CHICAGO (December 18, 2007) -- In a light week of Development Academy matches, cross-town rivals Washington Premier and Crossfire Premier met on Friday night in Redmond, Wash., with Crossfire winning at home in both age groups.

The Under-15/16 sides kicked off at 6 p.m., and just five minutes into the game, Sean Snyder already had Crossfire on top. Washington’s Brandon Scott was quick to answer back, however, leveling the score just three minutes later. Synder’s second goal of the match put his team back on top in the 31st minute, and a second-half brace from teammate Charles Piehler put the game out of reach, giving Crossfire a 4-1 win.

The Under-17/18 match between Washington Premier and Crossfire Premier remained scoreless until the 62nd minute. Ellis McLoughin, FIFA Under-17 World Cup veteran, scored the only goal of the game, lifting Crossfire to the 1-0 victory.

In Saturday’s matches, Birmingham United traveled to Fayetteville, Ga. to take on AFC Lightning.

In the U-15/16 match, Alex Reddy broke open the scoring for Birmingham in the 32nd minute. Nine minutes into the second half, Norris Howze doubled Birmingham’s lead, and William Bibb tallied in the 73rd minute for the final score of 3-0.

The U-17/18 game was a back and forth affair, with Cesar Avalos putting Birmingham on top in the 13th minute. His second goal in the 29th minute doubled Birmingham’s lead, but Sean Grisham got AFC back within a point nine minutes later. Christopher Feigenbaum evened the score at two in the 57th minute, but in the 71st, Jeremiah Jones gave Birmingham the lead again, and this time they would hold on for the 3-2 final.

Birmingham United will next travel to Atlanta to face the Concorde Fire on Saturday, December 22, in the only action over the next two weeks. The U-15/16s kick off at Georgia Soccer Park at 1 p.m. ET, and the U-17/18s begin at 3 p.m. ET. A full slate of Academy matches will resume on the weekend of January 5-6, 2008.