Red Bulls U-18 squad becomes first Academy team to capture back-to-back NJ State Championships
The Red Bulls U-18 team continued their impressive run this past weekend, riding their tenacity and never-say-die attitude to a second consecutive New Jersey State Cup championship.
An unlikely second-half comeback while playing with 10 men led to a 2-1 victory in the semifinal round against Arsenal World Class Premier last Saturday, which set up Sunday's 3-1 victory over North Hunterdon FC Magic to claim the title.
In Saturday's matchup, the Red Bulls U-18s started in an offense-oriented 3-4-3 formation, but failed to find any sort of rhythm for the game's first 20 minutes. Then, midway through the first half, a second yellow card was awarded to Andrew Cuevas, forcing the young Red Bulls to play the rest of the match a man down.
Three minutes before the half, Arsenal World Class Premier scored on a corner kick, and the U-18s knew they had a tough challenge ahead in the second half if they planned on reaching the Finals.
"Despite trailing at half-time and being reduced to 10 men, the mentality of the players and the character that they have displayed during the season gave us confidence that the game was far from over," said head coach Paul O'Donnell.
The Red Bulls came out strong, applying pressure immediately as the second half started. In the 55th minute, they finally managed to pull level as Lucas Swertloff delivered a volley into the upper right corner of the net from 20 yards out, assisted by Hamilton Sotelo.
Feeling the momentum of the game turn with the goal, the U-18s went right for the jugular, refusing to let Arsenal World Class Premier recover. Matt Kassel was fouled while making a great run into the box and converted the ensuing penalty kick in the 59th minute, and the Red Bulls U-18s buckled down defensively until the final whistle. A 90th minute goal-line save by Conrad Rusnak sealed the victory in exciting fashion, and the U-18s immediately turned their attention to the following day's final.
O'Donnell said, "The second half display was simply outstanding. Last week the boys came from behind against FC Delco and this week they came from behind with 10 men. The team simply refuses to accept defeat".
In the final, the prospect of defeat never really manifested itself for the Red Bulls, as they jumped out to an early lead and never looked back. With several injuries resulting from the previous day's semifinal clash, the U-18s started a number of fresh players. One of these players, Hugo Sanchez, took the opportunity to start and showcased his abilities immediately on his way to winning Man of the Match.
Sanchez scored from a corner kick in the 13th minute and then pushed the team's lead to 2-0 just 10 minutes later off a neat pass from Johnny Exantus.
Having dominated the first half, the Red Bulls headed into the break with a 2-0 lead. However, North Hunterdon FC Magic refused to roll over, pulling one back in the 61st minute and putting the pressure back on the Red Bulls U-18s.
The goal seemed to reawaken the Red Bulls, who rediscovered the style of play that carried them in the first half. Sanchez came inches from giving himself a hat trick, and shots from John Tardy and Exantus barely missed as well. Finally, in the 83rd minute, Tardy made a run down the left flank and put a hard shot on goal, which rebounded to Kassel, who calmly laid it off for Exantus. Exantus buried it to put the game beyond reach and a few minutes later the clock expired on an exciting NJ State Cup tournament with the Red Bulls U-18s left as the last team standing.
"To win the NJ State Championship two years in a row is a great accomplishment," O'Donnell said. "There are many great teams in New Jersey and this team met the challenge at each step. The goal now is to get ready for the Regionals at the end of June. We have over a month to get healthy and prepare for the next challenge".
Red Bulls U-14 Update
The Red Bulls U-14 side was also in action last week, playing a Super-Y League game against FC Westchester on Sunday, May 20. The Red Bulls ultimately dropped the hard fought match, 2-1, in spite of the fact that they controlled the game's flow even after going down to 10 men for most of the second half.
The game started slowly with both teams being cautious through the first 10 minutes, until the Red Bulls Hayden Harr failed to convert on a breakaway with only the goalie to beat. The game then opened up, with both teams creating chances, leading to a 20th minute goal by FC Westchester. The Red Bulls would answer 10 minutes later with a goal on a well-taken free kick from 25 yards out by Noah Sadaoui.
After the half, the Red Bulls came out in a decidedly more offensive 3-4-3 formation and immediately began applying quality pressure on the opposition. However, a questionable foul in the 58th minute led to a penalty kick, which FC Westchester converted to take the lead.
The odds became even longer for the U-14s, as just four minutes after going a goal down, Jonathan Krzysik received his second yellow card and the team was forced to play the remaining 10 minutes conceding a man advantage to FC Westchester. Several Red Bulls chances including a shot off the crossbar threatened to equalize, but FC Westchester held on for the victory.
"It was a tough loss to accept for the young Red Bulls players, especially when they dictated the tempo of the game and created many chances for goals," said Head Coach Stan Matlak. "The positive sign was that despite losing in the end of the game, the team showed character and played hard to the last minute trying to equalize."
