Potomac area Development Academy and ECNL weekend review: D.C. United teams sweep Bethesda-Olney

It was another busy weekend of action for the teams of D.C., Maryland and Virginia in the United States Soccer Development Academy (USSDA) and Elite Clubs National League (ECNL). The majority had home fixtures, while Richmond United’s ECNL side made the trip to North Carolina where they faced the NC Fusion.

There were also some regional clashes, especially in USSDA, with the highlight being the matchup between elite sides Bethesda-Olney and D.C. United.

Let’s take a look at how teams from the Potomac region fared.

USSDA

Baltimore Bays Chelsea

Under-13/14s 0-5 Lehigh Valley United (10/5)

Baltimore Bays Chelsea’s Under-13/14s went down to another heavy defeat, this time at home to Lehigh Valley United, for whom it was their first victory of the USSDA season.

Lehigh Valley were led by two goals from Finnegan McMullen and a hat-trick from Valentine Perevalov, with all five strikes coming in the first half. For McMullen, it represents the continuation of some excellent recent form that saw him nominated to SoccerWire’s USSDA Atlantic Division Best-11 for the week of September 22-28.

[player_box id=44238 leftright=right]Bays nominees Barry Connell and Chase Webbert both started the game and played the full 90 minutes, but could not prevent their side from losing for the third time this year.

Bethesda-Olney and D.C. United

Bethesda Olney Under-13/14s 1-2 D.C. United (10/5)
Bethesda-Olney Under-15/16s 0-1 D.C. United (10/5)
Bethesda-Olney Under-17/18s 1-4 D.C. United (10/5)

In a clash between two of the best USSDA sides in the area, Bethesda-Olney were swept at home by D.C. United across all three age groups.

In the Under-13/14s matchup, Bethesda-Olney went ahead just before halftime with a goal from Senai Tesfu, but after the break United came roaring back with two goals in the space of 10 minutes from Dan Benavides and Kyle Davis.

[player_box id=44240 leftright=right]Donovan Pines scored the only goal of the game as D.C. United’s Under-15/16s prevailed, with his strike coming in the 78th minute. Bethesda-Olney defender Griffin Brouchard was coming off a nomination to SoccerWire’s USSDA Atlantic Division Best-11, but he and his teammates could not prevent their side going down to their first defeat of the season.

Finally, D.C. United won convincingly in the Under-17/18s game by a score of 4-1. Jorge Calix put United 1-0 up, then after a Bethesda-Olney equalizer just before halftime, United ran away with it in the second half thanks to strikes from University of Maryland commit Daniel Reeves, Eryk Williamson and Gerson Umana.

Richmond United

Under-13/14s 0-0 PA Classics (10/4)
Under-15/16s 0-1 PA Classics (10/4)
Under-17/18s 1-1 PA Classics (10/4)

Richmond United welcomed PA Classics for a weekend tripleheader, but the USSDA newcomers could not come away with a single victory against their opponents.

The Under-13/14s played out a 0-0 tie, with Classics midfielder and SoccerWire USSDA Atlantic Division Best-11 nominee Andrew Burkhardt starting the game but unable to continue the form that brought him a hat-trick last time out against Baltimore Bays Chelsea.

In the Under-15/16s, Aramis Kouzine scored the only goal of the game after 72 minutes to hand PA Classics a 1-0 win. United forward Brandon Perdue, another who has been nominated to SoccerWire’s USSDA Atlantic Division Best-11, started the game but could not find the net.

Finally, the Under-17/18s played out a 1-1 tie, with both goals coming at the very end of the second half as Keenan O’Shea’s strike for Richmond was canceled out by Classics’ Seton Hall commit Robert Pozesky.

Prince William Soccer, Inc. and Soccer Association of Columbia

PWSI Under-13/14s 2-5 Soccer Association of Columbia (10/4)

Two USSDA newcomers played out a seven-goal match as the Soccer Association of Columbia got past Prince William Soccer, Inc. 5-2. SAC had been 5-0 up at one stage thanks to a brace from Mark Mansfield in the opening five minutes, then additional strikes from Evan Doten, Tumani Minteh and Bennett Detweiler.

