CHICAGO FIRE ACADEMY

Gutierrez scores twice as U-18s claim 3-0 win over Magic

By Curt Herron

It's safe to say that the Chicago Fire U-18 squad should have had a big halftime lead in its match with the Chicago Magic on Sunday in Glen Ellyn.

Despite heading into a strong south wind, the Fire had numerous great scoring attempts but were repeatedly denied by Magic keeper Jovani Castanon.

But the tide started to turn for the Fire when they got the wind to their backs and they eventually were able to break through for three scores.

Marco Gutierrez sparked things by scoring the first two as the Fire captured a 3-0 Central Conference Frontier Division win at the College of DuPage.

Several of the players from both teams were members of the Magic a year ago, adding some spark to to the U.S. Soccer Development Academy matchup.

The Fire (2-2) clearly had the upper hand throughout most of the match against the Magic (0-2-1) but Castanon's efforts in the net kept things close.

After dropping their first two matches in division play during their Colorado road trip, the U-18s posted their second straight victory.

Fire Academy Director Larry Sunderland was pleased by what he saw from the U-18s on Sunday and is upbeat about what the squad can accomplish.

Click to hear Larry Sunderland interview

The Fire moved in front for good during the 58th minute when Bryan Ciesiulka got the ball a short distance from the Magic goal.

Ciesiulka made a nice pass through defenders to Gutierrez, who as positioned just to the side of the net.

Gutierrez flicked a short attempt that eluded Castanon and deflected off the post before rolling in for the score.

Over the next 15 minutes, the Magic countered with their best second half efforts, two corner kicks that were hauled in by keeper Charlie Lyon.

In between those attempts, the Fire had two other good chances which were not halted by the Magic keeper, but rather by his defenders.

During that sequence, Chris Prince had a shot try stopped before Ciesiulka was denied on a subsequent effort.

The Fire connected again in the 78th minute when Gutierrez took a deflection and put it in from close range to give his team a 2-0 lead.

Click to hear Marco Gutierrez interview

As the clock continued to wind down, the Fire worked toward completing their first shutout in division play.

Lyon faced few serious threats all day, thanks to the efforts of defenders Kyler Albert, Mitch Albrecht, Brian Lunar and Billy McGuinness.

The Fire closed out the scoring in the 88th minute when Patrick Doody placed a short shot attempt into the opposite side of the net.

It was a satisfying win for the Fire, who had their best goal-scoring effort and posted their first shutout since the FC Dallas match.

Click to hear Mitch Albrecht interview

While things finally began to click for the Fire after the break, there was plenty of frustration for them during the opening half.

Almost from the outset, the Fire began to put the pressure on Castanon, who turned in a great effort to keep the match scoreless.

Prince started the attack in the first five minutes and then Trevor Wheeler had a shot deflected away before Prince as stopped on a short try.

Around the midpoint of the first half, Doody had a short shot stopped before Albert sent in a line drive to the Magic keeper.

Shortly after that, Prince was halted by kick saves from Castanon on two close attempts before Lyon stopped one of the few shots he faced.

A couple of minutes after Doody was stopped on another liner, Tyler Engel was taken down in the box and the Fire received a penalty kick.

Ciesiulka attempted the PK, but that effort was also denied when the Magic keeper in what turned out to be the final good threat of the half.

The U-18 squad kicks off its home schedule on Saturday, April 17 when it meets Real Colorado in a 1 pm match.