Ankeny’s Tate Duax and his Austin FC Academy Under-15 squad made some history on Sunday.
Duax helped Austin to a victory over the Philadelphia Union in the championship game of the 2023 Generation adidas Cup in Bradenton, Fla.
“It feels great to win the whole thing, especially when nobody thought we could do it,” said Duax.
The game went to a shootout tied at 1-1 before Austin prevailed by a 7-6 margin.
“It was amazing,” said Tate’s father Brian, who made the trip down to Florida over the weekend to watch Austin’s final two games. “And there were a couple of watch parties at home, so everybody was behind the Iowa boy.”
The annual tournament offered MLS and international sides the chance to match up against one another, with talented prospects from around the world battling it out over the past nine days. Austin knocked out some of the pre-tournament favorites en route to the crown, including wins over the New York Red Bulls and Belgian side KRC Genk.
“Austin has only been in existence for three years, and they have never won it,” said Brian Duax, who coaches the Ankeny Centennial boys’ soccer team. “But now they have.”
Austin midfielder Viggo Ortiz earned MVP honors. But it was goalkeeper Nicolas Aristizabal who came up huge in the shootout, stopping the seventh Union penalty of the day to secure the win.
Austin featured a stout backline that conceded just one goal in its first six games. Duax typically played the right or left wing position.
“He played really well,” his father said. “The team battled like crazy for the entire nine days. It was a battle of attrition.”
Duax moved to Austin last August to join the feeder program after he performed well in a tryout.
“For me it took a little while to realize that the competition is a lot better than what I was used to, but I eventually figured it out,” he said.
Brian Duax said his son is living out his dream in Austin.
“He’s loving it,” Brian said. “He’s enjoying the challenge and everything about it soccer-wise, and he’s adjusting to the school and being without mom and dad.”