It was yet another very busy weekend of soccer for Placer United teams up and down California as the U16G Red, U18G Red and the U17B Red all travelled down to San Diego for the prestigious Surf College Showcase. With close to 400 college coaches in attendance at the Del Mar polo grounds recruiting for their schools, the pace of the games was fast and furious.

The U17B Red came out of the starting gate quickly with two consecutive wins in group play on the opening day against LIJSL of New York 1-0, and San Diego Surf Academy 4-0. Both teams had trouble dealing with Placer’s quick passing and 1v1 attacking play of Alex Walsh (scored 3 goals in both games) and Davis Showcase MVP, Diego Buenrostro. The 3rd bracket game against undefeated FC Dallas attracted a large crowd to the sidelines and the boys didn’t disappoint as they outperformed a very good Dallas side to win 2-1. Corban Anderson hit the first from 25 yds out and Nico Figuero volleyed in the 2nd just before halftime to keep the boys undefeated run going.  The quarter-final game didn’t go has planned as the boys couldn’t get their game going against a organized counter-attacking team and they were defeated 1-0 by CV San Jose Gunners.

The U16G Red played really good soccer but just couldn’t seem to put the finishing touches on the final pass, especially in game three. In game one the girls outshot Surf Hawaii by a large margin but could not overcome a first half goal against them.  In game two, the girls came out on fire and posted a 5-0 win over Pac NW of Washington.  In game three, the girls went into halftime 1-1, but really should have been ahead by 1 or 2 goals versus Gilbert Arsenal of Arizona who reached the final on Monday. The girls peppered the Gilbert goal with shots trying to get the go ahead goal so they could advance out of the bracket, but got sucker-punched as the opposition scored on a counter-attack in the final minutes and won the game 2-1. The girls received tons of praise from the sidelines for the quality of their attacking play.

U18G Red Take 2nd Place at San Diego Surf College Showcase

The U18G Red had the best showing of the weekend of all the Sacramento teams at Surf as they reached the finals. The girls notched up three consecutive wins in group play.  2-0 over the Honolulu Bulls, 3-0 over Omega of Kansas and a 1-0 win over ECNL team, Heat FC of Nevada.  In the semi-finals, the girls received some international soccer experience as they played a team from Germany. The ABC All-Stars of Germany had recorded some high scores in their early games and looked full of confidence in the early minutes. As the game wore on, the Placer United girls showed their true colors as they got their pass and move game going, as well as 1-2 strong tackles letting the German girls know they were there to play. In a very tense last few minutes the girls held on to their 1-0 score and advanced to the final. With the girls nursing some tired and bruised bodies from the early game they couldn’t raise to the same level and lost 2-0 in another physical battle to Crossfire of Oregon.

At the Pleasanton Rage Juniors Showcase, the U11G Red brought home the Premier Championship after posting two wins and one draw in group play.  In game one, the girls defeated Bay Oaks 5-0.  In game two they defeated CV Mercury 6-0.  In game three the girls tied Milpitas 2-2 to earn a berth in the final.  In the final the girls defeated the mighty Santa Rosa Thunder 3-1.  This is the second consecutive championship for the girls at this event.

The U9G White took home the 3rd place trophy with two wins and one loss in group play.  In the Gold consolation game, the girls recorded a 2-0 win over the Santa Rosa Avalanche.  The U10G Red took 3rd place in the Premier division after posting a 1-1-1 record in group play.  In the consolation match they defeated Walnut Creek 1-0.  The U11G White had two wins and one loss in the Gold group play to reach the consolation game. In this match the girls were upended by the Santa Rosa Lightning 0-2.  The U12G Red had a very difficult group finishing with two draws and one narrow defeat.

Also competing in the event was the U9G Red, the U10G White, U12G White, U13G White and the U14G White.

Wow! What a weekend of soccer! I’m exhausted from just writing the update. Stay tuned over the next few weeks for more exciting Placer United updates as the Summer Soccer weekends move along.

—Paul O’Brien, Director Of Boys Coaching

Nicole Spring (center) with teammates from U18 Maccabi USA Jewish National Team

Nicole Spring, a defender for the ‘98 Red team, spent the month of July representing the United States at the 19th Annual Maccabiah Games.  Earlier this year Nicole tried out and made the U18 Maccabi USA Jewish National Team. In July, that team traveled to Israel to train for and then compete in the Maccabiah Games, sometimes referred to as the Jewish Olympics. The Maccabi girls soccer team was made up of Jewish soccer players born between 1995 and 1998 from across the country. Nicole was the starting right back for the Maccabi squad. “Our defensive unit was incredibly strong,” Nicole said. “We really communicated well and you would never know that we just started training ten days before the Games.” The results showed. The Maccabi squad played eight games (one exhibition game, six pool play games, and one medal game) and did not let up a single goal in any game.  Winning four of their eight games by a 1-0 margin, the strong defense was paramount to success.

