Press Releases
| Evening Matches Conclude at 2007 US Youth Soccer National Championships |
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Top 48 Club Teams wrap day one of round robin play Under-19 Boys Dallas Texans Red 88 defend their title Under-17 Girls Eagles prove they have a shot at a second championship Play continues tomorrow beginning at 7:30 a.m. CDT FRISCO, Texas (July 25, 2007) – The evening matches of the 2007 US Youth Soccer National Championships concluded today with preliminary round play in the Under-17 and Under-19 divisions at Pizza Hut Park. More than 10,000 were on hand as the crowds grew tonight as Texas fans enjoyed unusually cool summer evening. Local teams showed up to support their older counterparts and learn from the elite players that are competing for a national title this week. The seven teams from North Texas were greeted to packed sidelines of over 1,500 anxious fans. There were well over 1,000 fans along the sidelines for the Dallas Texans Red 90 vs. RSK Richmond Strikers Fire (VA) match-up in Under-17 Girls. Texans Head Coach Kenneth Medina said the environment was exciting for everyone. “For the hometown crowd to see the girls play in this competition where we have the best coaches and players in the country is tremendous. I hope we put on a good show for the hometown crowd.” Taking center stage was 2007 Gatorade Player of the Year, Melissa Henderson whose assist and goal led the charge for the Texans. Henderson’s goal began ten yards from the Texans’ side of the field where she took on the Strikers defense and won controlling the ball into the box and slotting home the goal. Striking back, Richmond scored two goals and continued to pressure the Texan side. “These teams are coached so well and the players are so good that in a snap a team can come back,” said Medina who cautioned his girls that playing in the national championships would need better play than status quo, the girls would need to bring something special. Tomorrow the Texans will take on the Michigan Hawks at 7:30 p.m. The other Under-17 Girls game featured a rematch from the 2004 national championships with the Michigan Hawks facing the Eagles SC. “We haven’t seen the Michigan Hawks since we were Under-14 and in my opinion they were the best possession team that we’ve played against,” said Vince Thomas, Eagles head coach. “To our girls’ credit, champions find the way to win and we played great defense and had a couple of girls played great tonight in Nicole Sweetman and Emily Cressy.” Cressy scored both goals for the Eagles coming in the 31st and 76th. Kaitlin Paletta, who missed play in the regional event with a broken foot, was back on the field tonight and made an immediate impact against the Hawks. The defending national champions the Under-19 Boys Dallas Texans Red 88 took on the Baltimore Casa Mia Bays tonight. The Texans are going for their third consecutive national championship this week and are looking to be the third team, boys or girls, in history to achieve this feat. The Bays’ aren’t strangers to the US Youth Soccer National Championships though as they also have two national titles under their belts from 2003 and 2004. “We started off very well and the first 10-15 minutes we
played excellently and were able to make it up 2-0. The second
half they pressured us and we got lucky that we could rely on
the earlier goals,” said Dallas Texans Red 88 head coach David
Hudgell. “It is a long week and three of the teams in our
bracket have been here before. It was important to get off to a
good start but a lot came down to chance.” 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. This week two teams are going for their third national championship title and a chance at the storied McGuire Cup (Dallas Texans 88 Red (2005 and 2006) and Baltimore Casa Mia Bays (2003 and 2004)). 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. Play resumes tomorrow morning at 7:30 a.m. Updated game results are available throughout the day at http://Championships.USYouthSoccer.org. US Youth Soccer National Championships Day 1 Evening Session Results – Preliminary Matches | 7:30 p.m. CDT Under-17 Girls Dallas Texans 90 Red (TX-N) 3, RSK Richmond Strikers Elite
(VA) 2 Under-17 Boys Real Colorado National (CO) 1, FC Delco 89 (E-PA) 2 Under-19 Girls 87 CASL Spartan Elite (NC) 0, Carmel United Cyclones (IN) 1 Under-19 Boys Chicago Magic 87/88 (IL) 2, South San Jose/San Juan Ruckus
(CA-N) 1 |
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