Press Releases
| Morning Matches of 2007 US Youth Soccer National Championships |
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Teams begin play for respective national crowns Past champions Under-16 Boys Real So Cal, Under-18 Arsenal FC and Under-18 Girls Slammers FC all win FRISCO, Texas (July 24, 2007) – Games kicked off early this morning for the 2007 US Youth Soccer National Championships at Pizza Hut Park, in Frisco, Texas, a suburb of Dallas. Excitement filled the air as the top four teams from across the country squared off in their first games of the event. The first day of US Youth Soccer National Championships play started off with nerves and a lot of energy. Nearly 900 players will step on to the fields today and see if they have what it takes to be a national champion. So far past champions are again proving that experience pays as the Under-16 Boys Real So Cal, Under-18 Arsenal FC and Under-18 Girls Slammers FC all taking a win and three points from today’s round robin play. The nation’s top youth soccer players were putting everything on the line and the quality of play was second to none as yesterday’s chance to view the national championship trophies, at yesterday’s Player Luncheon, proved to be a great motivator. Each team wants to go home knowing that their team name will be engraved on one of the crown jewels of youth soccer. Arsenal FC, Under-18 Boys, made the most of their match today against Atlanta Fire United as the team seeks to secure their fourth national title in as many years. Arsenal’s Ryan Peterman kick started the attack in the 45th. The game would go back and forth as the physical battle continued to escalate. Atlanta would tie in the 78th thanks to a nice ball from Jonathan Hull from outside the box. Arsenal would counter in the 79th on a goal by Gerson Mayen who took the win and the much coveted three points. Real So Cal Under-16 boys made waves with Ernest Balba scoring in the final minutes of play. The two-time defending champions were evenly matched against FC Delco Hammerheads. They are familiar with each other’s play as the two faced off in the 2006 national championship finals in Des Moines, Iowa. Real So Cal had two penalty kicks that could have given them the lead early in the second half, but both were missed high and wide. “It’s such a great thing to get here and we are so proud to be here,” said Real So Cal coach Albert Bru. The team didn’t think they were going to make it back to nationals after their challenging California South US Youth Soccer State Championships play. Two-time adidas Golden Glove winner Elmer Avelar made several key saves in today’s match. In regards to going for his third adidas Golden Glove at nationals, he said, “It would be exciting. It is kind of a big thing for me.” Avelar is already starting to think about colleges and UC Irvine and San Jose State are both standouts for him for not only their soccer programs, but also their academics. The Under-14 Girls Stars of Massachusetts are making a name for themselves at Pizza Hut Park wining 3-1 over Indiana’s Carmel United SC Academy 93 this morning. In the second minute of play the Stars got it started with Hayley Brock who scored off a header. In the 12th, the Star’s Stephanie McCaffrey slipped through and found the back of the net. Carmel’s Haley Keller countered in the 15th taking advantage of a moment of hesitation from the Stars. It was over by the 21st when Phoebe Tateronis powered the ball to the back of the net. “We started the game very well scoring two in the first minutes of play. We should have had several more in the first 10 minutes. Then we let them have a sloppy goal in the middle. Overall it was a good game and a good start to this week’s play. Now we press on,” said Jason Dewhurst, the head coach of the FC Stars of Massachusetts. “Any win in the first game puts pressure on the others and takes it off us a little bit, but now we have to think about our second game.” The Under-15 Girls So Cal Blues head coach Tad Bobak was proud of his team’s play against Illinois’ ELA Elite today saying, “The opening games are always hard. It is an emotional moment and anxiety that builds at the beginning of the game needs to be channeled in a positive way. We stayed within the game plan and the moments that we clicked together we made things happen.” The first goal was in the third minute of play when So Cal Blues Gabreilla Zarnegar scored off a rebound from a shot on goal from Elizabeth Eddy, then Zarnegar poked in the lose ball. Eddy scored in the 27th off a series of good passing sequences. To finish up the game the Blues’ Gillian Hogan scored in the 63rd after ELA Elite cleared a corner kick to the Blues. Play resumes at 7:30 p.m. tonight with action in the Under-19 Boys and Girls and Under-17 Boys and Girls divisions. Updated game results are available throughout the day at http://Championships.USYouthSoccer.org and www.USYouthSoccer.org. The 2007 US Youth Soccer National Championship Series is the country’s most prestigious national youth soccer tournament, providing over 185,000 players on more than 10,000 teams from US Youth Soccer’s 55 state associations the opportunity to showcase their soccer skills against the best competition in the nation while emphasizing teamwork, discipline and fair play. The US Youth Soccer National Championships cap a yearlong series of competitions for boys and girls teams in multiple age groups as teams earn their way from the top team in their state to the regional championship tournaments. State Cup champions and selected wildcard teams in most age groups are eligible to compete in one of four US Youth Soccer Regional Championships. The champions in the under-14 through under-19 age group from each regional event converge to enjoy the nation’s top competition. The James P. McGuire Cup is the oldest trophy in youth sport dating back to 1935 with the inaugural youth championships. The under-19 boys age group as the National Champion will hoist the McGuire Cup. This is the 72nd anniversary of the storied cup. Annually the US Youth Soccer National Championship Series provides the nation’s top collegiate coaches with the premier stage to identify and scout the most coveted players in the country. In 2006, over 500 coaches attended the US Youth Soccer Regional Championships including the majority of the top 25 men’s and women’s programs based on the final 2006 NSCAA/adidas National Rankings for NCAA Division I schools. US Youth Soccer National Championships Under-14 Girls FC Stars of Massachusetts (MA) 3, CUSC Academy 93 (IN) 1 Under-14 Boys Baltimore Casa Mia Bays (MD) 1, West Coast FC (CA-N) 1 Under-15 Girls So Cal Blues (CA-S) 3, ELA Elite (IL) 0 Under-15 Boys Michigan Wolves 92 Black (MI) 2, Lonestar 92 Red (TX-S) 1 Under-16 Girls Michigan Hawks (MI) 0, McLean Freedom (VA) 3 Under-16 Boys
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