Ukrainian Nationals suffer brutal defeat in USASA Region I U-23 final

The Philadelphia Ukrainian Nationals were on the wrong side of a blowout Sunday afternoon as LISFL United took the Gus Xikis Cup Final by a scoreline of 9-5, beating the Ukies on their home turf.

The Gus Xikis Cup is the main under-23 tournament for USASA Region I, which includes clubs from New York, eastern Pennsylvania, and Maryland. Xikis was the former president of the Long Island Soccer Football League (LISFL), and the cup is named in his honor. The tournament involved eight teams from the region, including two teams participating from the Ukrainian Nationals club named Dynamo and Shakhtar. The Dynamo team, representing most of the club’s typical NPSL roster, made it out of the group stage on Saturday while the Shakhtar team was eliminated. After a 1-1 draw vs. West Chester United, the Dynamo team went on to beat Jersey Shore BOCA 6-0 and Real New York FC 11-0 to advance out of the group in first place.

The semifinals wer played on Sunday morning at 9 a.m., when the Ukies breezed pass Philadelphia SC Coppa by a scoreline of 3-1. Their opposition, LISFL United, beat a tough opponent in back-to-back champions (2023-2024) West Chester United SC 2-1.

The final began at 1 p.m., with the teams wasting no time to feel the game out and attacking the opposition instantly. The Ukies scored on a free kick that left the opposition wrong-footed in the sixth minute of the match. Unfortunately, the lead wouldn’t last for long as LISFL United equalized in the tenth minute, scoring again to take the lead only six minutes after.

LISFL continued to attack down the right flank, keeping the Ukies defense under sustained pressure with no time to build out. The third goal for LISFL was found in the 27th minute. The match remained at a score of 3-1 going into halftime.

Straight out of halftime, LISFL continued to apply pressure, cashing in a free kick by playing a short pass to the edge of the box and powering a finish to the bottom corner. Despite the odds looking slim, Ukies continued to attack with intent as their No. 10 scored an excellently taken goal in the 52nd minute. From there, the match seemed to lose all structure and flow. LISFL responded with back to back goals in the next ten minutes, including a curling strike that ended up getting stuck in the top right corner of the net. LISFL then began to showboat, playing a backheel pass in front of the Ukies goal for an easy tap in goal, making it 7-2.

Again, the Ukies refused to go down without a fight, scoring to make it 7-3 in the 72nd minute. LISFL responded in the 78th, regaining a 5 goal lead to make it 8-3. Ukies had an extremely faint glimmer of hope as they were awarded a penalty in the 81st minute. However, their luck was truly out on the day as it was dragged wide of target. Two consolation goals were added in the 87th and 90th minute, bringing the scoreline back to a somewhat respectable 8-5. LISFL claimed one final insurance goal in the last second of the game, winning it 9-5. LISFL returned to New York with the trophy named after their former president.