Last week saw the MNUFC Development Academy U13 and U14 teams head to Michigan for matches on Saturday and Sunday for matches against Vardar and fellow MLS academy Crew SC Academy Wolves. This past weekend, the teams visited the Chicagoland area to square off against Sockers FC at Olympia Park in Schaumburg, Illinois.
MNUFC U13 vs. Sockers FC U13
The U13s were off to an early start with a 9 a.m. match and it was Andrew Chavez who got things going for Sockers FC with a shot into the upper right corner of the goal in the 18th minute following a scramble in front of net. An interception in the Loons’ own half a minute later led to a second goal for Sockers, scored by Mark Szklarczyk. The Loons answered just before the half on a penalty kick taken by Micah Burton after he was taken down in the box, but Sockers would hold a 2-1 lead as they headed into the break.
Just after the restart, MNUFC leveled the score following a poor pass that led to a Dominick Vargas chip over the ‘keeper, but Sockers would nudge ahead again just three minutes later when Luke Van Heukelem got the ball down on the endline, cut back and buried it in the top left corner. In the 52nd minute, MNUFC managed the final goal of the match when Burton poked it past the ‘keeper off an assist from Kaden Frost, leaving the teams with a 3-3 draw.
MNUFC U14 vs. Sockers FC U14
The U14 team had a much tougher go of it in their match. Felipe Corral opened the scoring for Sockers in the 22nd minute to give the home side a 1-0 lead. Sockers would carry that lead into the second half and then double it in the 48th minute on a strike by Wyatt Borso. The floodgates opened up late in the match, though, with Borso, Corral and Ryan Quintos putting the match well out of reach with goals in the 70th, 73rd and 78th minutes to hang a 5-0 loss on the Loons.
Next week, the MNUFC Development Academy teams will play host to their MLS rivals Crew SC Academy on Saturday, September 30 and Internationals on Sunday, October 1. Check out the full academy schedule here.
