Two Sounders lead USA U17’s past Mexico

It may not be an ideal time for them to be away, but at least two young Sounders are making the most of their national-team call-ups. Alfonso Ocampo-Chavez and Ethan Dobbelaere both picked up assists in the United States U17s’ 2-1 come-from-behind victory over Mexico in the Four Nations tournament on Thursday.

Ocampo-Chavez’s assist came in the 69th minute from a corner kick, collecting a poor clearance inside the penalty area, controlling it with his first touch and then quickly passing it ahead to Gio Reyna for an unmarked chance. Reyna easily finished inside the far post.

The winner came in the 88th minute, with Dobbelaere showing some deft skill. Dobbelaere collected a pass from Reyna, then put in an outside-of-the-boot ball to Ricardo Pepi behind the Mexico backline. Pepi only had to beat the keeper.

While Ocampo-Chavez has been one of the U17’s top players during this cycle, Dobbelaere was making his national team debut. Dobbelaere, who’s still just 16, is one of the youngest players to appear in the USL Championship this season and scored his first professional goal on Aug. 30 in the Tacoma Defiance’s 4-1 win over San Antonio.