The Sporting Kansas City Academy U-12's, led by head coach Colby Childress, were crowned champions of the 2018 Generation adidas Cup on Saturday at Toyota Soccer Complex in Frisco, Texas.
2018 GA CUP RESULTS
March 29: SKC 2, CLB 1 (group stage)
March 29: SKC 1, PHI 1 (group stage)
March 30: SKC 2, SJ 1 (group stage)
March 30: SKC 1, DAL 1 (group stage)
March 31: SKC 1, ATL 1 (2-1) (semifinal)
March 31: SKC 0, LAFC 0 (7-6) (final)
The U-12's went unbeaten against six MLS academy teams at the competition and capped off the run with dramatic penalty kick shootouts in the semifinal and championship while the Sporting KC U-17's cheered them on from the sidelines.
Goalkeeper Misael "Junior" Mena made the game-winning save against Atlanta United to send Sporting KC into the final, where he again produced a clutch save on LAFC's seventh attempt and buried the decisive PK himself moments later.
REPLAY: Watch PK shootout to win GA Cup
Ryan Reid, a Sporting Blue Valley product and the only member of the U-12's to have also played in last year's GA Cup, was named the tournament's most outstanding player for an event that featured the U-12 academy teams from 20 Major League Soccer clubs.
GA Cup Roster
Edgar Bazan
Luis Cruz-Ayala
Carter Egbert
Evan Ediger
Kaleb Fannin
Emerson LaOrden
Rhys Laws
Joseph Mejia
Misael Mena
Ryan Reid
Abe Soete
Ryan Wagner