PWSI made things interesting in the second half as they scored twice through Alan Hernandez and Eric Calvillo, but they could not mount what would have been an impressive comeback.

ECNL

FC Virginia

Under-15s 1-0 CASL (10/4)
Under-16s 2-2 CASL (10/4)
Under-17s 3-0 CASL (10/4)
Under-18s 1-4 CASL (10/4)

CASL spent the weekend in Virginia, and first traveled to face FC Virginia in four matches that were largely successful for the home side.

Renee Kohler scored the only goal of the game as FC Virginia’s Under-15s prevailed 1-0, with previous SoccerWire ECNL Mid Atlantic Best-11 nominee Amy Thompson also starting up front for the hosts.

The Under-16s played out a 2-2 tie, while the Under-17s match finished in a 3-0 win for FC Virginia thanks to a hat-trick from Emily Fox. The 16-year-old of Ashburn, Va. continues to be in excellent form in the early part of the season, having already scored eight goals in five games and earning a nomination to SoccerWire’s ECNL Mid Atlantic Best-11.

Finally, CASL were victorious in the Under-18s matchup by a margin of 4-1 in what was the away side’s only victory of the day.

McLean YSA

Under-15s 1-0 CASL (10/5)
Under-16s 1-4 CASL (10/5)
Under-17s 3-1 CASL (10/5)
Under-18s 8-0 CASL (10/5)

The following day, CASL were at it again in Virginia as they faced McLean YSA in four games.

Tracey Mills scored the only goal of the game as McLean’s Under-15s won 1-0, while the Under-16s match finished in a convincing 4-1 victory for CASL to complete an unbeaten weekend for the visitors.

McLean took a 3-1 win in the Under-17s game thanks to goals from Ayan Adu, Caitlyn Boitnott and Meghan Kammerdeiner.

Finally, the Under-18s game ended in a big 8-0 win for McLean, who had six different goalscorers. Jarena Harmon and Penn State commit Kristin Schnurr both scored twice, while previous SoccerWire ECNL Mid Atlantic Best-11 nominee Kristina Diana notched a goal and an assist. Also on the scoresheet for the hosts were Audrey Denkler, Kaitlyn Forsht and Caroline Kerns.

Richmond United

Under-14s 4-0 NC Fusion (10/4)
Under-15s 6-0 NC Fusion (10/4)
Under-16s 1-2 NC Fusion (10/4)
Under-17s 1-1 NC Fusion (10/4)
Under-18s 0-3 NC Fusion (10/4)

It was a mixed weekend for Richmond United, who made the trip south to face the NC Fusion and came away with two victories, a tie and two defeats across their five age group teams.

United’s Under-14s came away with a big victory thanks to goals from Jordan Canniff, Taylor Shell and a double from Margaret Beckman. Beckman and Canniff also tallied assists, while Sayvon Hammond and Olivia Isley provided the others to keep United in the upper reaches of the Chesapeake Division in the Under-14 age group.

In the Under-15s, McKinley Burkett scored a hat-trick as United won by the even larger margin of 6-0. She was aided by two goals from Paige Franks, while Kiersten Hening added the other.

NC Fusion midfielder Brooke Bingham continued the form that saw her nominated to SoccerWire’s ECNL Mid Atlantic Best-11 recently as she scored one of the goals that helped the Fusion’s Under-16s triumph 2-1. Elizabeth Neblett scored the other goal for the hosts.

The Under-17s game finished in a 1-1 tie, with Virginia Jesselson scoring Richmond’s only goal, while the Under-18s saw the Fusion take a comfortable 3-0 win. UNC Asheville commit Meredith Long scored twice for the hosts, with the other goal coming from Megan Krivsky.