The Sporting Kansas City Academy U-16s punched their ticket to the 2016-17 U.S. Soccer Development Academy Playoffs on Sunday with a 1-1 draw against the Colorado Rapids at Swope Soccer Village.
Abdu Kikhia’s superb volley in the 65th minute gave Sporting KC the lead, and although the Rapids equalized 12 minutes later, a point was enough for the U-16s to clinch a top-three finish in the Frontier Division and secure the postseason berth that goes with it.
The Development Academy Playoffs will run from June 20-26 in Westfield, Indiana, where the Sporting KC U-16s will compete for the second straight year. Before then, head coach Josh Gardner’s side will wrap up the regular season with matches against the Dallas Texans this Saturday and Real Colorado on June 3.
The Sporting KC U-18s kicked off Sunday’s doubleheader, earning a 1-1 draw of their own to keep hold of third place in the U-18 Frontier Division and inch closer to a playoff spot. Felipe Hernandez fired Sporting KC to a dream start within two minutes, tallying his ninth goal of the campaign, but Colorado drew level in the 77th minute to split the points.
The U-18s now turn their attention to Saturday’s meeting with the Dallas Texans, who sit two points back in fifth place. The regular season finale against Real Colorado will then take place June 3 at Swope Soccer Village. Should Sporting KC not finish in the top three, it would hope to be one of 11 wildcard clubs from across the country to receive a playoff berth.
Follow @SKCAcademy on Twitter for live updates of Saturday's doubleheader versus the Dallas Texans, which will take place on the campus of the University of Tulsa. The U-18s will kick off at 1 p.m. CT before the U-16s square off at 3:30 p.m. CT.
