Union Academy teams go unbeaten in weekend games

The U18s continued their assault on the Atlantic Division of the U.S. Development Academy with their sixth straight win and clean sheet in Maryland on Saturday.

Josue Monge scored in the 40th minute and Alexander Soto doubled the lead with 15 minutes remaining to secure all three points at Bethesday-Olney. Andrew Verdi picked up his fifth clean sheet of 2016 and his 11th for the season. The U18s have now gone 629 minutes without conceding a goal. Devin Vega of FC Dallas was the last to score against them in the first minute of a game way back on December 6 in Florida.

Monge's goal was his first for the U18s in his fourth game with the team after scoring a pair of goals in 14 appearances for the U16s in the first half of the season. Soto's goal was his fourth of the season and second in as many games.

Justin McMaster, whose 13 goals lead the U16s, made his debut for the U18s coming off the bench in the 72nd minute.

With the win, the Union stayed four points ahead of first place New York Red Bulls, which still top the Atlantic Division based on points per game because they have still played two fewer games. The Red Bulls beat Montreal Impact 1-0 in Montreal on Sunday.

U16s

The U16s picked up their second straight win and clean sheet against Bethesday-Olney on Saturday.

Chad Letts scored a pair of goals early in the second half and Iverson Brisma added a goal in his U16 team debut. Brisma has spent the season with the U15 team in the Northeast Pre-Academy League.

The win did little to shake-up the top of the standings in the Atlantic Division thanks to a 4-3 win for the Red Bulls over Montreal but the U16s are still within striking distance two points back despite having played two more games.

U14s

Benjamin Bender's first goal of the season in the 72nd minute lifted the U14s to a win over Cedar Stars Academy at YSC Sports on Saturday.

Jason Ayoma opened the scoring in the 17th minute with 14th of the season to tie Michael McKeown for the team league, but the Cedar Stars responded with goals in the 35th minute from Kayvon Gray and Anthony Alvites 12 minutes later to take the lead into halftime.

Anthony Cousins put things back on level terms with a penalty kick in the 54th minute before Bender's goal extended the team's winning streak to eight games. The team is 13-1-3 on the season, their only loss coming to New York Red Bulls back on October 24.

Pre-Academy

The U15 team drew 2-2 and the U13s won 5-0 in pre-Academy games against Bethesday-Olney.

Up Next

All five teams travel to North Jersey on Saturday, April 30. The U18s take on PDA at noon, followed by the U16 game at 2:30 and the U14 game at 4:30 p.m. The U15s play PDA at 9:30 a.m. and the U13s take on Cedar Stars Academy at 1:30 p.m.