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CARSON, CALIFORNIA - There’s something about the last day of group play at Academy Finals Week that gets the dramatic juices flowing – for the U17/18 age group, at least.

Whatever the U15/16 age group has lacked in drama, Thursday’s U17/18 games more than compensated for, giving fans a roller coaster ride of goals, gaffes and last-second finishes.

In the end, both U17/18 group winners were decided by goal differential – Vardar over Real So Cal and Crossfire over CASL – and perhaps the best team at the tournament, FC Dallas, was sent packing. Vardar and Crossfire play for the U18 title Saturday.

It all made for a strange day full of intrigue. Here’s a taste of all the action.

Vardar 3 – 0 Baltimore Bays Academy

Vardar came out on a mission, knowing they had to put up goals in a hurry. It was clear from the roaring crowd on the next field that Real So Cal, tied with Vardar for first place in Group Two, was quickly running up the score against Concorde Fire.

As a result, Vardar came out looking stronger than ever.

Defenders Joseph Dillon and Mario Teixeira tackled with authority, winning every ball in their vicinity, and combined crisply with central midfielders Derek Schrauben and Rob Dolot to dominate possession.

Forwards Ezekiel Harris and Peter Jacobson also looked sharp, fighting and putting constant pressure on Baltimore’s defense. Jarrett Kersten was dynamic along the wing, tracking up and down the sideline and repeatedly crashing the box from the flank.

But by first half extra time, even after Jacobson scored off a flick on a set piece to put Vardar up 1-0, things looked bleak with So Cal already up 3-1 on Concorde (scores which, if they remained, would have sent So Cal to the final).

It got brighter for Vardar when Baltimore opened the second half by immediately conceding a penalty, which Jacobson put away for a 2-0 lead – but So Cal was already up 5-1 on Concorde, and Baltimore still needed another goal to advance.

In the 81^st minute, it happened. Substitute Ugochuwku Uche came into the game and immediately latched onto a cross from Dario Folino, and the ball skimmed into the goal.

When the final whistle blew, the Vardar sideline erupted. They were off to the final, advancing by the slimmest of margins.

After the game, a beaming Uche was just trying to soak it all in.

“The ball was crossed in by my boy Dario, God bless him,” he said, “and I didn’t know if I was going to get it, but I just got my nose on it, it barely squeaked in, it was a goal, and we’re going to the national championship game.

“It feels amazing. We were the underdog team, and we got here. People doubted us all season long, but we’re here and no matter who we play we’re going to go get that title – hopefully. I’m going to be praying tonight, that’s for sure.”

Real So Cal 5 – 1 Concorde Fire

On the adjacent field, So Cal clobbered the Fire, but amazingly, five goals were not enough to advance.

Victor Chavez, Moises Orozco and Edwin Rivas all scored in the first half. Orozco’s goal featured So Cal building possession from the back, working it through the midfield and finally finding Orozco at the 18, where he knocked a low shot to the far post.

In the second half, the carnage continued, as So Cal’s Jeffrey Koval drew a penalty, which was converted by Orozco, and Chavez scored again to bring the tally to five.

Along the way, however, a breakdown on a Fire set piece allowed a long, searching ball to somehow find the side-netting, and the goal differential became four. With Vardar already up on Baltimore 3-0, the massive So Cal crowd knew their team needed another goal to advance to the final.

They grew increasingly anxious as their team swarmed the Fire box, pelting it repeatedly with shots on goal, but their luck had run out. The final whistle blew, Vardar advanced by goal differential, and So Cal coach Julio Castillo was visibly disappointed, already trying to forget the gut-wrenching result.

“We have one more game, and then we get ready for next year,” he said. “Next year starts Tuesday.

"We can’t complain. We had a great run; I’m very proud of this group. We accomplished a lot. When you pull through and win 5-1, and by one goal you don’t advance, it’s tough. It’s tough. But we gave it everything we had – what more can we ask for? We can only look forward to next year.”

Crossfire Premier 2 – 0 Derby County Wolves

Crossfire Premier used a hard-fought victory over the Wolves to vault over CASL by goal differential and advance to Saturday’s championship match.

In the first half, Crossfire held the edge in possession and had numerous chances on corner kicks, but Wolves defenders Ryan Keener and Nicholas Prys did a fine job on Crossfire’s dynamic attacking duo of Liam Kelly and Kelyn Rowe.

After intermission, though, Crossfire’s relentless attack began wearing on the Wolves, and midfielder Louis Schott broke the game open when he took the ball down with his chest near the 18, made two defenders miss and scored on a low shot in the 61^st minute.

Kelyn Rowe sealed the deal to make it 2-0 in the 89^th minute, and Crossfire, despite losing their first game of the tournament to FC Dallas, was through to the final.

“All the teams in this group are excellent, and it came down to the last day where three of us could have gone through,” coach Bernie James said. “Luckily the goal differential worked out in our favor. I feel badly for the Wolves, because a couple of their best players [Soony Saad and Sean Cunningham, currently on the SuperElite European Showcase] didn’t come, but they’re still a good team. We were fortunate, but we’ll take it and we’re thrilled to be in the final.”

CASL Chelsea FC Academy 3 – 2 FC Dallas

From a technical standpoint, FC Dallas has been the best team in the tournament overall, and it really hasn’t even been close.

Their team passing, communication and rhythm as well as their individual technical skill and creativity have been amazing to watch, but they have consistently lacked one thing: finishing.

That problem haunted them again on Tuesday.

Jose Perez and Victor Ulloa dominated the midfield for the first 45, and Damian Rosales and Michael Ambrose worked fluidly and with apparent ease along the right wing. Ruben Luna and Bradlee Baladez were formidable up top, and the whole team worked beautifully as a unit.

But they could not score, and that was again the difference in this game.

CASL finished its first real chance on goal, when Glenn Scott blasted a shot off a set piece perfectly into the top corner, and put CASL up 1-0.

Dallas again held the edge to open the second half, but only scored after Daniel Garcia drew a penalty and Luna finished to even the score at one.

This evidently galvanized CASL, who somehow found new life. Eric Steber and Jared Girard gained control of possession, and their combinations found Matthew Wescoe alone inside the box, where he finished to put CASL ahead once again.

Continuing the see-sawing affair, Dallas’ Jose Perez evened it at two goals apiece on a low shot from distance in the 81^st minute, and Dallas needed only one more goal to advance to the final – but it was CASL’s Charles Root who scored in extra time instead, and Dallas’ hopes were squelched, as they lost 3-2.

They play Baltimore Bays for fifth place on Saturday.

Final U17/18 standings:

Group One
Crossfire Premier: 6 (win Group One by goal differential)

CASL Chelsea FC Academy: 6

FC Dallas: 4 points

Derby County Wolves: 1

Group Two
Vardar: 7 (win Group Two by goal differential)

Real So Cal: 7

Baltimore Bays Chelsea: 3

Concorde Fire: 0

The U15/16 portion of Academy Finals comes to a close Friday, with the following contests:

Seventh-place match: D.C. United vs. CASL Chelsea FC Academy

Fifth-place match: Internationals vs. Sockers FC

Third-place match: De Anza Force vs. Baltimore Bays Chelsea

National Championship match: Cal Odyssey vs. Chicago Fire.

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