CARSON, Calif. – The LA Galaxy’s Special Olympics Unified Team saw their 2015 campaign come to an end on Sunday with a 3-1 defeat to FC Dallas.
Doug Sullivan, Laurence Fairchild and Joey Cummings scored for Dallas while Galaxy captain Carlos Arriaza tallied the lone goal of the evening for Los Angeles on a second-half penalty. LA’s defeat came on the heels of their dramatic 3-2 victory on the road at Toyota Stadium last month.
Although the team didn't get the win on Sunday, the members of the Galaxy Special Olympics Unified team were left overwhelmed by the remarkable experience that started back in June.
“I think the thing that I’ve experienced is that everything has just been so genuine the whole time. Nothing has been forced,” Gabriela Fontanesi told LAGalaxy.com. “All the moments that happened were in the moment and happened because everyone wants to be on the field or in the stands supporting us. Not just because it’s a cause, but because they want to be here supporting us. That’s truly unique.”
One of those moments was at the very end of the Galaxy’s defeat to Dallas. With Dallas celebrating and both teams in line to receive postgame medals, the LA squad rushed over to comfort Galaxy goalkeeper Keven Ramirez, who was clearly despondent with the result.
First team head coach Bruce Arena and club President Chris Klein later joined the team and the coaching staff in offering their support to the goalkeeper. Such moments highlighted the purity of the contest, but for the members of the Galaxy Special Olympics Unified team, they were simply doing what they could to pick up a disappointed teammate.
“We win some, and we lose some, but that’s what makes the sport beautiful,” Arriaza said. “We’re not always going to win so we told him to keep his head up, and that we’ll get them next time.”
With their time with the Galaxy Special Olympics Unified team now complete, the players have memories that will last a lifetime.
“This was a once in a lifetime experience,” said Fontanesi. “I don’t know the next time that I’ll be [playing soccer] on a professional field. It was awesome.”
Added Louis Guan, “It was a lot of fun. It was an exciting experience with this team and [just] life changing.”
Adam Serrano is the LA Galaxy Insider. Read his blog at LAGalaxy.com/Insider and contact him at LAGalaxyInsider@Gmail.com.