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The New York Red Bulls U-16s are 270 minutes away from winning a national championship.
Today they take on the Chivas USA U-16s in the Development Academy Playoffs at the Training Facility in Hanover at 7:30 p.m. With a win they advance to the national semifinals on July 16th at the StubHub Center in Carson, California.
The Red Bulls have captured two Development Academy championships, with the U-16s winning in 2012 and the U-18s winning in 2013.
How did they get here?
New York Red Bulls
The U-16s went undefeated in group play at the Academy Playoffs, beating the IMG Academy (5-1), Solar Chelsea (6-1), and the Portland Timbers (4-2). Brian Saramago scored five goals in three games to add to the 23 he netted during the regular season.
In addition to going 23-1-2 and finishing first in the Atlantic Division during the regular season, the Red Bulls won the Premier Division of the Generation adidas Cup with a win in the final over Independiente Medellin. Saramago and Mason Deeds were named to the Eastern Conference Best XI.
Chivas USA
The Los Angeles-based club, in their final year of existence, finished the regular season with a 19-13-7 record. They went undefeated at the Academy Playoffs, beating Sockers FC (1-0), Real Colorado (3-2), and the San Jose Earthquakes (2-0) behind two goals each from Orlando Lopez, Daniel Villegas, and Ivan Gutierrez. The Goats went 19-13-7 during the regular season and finished fourth in the Southwest Division of the Development Academy.