Nicole Spring Shows Her Gold Medal

Nicole’s experience culminated on July 28tyh when they took on home team Israel in the gold medal game.  Team USA scored early on a penalty kick and then Nicole and her teammates continued their shutout streak to hold on for the victory.

“I got to play with new teammates and a new coach and I truly appreciated the opportunity to wear the “USA” jersey. To have the chance to play against squads from Brazil, Israel, Canada, South Africa and other countries was amazing. Meeting student athletes from other countries who love soccer as much as I do was really fun.  I made some great new friends.  The highlights of the experience were the opening ceremonies and winning the gold medal.  The opening ceremonies were surreal.  I paraded into Jerusalem’s Teddy Stadium with my teammates and more than 1,000 other American Maccabi athletes in front of over 30,000 fans and supporters.  I never experienced anything like that before and I do not know if I ever will again.  Winning the gold made me so happy.  I worked very hard to make the team, get a starting position, and help anchor our strong defense.  I felt like winning the gold made it all worth it.  Now, I cannot wait to take this experience and apply it on the field with my Placer United team!” —Nicole

Congratulations Nicole on this major accomplishment! We look forward to having you back in your Placer United uniform.

We are thrilled to announce that Nicole Spring, a defender for our Placer United 98 Red girls squad, is one of twenty players selected to represent the USA in girls soccer at the 19th Maccabiah Games in Israel in late July.

The Maccabiah Games is the third largest sporting event in the world (after the Olympics and Asian Games).  Over 7,000 athletes will be competing in the Games.  The Maccabiah Games originated in 1932.  The Games have been held in Israel every four years since 1957.  Every Israeli citizen (regardless of religion) and every Jewish person who is not an Israeli citizen is eligible to compete in the Games.  Many great American athletes have competed in the Maccabiah Games in the past including Mark Spitz (swimming), Kelly Strug (gymnastics), Jeff Agoos (soccer) and Larry Brown (basketball).

Nicole traveled to Philadelphia this winter to try out for the U18 USA Jewish National Soccer Team and was one of the youngest members selected.  Nicole will be representing Team USA against Australia, Brazil, Canada, Israel, South Africa and Sweden as her Team USA club attempts to bring back a gold medal in the Junior Girls Futbol/Soccer competition.  Nicole leaves for Israel on July 6.  She will spend 10 days in Israel training with the team and traveling the country prior to the commencement of the Games.  Competition will begin on July 18 and the gold medal game is scheduled in Netanya, Israel on July 28.  We are proud of Nicole for making the team and wish her the best of luck as she represents our club and our country in this international competition.

More information is available here:
http://maccabiusa.com/seclect-a-sport/soccer/124-usa-soccer-team.html

Four Placer United Female Players Selected as High School League and Positional MVP’s and Sixteen Players named to High School First Team All League

The 2013 spring girls soccer First Team All League selections were announced this week and Placer United had many of its female players receive the honor. In addition to the selections, a few of our players received Player-of-the-Year and Positional MVP Awards for their conference:

• Sierra Foothill League MVP – Lauren Stafford – Roseville
• All-Capital League MVP – Lizzie Hutchison – Rio Americano
• All-Capital League Defensive MVP  – Emily Hansen – Rio Americano
• All San Joaquin Athletic Association Midfield MVP – Jessica Raybe – Lodi

Below is a list of players who were selected as First Team All League in their respective conferences:

Sierra Foothill League

• Roseville – Marissa Vaughan
• Rocklin – Lindsay Erl
• Granite Bay – Julia Beck, Makenzie Brito
• Del Oro – Marisa Grattan, Jessica Hinsken
• Woodcreek – Emily Kitchen

Pioneer Valley League

•  Lincoln – Abbie Faingold
• Placer – Samantha Slade

Delta River League

• St. Francis – Jena Keffer, Anna Gregg

Capital Valley League

• Oakmont – Katie Carte, Allison Wieser

Capital Athletic League

• Whitney – Tara Armstrong, Mallory Erl, Molly McConnell

Congratulations to all our players who participated in your high school soccer seasons and to all of you who received awards!