The Sporting Kansas City academy teams went undefeated against cross-state rivals St. Louis Scott Gallagher Metro in the opening game of the Frontier Division for both teams in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy on Saturday. The Under-18's posted a 2-1 victory in the early match of the doubleheader at the Sporting Club Training Center in Swope Park, followed by a 2-2 draw for the Under-16's.
Eduardo Moreno and Isai Gutierrez, teammates for Kansas state champions Liberal High School, each scored first-half goals as the U18's came back from an early deficit. St. Louis Scott Gallagher Metro's Jonathan Huelsman opened the scoring in the 7th minute, but Gutierrez responded in the 19th minute to pull the teams level. Moreno then notched the match-winner in the 32nd minute as Jacole Turner stood strong in net for the Juniors, who improved to 5-3-0 overall and 1-0-0 in the Frontier Division.
The U16's played a back-and-forth match that saw Rockhurst's Cole Stevenson give the Juniors a 1-0 lead mid-way through the first half, but four minutes later William Teichman put one past GK Andrew Dittemore. SLSG Metro struck again in the 50th minute to give the visitors a 2-1 lead, but Steven Enna was taken down in the box and successfully converted the penalty kick to salvage a 2-2 draw. The U16's are now 2-2-4 overall and 0-0-1 in the division.
Both teams will now have a week off (spring break!), before hitting the road to face St. Louis Scott Gallagher Missouri on Saturday, March 24th. Follow @SKCJuniors on Twitter for updates.
