It was Derby day for the boys as each team took on the De Anza Force Academy on Saturday. At 11am the U18s took on the Force in their first game at the Quakes Training Facility. This was my first game attending live this year, so I can give more in depth analysis. The 18s were coming into this game missing star center midfielder John Partida (personal) and 15 year old phenom Ivan Valencia (played with the 16s due to player shortage). Also Amir Bashti was gassed and subbed of early due to the fact that he had played just 2 days earlier for the USYNT vs LA2 (he scored a PK in that game). As for the game itself, it started with a set piece goal for the Quakes coming from Harvard commit Philip Hausen. De Anza answered back with 2 quick goals. 2-1 at the half. Brise Rory scores for the Quakes in the 54' minute. Then a goal by De Anza in the 66' minute. 3-2 De Anza with just 3 minutes left to play. At this point Philip's dad told me, and I quote "This will be their first loss of the season, unfortunately." Not so fast Mr. Hausen, it's GOONIE TIME. Quakes get the late goal from Suliman Khorami, with a cracker from outside the box. The boys were not satisfied though. With a set piece on the side of the box, they cross it in and the ball is met by centerback Jorge Lara past the far post, heading it in over the head of everyone, skimming the post and going in winning the game with this 90' minute goal. Insert crazy fun celebration involving shirtlessness, smoke and many hugs. Quakes win the derby 4-3 and stay undefeated. Hard to analyze the game without 2 main pieces (John Partida and Amir Bashti), but one player that really stood out to me was UC Irvine commit, centerback Jorge Lara. Forget the goal, he was a beast in defense. Mr. Hausen who attends every game thinks he is our best player as well.
The U16s did not have the same good fortune as the 18s. They lost 2-0, but don't let the score line fool you. We could have very easily won that game 3-2, had we finished our clear chances. I'd go as far as saying we dominated the game. The De Anza goals were pretty lucky, but still no excuse. I was very excited for this game because it was my first time seeing "The next TT" Ivan Valencia. To start with, Ivan is a Winger. He can probably play 2nd forward, but he's really really good defensively, winning the ball back. He created all of the Quakes chances and had 3 clear chances at goal, he should have buried them, but I'm still impressed none the less by how he developed those clear chances. (Note: He had been playing with the U18s every game this season before this game). I happened to be talking to Chris Dangerfield during the game and he was impressed with Ivan as well. We even had a little chuckle when he pulled a Djalo on the endline (sombrero's some kid).
And finally the 14s. They played the Force at John Mise Park. What can I say, WE DESTROYED THEM. 6-0. No analysis needed, our U14s are f'ing good. Really good. So fun to watch and honestly, they play more entertaining than our first team did this year..
Future's looking good! Get your soccer fix and keep up with the academy.
Here's a link to the website
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