WESTFIELD, Ind. – Real Salt Lake-Arizona Academy U-17/18 were able to salvage only a point from their opening match of the 2013-14 US Soccer Development Academy Playoffs against Indiana Fire Academy U-17/18 after a Sam Gleadle goal in the second half brought the game even at one goal apiece.
Real Salt Lake-AZ created the first scoring opportunity of the match in the fifth minute when Gleadle got the ball near the end line in Indiana’s box and was brought down. However, the referee decided against giving RSL-AZ an early penalty kick.
Indiana’s Bennett Kim scored in the 21st minute following a giveaway by RSL-AZ in the defensive third. Kim hopped on the errant ball and chipped past a charging Luis Barraza to open the scoring and take a 1-0 lead.
Following the opening goal, RSL-AZ got close to an equalizer when Jack Gayton was fouled only 25 yards away from goal. Corey Baird took the resulting free kick which struck the cross bar and bounced safely out of play for an Indiana goal kick. The Indiana Fire nearly doubled their lead in the 30th minute, jumping on an RSL-AZ pass near midfield and looking to score on the break for a second time, but failing to finish off the attack.
RSL-AZ U-17/18’s last quality chance of the half came in the 36th minute, when Justen Glad found himself up field on an overlapping run and curled in a shot from the left wing, forcing an Indiana save and a corner kick. Going into half time, RSL-AZ looked to shift the momentum of the game and go on the attack.
From the onset of the second half, RSL-AZ looked like a completely different team, maintaining possession almost exclusively in Indiana’s half of the field. In the 61st minute, that possession paid off as Gleadle scored to even the game at 1-1, resulting in the celebration amongst the RSL-AZ players seen in the photo above.
Indiana nearly regained the lead in the 74th minute with a good chance at goal from 12 yards out, but failed to put the shot on target, leaving the game even at one.
In the final 15 minutes of the match, RSL-AZ created numerous scoring opportunities but failed to convert a game-winning goal. The match finished at 1-1, leaving RSL-AZ unsatisfied with the score line and needing positive results from the final two matches to have a shot at advancing to the knockout stage of the US Soccer Development Academy Playoffs.
Real Salt Lake-Arizona Academy Head Coach Martin Vasquez summarized his feelings as, “Disappointed. The result you want to start with is three points… I thought we were flat in the first half and we did everything possible to win the game in the second half. We’ll take it; we just have to take tomorrow’s game. It’s key.”
RSL-AZ U-17/18’s next match is tomorrow, Tuesday, June 24th against Concorde Fire U-17/18 at 12:15 pm on Field 12 at Grand Park in Westfield, Indiana. That match will be followed by RSL-AZ U-15/16, who kick off their first playoff match against New Jersey Soccer Academy 04 U-15/16 at 4:30 pm on Field 13.
RSL-AZ U-17/18 will have different players to choose from against Concorde Fire, as Eric Carbajal and Te Wihongi return from red and yellow card suspension, respectively, while Matthias Binder will miss the match after receiving a straight red card in the first minute of stoppage time against the Indiana Fire Academy.
In the other match in U-17/18 Group H play, Seattle Sounders FC U-17/18 dominated Concorde Fire U-17/18 in a match in which Concorde’s goalkeeper was sent off early, forcing the team to put a field player in goal. Seattle took advantage of the huge handicap they were given, winning the match by a score of 9-0. That leaves the group standings as follows:
| Group H | Wins | Draws | Losses | Points | Goals For | Goals Against |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seattle Sounders FC U-17/18 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 0 |
| Real Salt Lake-Arizona U-17/18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Indiana Fire Academy U-17/18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Concorde Fire U-17/18 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
With the Sounders at such a significant advantage in terms of goal difference, Real Salt Lake-Arizona Academy U-17/18 will almost certainly need to win each of their last two games in order to win their group and advance to the next round of playoffs.
Click here for Real Salt Lake-Arizona Academy’s complete playoff schedule. Click here for a breakdown of all of the teams that RSL-AZ U-15/16 and U-17/18 will be facing this week in Indiana.
Scoring Summary
Real Salt Lake-Arizona Academy U-17/18
62’ – Sam Gleadle
Indiana Fire Academy U-17/18
21’ – Bennett Kim
Lineups
Real Salt Lake-Arizona Academy U-17/18
Luis Barraza
Gui Leme (Grant Livingston, 46’)
Dillon Nino
Erik Holt
Justen Glad (DJ Villegas, 73’)
Luis Lopez (Matthias Binder, 46’)
Jack Gayton
Jose Hernandez
Corey Baird
Damian German
Sam Gleadle (Leo Fuchs, 83’)
Unused Substitutes: Chase Bishov
Indiana Fire Academy U-17/18
Rece Buckmaster
Connor Corrigan
Luke Crowe
Spencer Glass
Jeremiah Gutjahr
Grant Hollkamp (Will Lentz, 65’)
Bennett Kim (David Anderson, 90’)
Dan Mooney (Derek Sutton, 65’)
Nolan Schloneger (George Poppas, 83’)
Cameron Taylor
Jonathon Wright
Unused Substitutes: John Doss, Luther Jacobs, Matthew Keller
Discipline
Real Salt Lake-Arizona Academy U-17/18
Yellow – Damian German
Yellow – Luis Lopez
Yellow – Dillon Nino
Red – Matthias Binder
Indiana Fire Academy U-17/18
Yellow – Rece Buckmaster
Yellow – Jeremiah Gutjahr
Yellow – Dan Mooney