TORONTO, Canada - July 14, 2018 - The U.S. U-15 Men's National Team opened up their Canadian National Championship journey with two games on Friday, July 13 at the University of Toronto. In the morning match, USA faced Quebec 2 where the teams tied 3-3. In the afternoon game, the team played BC Rams, where a slow start put USA behind early, ultimately falling 6-0.

U.S. U-15 Men's National Team 3 - 3 Quebec 2

The game began with even play by both sides looking to create scoring opportunities. Quebec was rewarded first in the 10th minute with a goal to take a 1-0 lead. In the second quarter USA continued to move the ball well. Tyler Kim (Fredericksburg, Va.) found himself in a 1-on-1 situation with Quebec's goalkeeper, but was unable to maneuver into a good shooting position. Instead, Kim slipped the ball to Wyatt Katz (Santa Rose Valley, Calif.) who scored the equalizer in the 23rd minute on a reverse hit into the bottom right of the goal to tie the game 1-1. Riding the newly created momentum, Noah Mendoza (Monument, Colo.) quickly got of a shot off from the baseline three minutes later to give USA a 2-1 advantage before halftime.

Continued pressure from USA and shots on goal began to break down Quebec's defense throughout the third quarter. Eventually, Colin Kirkpatrick (Annville, Pa.) received the ball on the right side of the circle in the 43rd minute. Without any hesitation, Kirkpatrick followed through on the shot, planting the ball straight into the goal to extend USA's lead 3-1. Quebec earned two corners in the quarter but USA thwarted both attempts. In the final frame, an unfortunate deflection by a USA defender went into the goal to cut Quebec's deficit to 3-2 in the 52nd minute. Quebec gathered energy for the remainder of the game after the goal, and moments later in the 59th minute, scored a field goal to bring the game to a 3-3 conclusion. 

U.S. U-15 Men's National Team 0 - 6 BC Rams

BC Rams capitalized from the start against an unorganized USA squad. The team converted a penalty corner in the 2nd minute by drawing goalkeeper Russell Smith (Camarillo, Calif.) out of the box and depositied the ball neatly behind him to take an early 1-0 lead. The Rams continued to pressure Smith and USA's defense with multiple shots on goal and, with less than one minute left in the quarter, secured another goal opening the lead to 2-0.

The Rams opened the second quarter with back-to-back goals, scoring in similar fashion by slipping the ball behind a challenging Smith, extending their lead to 4-0 by the 19th minute. The Rams continued to apply pressure throughout the remainder of the half by forcing USA's defensive corner unit to step up and neatly defend four consecutive penalty corners. Just before the quarter ended, the Rams gained one more goal from the top of the circle to take a 5-0 lead. USA was more settled in the second half after adjusting their positioning to better defend against the continuing attacks. The Rams found the net once more in the 40th minute on a penalty corner chance to make it 6-0. 

"In the second game of the day, the team got off to a rough start and had a difficult first half," added Barminski. "They were able to make the necessary adjustments at the halftime against a very strong side and performed much better for the remainder of the game."

After the first day of play, USA sits second in Pool A. The U.S. U-15 Men's National Team will return to the pitch Saturday, July 14. For all information regarding the Canadian National Championship, including full schedule, rosters, news and more, check out the event page by clicking here.