The Chicago Fire Academy Under-17 team wrapped an unbeaten run through 2019 Generation adidas Cup Group A with a penalty kick shootout victory over K-League 1 side Ulsan Hyundai on Wednesday in Frisco, Texas.
Ulsan opened scoring in the 18th minute, but the Fire were able to equalize on a 43rd minute penalty kick finish from Alex Monis. Goalkeeper Damian Las came up clutch as regular time finished level and the match went to penalty kicks, making a pair of big saves to help the Fire earn an additional point in 4-1 shootout win. Javier Casas, Jason Belloli, David Mysiuk, and Michael Flores stepped up to the spot to finish for the Fire.
The result put the Fire even with Group A leaders Club Tijuana of Liga MX on 12 points, but Tijuana will advance to the Premier Division semifinals on the strength of total wins. Here's how the standings shook out after the final day of group play:
| Group A | Pts | W | L | D | PK | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| x-Club TijuanaTIJ | 12 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 6 | +3 |
| Chicago Fire SCCHI | 12 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 2 | +4 |
| D.C. UnitedDC | 8 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 5 | +1 |
| San Jose EarthquakesSJ | 7 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | -4 |
| Atlanta UnitedATL | 3 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | -3 |
| Group schedule | ||||||||
The Fire will now play a pair of consolation matches on Thursday, April 18 and Saturday, April 20 with opponents TBD.
