The Development Academy regular season wrapped up on Monday with the final few games of the schedule. The Academy now moves onto postseason and showcase play with the U13/14 teams heading to Grand Sports Campus for a four-day event. The playoffs and showcase for the older age groups will come next week at the same location.

The final weekend of play in the Academy helped some teams solidify spots in the postseason and saw others come up just short.

EAST

PA Classics U16 locked in the second spot in the Atlantic Division after a 5-0 win over Virginia Rush on Saturday. Jonathan Polan scored a hat trick and Braden Kline and McKinley Curran each added a goal while Trevor Clemens recorded the shutout in goal. Classics moved into the second spot thanks to a slip-up from D.C. United, which was held to a 2-2 draw against NJSA 04. Joshua Goldstern scored his 13th goal of the season with 12 minutes left to help NJSA snag the point. Classics, D.C. United, and NJSA 04 all qualified for the playoffs.

While those three teams earned a spot, Oakwood Soccer Club U16 came up just short in its bid for a playoff berth. Oakwood defeated Seacoast United 2-0 on Sunday, but it was not enough for the Connecticut club, which ends the regular season as the team with the best record to miss the playoffs.

There was not much to play for beyond bragging rights when Bethesda-Olney U18 took on PDA on Saturday, but Bethesda-Olney still put together an impressive performance and claimed a 2-1 win. Star striker Jeremy Ebobisse Ebolo scored both goals in the win to finish his debut Development Academy season with 29 goals from 21 games. Bethesda-Olney U18 is the No. 1 seed headed into the postseason while PDA falls in line as the No. 2 seed.

Weston FC U16 defeated Kendall SC 4-2 on Sunday and usurped the top spot in the Southeast Division. With the win, Weston FC also moved into the seventh spot in the national standings.

Despite a 2-0 loss to Capital Area RailHawks Academy – CASL U18 on Thursday, Carolina Rapids U18 finished the regular season as the top team in the Southeast Division. Rapids beat North Carolina Fusion 4-0 on Saturday thanks to goals from Jack Zollicoffer, Diego Delacruz, James Holland, and Bayley Cashion. Matthew Jegier recorded the shutout in goal.

TDS Development Academy Scoreboard 

CENTRAL

Shattuck-Saint Mary’s Soccer Academy U16 entered the weekend in need of a win in its final regular season game in order to earn a spot in the post season. Thanks to a two-goal performance from Luke Haakenson, Shattuck-Saint Mary’s is going to the playoffs. SSM beat rival Minnesota Thunder Academy 2-0 and clinched the last spot in the wildcard standings.

Sockers FC were in a similar position with a victory needed to sneak into the postseason. Sockers FC U16 delivered with a 6-3 win over Indiana Fire Academy, which was enough to earn the 12th spot in the wildcard standings. Sockers FC also won in the U18 age group, but that was more pageantry than anything as Indiana Fire had already locked up a playoff spot in the older division. Christopher Mueller, Michael Chang, and Wyatt Milosch scored for Sockers U18 in the 3-1 win.

WEST

While the West Conference teams had the week off in the U16 and U18 age groups, the U14 teams were in action. Real So Cal U14 wrapped up a very successful season with a 4-1 win over FC Golden State on Saturday. Real So Cal only lost once over the course of the season. Striker Jason Manning finished as one of the top scorers in the nation with 28 goals in 30 games. Real So Cal faces Philadelphia Union, New England Revolution, and De Anza Force next weekend in the Showcase event.

De Anza Force U14 also ended the regular season on a high note with a 6-1 win over Juventus Sport Club on Saturday. Makenna Pendleton scored four goals in the victory. Leading scorer Arda Bulut added the other two to push his season tally to 31 goals.

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