/21)
Long Island SC  | Empire United  (04/22)
Oakwood Soccer Club 2|Boston Breakers Academy 3 (4/22)

Southeast
NTH Tophat 4 | United Futbol Academy 0 (04/21)
Boca United Football Club 2 | IMG Academy 0 (04/21)
NC Courage 3|Charlotte Soccer Academy 1 (4/21)
United Soccer Alliance  5 | West Florida Flames  1 (4/22)