Juniors in action in Illinois

The Sporting Kansas City under-13 and under-14 Juniors will travel North this weekend to take on Sockers FC Chicago on Saturday and FC United on Sunday in the Great Lakes Division of the Midwest Developmental League. Sporting KC U13's are currently in a three way tie for the lead in the NPL Midwest League's Great Lakes division with the Chicago Magic and Chicago Fire Academy. With only three games remaining on this month's schedule, this weekend's games will be vital for their championship hopes.

U13's Schedule:

• Saturday, October 15th vs. Sockers FC Chicago at 12:00 p.m.
• Sunday, October 16th vs. FC United at 9:00 a.m.
• Saturday, October 29th vs. Blue Valley SC at 11:00 a.m.

U14's Schedule:

• Saturday, October 15th vs. Sockers FC Chicago at 2:00 p.m.
• Sunday, October 16th vs. FC United at 11:00 a.m.
• Saturday, October 29th vs. pm Blue Valley SC at 1:00 p.m.

Follow @SKCJuniors on Twitter for all the latest news and information.

Jacole Turner honored

Congrats to Sporting KC Juniors goalkeeper Jacole Turner, selected as the Kansas City Star's High School Athlete of the Week. Read their bio on Jacole below, then also check out this feature in the Lee's Summit Journal earlier this week. Jacole, along with Juniors teammate Derek Schrick, were also both selected to the Missouri All-State Starting 11 by ESPNHS.

•SCHOOL: Lee’s Summit North

•YEAR: Senior

•SPORT: Boys soccer

Through 15 games, Turner, the Broncos goalkeeper, has racked up 11 shutouts and allowed only four goals. “He’s really athletic. He’s driven and over the course of his years here in high school, he has really made great strides,” Broncos coach Tim Richardson said. Turner recorded shutouts last week against Raytown South and Liberty. “He’s absolutely a key reason we are 14-1,” Richardson said. Turner is also a member of the Sporting Kansas City junior squad and occasionally is a reserve trainee with the team.

Turner was named to the U.S. Soccer Development Academy All-Central Conference Starting XI in July for his play with the U16s during the 2010-11 USSDA season, and started for Sporting Kansas City at the U17 Generation adidas Cup at Pizza Hut Park this summer.

Video: U13s Fall Classic Champs

The Sporting Kansas City U13 Juniors were crowned champions of the SLSG Boys Fall Classic on Sunday with three wins in their three matches in the U13 Pre-Academy Division. Read yesterday's post for the full recap, and check out the highlights below for footage from all 14 goals scored in Illinois over the weekend:

Video courtesy of Chris Bihuniak.

U13s at SLSG Fall Classic

The Sporting Kansas City U13 Juniors continued their winning ways this weekend at the SLSG Boys Fall Classic. Playing in the Pre-Academy Division, the top bracket in their age division, the U13s faced the top three ranked teams in Missouri and emerged with three wins after outscoring the competition 17 to 1.

On Saturday, Sporting won 6-0 over Springfield SC. Guillermo "Memo" Carrasco scored twice in a three-minute span and goalkeeper Diego Alanis recorded his seventh shutout of the 2011-12 season in the victory. In their second match of the day, SKC were 4-0 winners over Lou Fusz, with head coach Matt Trumpp crediting the backline of Shane Kopplin, Alex Kaddah, Maxwell Harrington and Tanner Richardson for their performances in holding the St. Louis side to just two shots in the match.

The U13s capped off the weekend on Sunday with a 4-1 win over hosts St. Louis Scott Gallagher Elite. Patrick Wilkinson scored twice for Sporting to highlight a strong showing for the Sporting midfielder.

The U13s have now won their last seven matches with an astounding 31 goals for and just one goal against and will travel to Chicago this weekend to continue play in the National Premier League. They'll look to extend their lead atop the standings against Sockers FC Chicago and FC united.

U14 Juniors at SLSG Fall Classic

The Sporting Kansas City U14 Juniors faced three of the top 5 teams in the region over the weekend in the Pre-Academy Division of the SLSG Boys Fall Classic but were left shorthanded against some of the Midwest's top teams after suffering a series of injuries.

Their tournament got off to a strong start with a 1-0 halftime lead in their opening game against Chicago Magic PSG Pre-Academy, the only goal the team from Illinois allowed in the tourney, but the eventual group winners capitalized on the loss of two SKC defenders in the second half en route to a 6-1 victory in the two teams rematch of the 2010 regional final.

The U14s second game on Saturday came against Carmel United, the state champions from Indiana. After hitting the crossbar twice and forcing their keeper to make several superb stops, Sporting suffered a narrow 2-1 defeat. Finishing the weekend with just 13 available players, the U14s fell 3-0 on Sunday to hosts St. Louis Scott Gallagher Elite.

"It has been a struggle but hopefully one that is making us stronger once we get everyone back," said head coach Dustin Otteson. "The boys are still working very hard but we are ready for a little luck and good health."

The U14s will travel to Chicago this weekend to face Sockers FC Chicago and FC United in the National Premier League.

Juniors at SLSG Boys Fall Classic

The Sporting Kansas City under-13 and under-14 Juniors will travel to Collinsville and Granite City, Illinois this weekend for the St. Louis Scott Gallagher Boys Fall Classic, one of the top events in Region II. Both teams will compete in the Pre-Academy Division, the highest level of competition available in their age group.

U13's Schedule:

• Saturday, October 8th vs. Springfield SC 98/99 I at 7:30 a.m.
• Saturday, October 8th vs. Lou Fusz SC - Stauder - Premier at 1:30 p.m.
• Sunday, October 9th vs. SLSG Elite 98/99 at 10:30 a.m.

U14's Schedule:

• Saturday, October 8th vs. Chicago Magic PSG Pre-Academy 1 at 12:00 p.m.
• Saturday, October 8th vs. Carmel United SC Elite 98 at 6:00 p.m.
• Sunday, October 9th vs. SLSG Elite 97/98 at 7:30 a.m.

Follow @BoysFallClassic on Twitter for news and updates from the tournament, as well as @SKCJuniors for all the latest information.

U13 Video Highlights

The U13 Sporting Kansas City Juniors sit atop the Midwest Development League standings in the U13 Great Lakes Division with wins in each of their first two matches (2-0 vs St. Louis Scott Gallagher-Metro and 4-0 vs St. Louis Scott Gallagher-Missouri). Check out the video below for highlights from their opening weekend in MDL play...

The U13's followed up the successful showing at the Sporting Club Training Center in Swope Park with a weekend of friendlies on October 1st and 2nd against Omaha FC and St. Louis Scott Gallagher-Missouri. Special thanks to Chris Bihuniak for the video compilation...