Philadelphia Union Academy kept its unbeaten form in MLS NEXT this past weekend as the U14s and U13s faced off against Ironbound SC.
The U14s had a breakout performance with a dominant 7-1 showing over Ironbound SC. The offense showed its strength once again as Timoni Gbalajobi bagged a hat trick to lead the Baby Snakes. Liam Holtzman added a brace himself while Chris Thompson and Jayden Kouadio completed the names on the Union score sheet. While he may not have scored, Isaac Sparling also had a strong game in the backline, while Collin Fullam was energetic in the midfield. Building off of a 9-0 thrashing of the PA Classics, Head Coach Phil Karn’s side controlled the tempo of the game while creating a variety of chances throughout. The team remains undefeated in their opening games, looking to take this confidence with them to the next match.
In the other league match of the weekend, the U13s battled some adversity down to 10 players to full out a 1-1 draw against Ironbound SC. The only goal for the Baby Snakes was scored by Mateo Rosko. Joe Scholander, Ethan Wirtz, Sully Pallazari, and Michael Trent all had strong performances as they kept the physicality level high despite being down a player in the second half. Down a player the Union battled to see out the result but saw the equalizing goal sneak through with 10 minutes left.
The Union Academy turns its attention to its its first doubleheader weekend of the season with back-to-back matches. Saturday sees the Boys in Blue traveling to Germantown, Maryland to make up a rained-out weekend against Bethesda SC. The squads then will host their first home matches of the season on Sunday when they welcome Baltimore Armour to the area. Be sure to stay tuned to PhiladelphiaUnion.com and the Academy's social media channels for streaming information closer to matchday.
