On a perfect day for soccer at the Jefferson Cup for Boys in Richmond, Illinois side FC United defeated Virginia side Loudoun 95 Red on penalties to win the U15 championship flight title, part of a day of finals at the prestigious Mid-Atlantic event.

Loudoun went undefeated in their bracket outscoring their opponents 7-2 while FC United had two wins and a tie while outscoring their opponents 6-2.

The game was played at a slow pace, perhaps a result of a long weekend of tough games. Each team was poised and skilled, with limited pressure to the ball. This allowed each team to move the ball well. FC United got a lot out of Alex Underwood on the wing and Jeffrey Farina in the middle. Underwood worked the ball well down the side and played beautiful balls into Farina who had several quality shots on goal.

Loudoun threatened when Collin Verfurth stole the ball in the midfield and passed to James Grace who took a great shot that was blocked for a corner. Loudoun had a skilled guest player in Mamado Barry who was very fun to watch on the ball, but United defender Kevin Goon kept him in check throughout the first half. Farina kept up great pressure throughout the first half while the defense of Carlos Schultz, Daniel Garcia and big man Vaso Dragicevic worked tirelessly. Loudoun’s Grace split a couple of defenders and was tripped in the box and converted a PK for a 1-0 lead midway through the first half.

FC United stepped up the pressure with Underwood and Farina continuing their efforts and Schultz showing great speed to contribute to the offensive effort. Underwood took the ball into the box and was shoved down for another PK call, this one in their favor. Farina stepped up and converted the PK to even the score at 1-1 just before the half ended.

The second half started with Loudoun coming out strong. With still little pressure from either team to the ball, Loudoun’s Andrew Jenkins was able to tee up a shot from over 30 yards out to give his team a 2-1 lead in the game. Loudoun started to pressure a little more and move the ball well at this point, but FC United did not let down. Kyle Skinner was moving the ball well and Underwood was taking more shots himself this half. Brian Rojas beat two guys and took a great shot for United but the Loudoun goalie Jeremy Collier made a great save. Loudoun began to pack in the defense to try and maintain the lead, but FC United continued to take shots. Working hard as he had all game, Underwood took the ball down the side, across the end line and played a beautiful ball into the box. There was a frantic scramble but outside back Garcia was there to clean it up and finish beautifully to keep his team in the game. The score remained 2-2 when the whistle blew to signal the end of regulation.

There were two five minute overtime periods, with good back and forth play from both teams. Their defenses held and the game headed into penalty kicks. Each goalkeeper made a key save during the first five kicks, keeping the teams equal. There were four more sets of PKs before Loudoun missed the next to set up FC United’s Sammy Markin for the win. He handled the pressure well and put in a textbook shot just past Collier for the win in the 9th round.

In other age groups, Maryland side Bethesda SC Lions defeated the St. Louis Scott Gallagher Elite 2-1 to win the U13 Championship bracket. In the U14 Championship Bracket, St. Louis Scott Gallagher defeated South Carolina United 2-0 to win the trophy. In the U16 – U18 age brackets, they play in a College Showcase format so there were no championship games. However U16 Lake Grove United of New York dominated their division going undefeated with shutouts in all three games. Southern Californians Aztecs FC went undefeated in the U17 division and Philadelphia side YMS Thunder also shut out all three of their opponents to go undefeated in the U18 division for the weekend.