Technically, Ilya Alekseev wasn’t the first USL Academy signing to score in Oakland Roots SC history.

That would have been Danny Flores, who found the net when Roots took a 3-2 victory against the LA Galaxy II in the 2021 season.

With his second-half equalizer against the Charleston Battery on Saturday night, however, he became the youngest player to score for Oakland since the club joined the USL Championship in 2021 and became the latest player to epitomize what the club is building in the big picture.

Coming through the club’s USL League Two squad, Project 51O, Alekseev is one of five current USL Academy players in the First Team squad. With some key players absent due to an illness that had affected the squad during the week, both he and Thomas Camier made their USL Championship debuts against the Battery – a trial by fire if there ever was one.

Playing on the right side of midfield, Alekseev’s defensive attributes shone the most. He won 4 of 5 tackles and 5 of 8 ground duels and blocked a pair of shots as Oakland had to resist the Battery’s pressure – the visitors had almost two-thirds of possession at Pioneer Stadium and had a 21-6 advantage in shots.

But Alekseev’s only touch inside the opposing penalty area made the difference for the hosts. Ghosting in at the far post four minutes into the second half, he headed home Memo Diaz’ cross from the left to earn Oakland a valuable point at home.

“You know, he came in as a young professional, getting minutes,” said Oakland Head Coach Noah Delgado. “That’s a credit to the organization. There’s a plan – building up, building youth, building local, and now we’re seeing some very early profits and seeing those players contributing.”

Roots’ ethos has always had a strong local tilt. Soon enough, there could be even more of that on the field as well.

Here are some of the other young players that stood out in the past week of action

- Abdellatif Aboukoura, Loudoun United FC – The 19-year-old made a bright cameo off the bench for Loudoun, scoring the insurance goal in the side’s 3-1 victory against North Carolina FC and combining well otherwise.

- Damian Las, Louisville City FC – One start, one shutout and six saves for the 21-year-old goalkeeper in his USL Championship debut. Impressive start to help LouCity grind out a result on the road in El Paso.

- Ashton Miles, Orange County SC – The 19-year-old center back has made consecutive starts to start the season and was solid in helping OCSC win 2-0 on the road in Pittsburgh, winning 2 of 3 tackles, 3 of 4 ground duels and 4 of 7 aerial duels while making nine clearances.

- Edison Azcona, Las Vegas Lights FC – The Dominican Republic playmaker notched his first assist for the Lights for fellow countryman Riki Alba and completed 28 of 35 passes while winning 14 of 24 ground duels and 3 of 4 tackles.

- Elijah Wynder, Louisville City FC – The 21-year-old LouCity Academy product put in a strong midfield performance in a tough 1-0 win in El Paso, winning 3 of 4 tackles, 8 of 12 overall duels and three interceptions while notching a pair of shots.