Former Placer United player Luis Martinez was just named Chico Athlete of Week scoring some goals!
Former Placer United player Ryan Hollingshead playing at UCLA is named as #39 player to watch in college soccer by Top Drawer Soocer’s National Top 100 College Mens Soccer Players to Watch.
http://www.chicowildcats.com/awards.aspx?aow=123
http://www.topdrawersoccer.com/college-soccer/college-national-top-100/men#results
Auburn Journal interviews Austin Dunn:
Lindsey Matlock of the Gold 93 has accepted a scholarship to attend Houston Baptist University. “I’m so happy to be getting the opportunity to play for Houston Baptist. It is a small university which is perfect for me. Texas isn’t too far, so my parents will still be able to come to my games. Attending and playing soccer for Houston Baptist will be a great experience for me. I really enjoyed the campus and got the chance to attend classes with the girls on the team. The classes are small and interactive which I enjoy. I am sure this will be a perfect fit for me. I am very excited to have this chance and am looking forward to completing my senior year and preparing for this great opportunity!”
Four Placer United Girls Teams were in action this past weekend as all of the teams prepare for their league seasons.
The U9 Girls Gold 02 played at the Diablo FC event. They lost 0-3 to Union City and then rebounded with a 8-0 victory over the San Ramon Azzuri and a 3-2 win over Mustang.
The U10 Girls Black 01 also played at the Diablo FC event. They had a 0-1 defeat to host Diablo FC, a 3-2 win over Mustang Revolution and a 1-3 loss to Newark.
The U16 Girls Black 95 travelled up to Oregon for the Mt. Hood Challenge. In pool play, they defeated BIFC 94 Forza 4-0 and beat Pacific FC 95 Wind 3-1. In the semi-finals, the girls defeated WAFC Vipers 3-2 in penalty kicks. In the final, the girls defeated Kootenay from British Columbia, 2-0 and were crowned Champions!
The U17 Girls Black 94 went down south for the Orange Cup hosted by the Orange SC. The team had a rocky start, losing to OCP No Fear, 1-2. The girls then regrouped for a 3-1 win over the Celtic Harps which put them in the semi-finals. In that game, Placer defeated NHB 2-0. In the final, the girls came out strong with three first half goals and went on to win 3-0 over Pateadores. Champions!
Congrats to all of the teams on a very successful weekend!
The U16 Girls Black Team has returned from the weekend in Portland, Oregon, bringing along a First Place award in the mixed U15-U16 Silver Division of the Nike Mt. Hood Challenge. The three day tournament allowed the team to go against teams from Washington, Oregon and in the finals, defeating a visiting team from British Columbia, Canada.
Friday, Placer 95G Black won their first game against BIFC 94 Forza 0-4. The team took their second game of the day against Pacific FC 95 Wind, 3-1. Saturday’s semi final game brought the team against WAFC Vipers. The hard fought game ended regulation time in a 2-2 tie. Keeper Molly McConnell was focused and determined and kept the team alive through the tiebreaking PK’s and Placer players got the job done with their kicks, taking the team into the finals.
Sunday’s match was against the Kootenay Showcase G95 out of British Columbia. This team had no goals scored against them going into this final game. Placer 95 Black came out ready and eager and controlled the game winning 2-0. It was an awesome weekend of teamwork!
Much thanks to Coach Todd DeCarlo and to the parents who supported the team through this terrific weekend full of Placer Pride!
The U9 Gold Boys team competed in their first big tournament at the Santa Clara Sporting on August 6-8th. They did very well and reached the quarter-finals and had a lot of fun.
Good job!
The U13 Girls Gold team traveled to Danville over August 7-8th to play in the prestigious Mustang Stampede Tournament. Playing in the Gold Division the girls registered a record of 4 wins and 1 one tie earning the right to play in the Final.
It was another great experience for the team and the families of all the girls. The girls finished the tournament scoring 13 goals and allowing only 7 goals against over the course of the 5 games. The semi-final match was against a tough SCA team which saw the girls come back after being down a goal not once, but twice during the game.
In the final, the girls drew a tough Diablo FC team and once again the girls had to come back after being a goal down. This team continues to impress displaying not only their quality of soccer, but a beautiful team spirit and awesome team unity. What a resilient showing over the weekend.
Fantastic job girls your truly deserving of this accomplishment!
The Placer United U10-U15 Gold Girls competed at the Mustang Stampede this past weekend. The field was littered with some of the top teams on the West Coast!
U10 – 0-4 vs. Mustang / 1-2 vs. Livermore / 1-1 vs. Manteca / 0-2 vs Eagles – Quarter-finalist (The Camarillo Eagles are one of the top teams in Southern California)
U11 – 2-2 vs. Santa Rosa / 0-1 vs. El Dorado / 1-0 vs Diablo FC
U12 – 0-1 to DeAnza / 0-0 vs. Legends / 1-0 vs. Mustang Velocity / 1-3 vs LAFC – Quarter-finalist (LAFC is one of the top rated teams in Southern California)
U13 – 2-1 vs. Bay Oaks / 2-0 vs San Diego Surf / 3-3 w/Diablo FC Semi-finals – 4-2 over SCA Final – 2-1 over Diablo FC Champions
U14 – 1-1 vs. Palm Magic Jacks / 1-0 over MVLA / 0-1 vs Livermore / 0-1 in golden goal overtime to Bay Oaks Botafogo – Quarter-finalist
U15 – 2-1 over Colombia Timbers / 0-4 to Santa Rosa / 0-0 w. Oregon Rush (missed the quarter-finals on goal differential)
Congrats to the girls on a fantastic weekend!
I have been a part of the Cal North State Team for six years now, and every year I have gone to tournaments with the team and attended Regional Camp every July with the team. At the end of the week long camp every year, I listened to the other girls names being called that had been selected to the Regional Pool of about 30 players
It was so hard being told that I wasn’t good enough, every single year but I always went home with my head high and with an evaluation telling me what needed work. Last year when I got back from camp I was very upset, I had been so convinced that that was going to be my year. But I kept playing, and working on the stuff that the staff coaches told me needed improvement.
When I committed to Clemson in December, ODP went to the back of my mind and I wasn’t worried about it; but when I got the invitation to Regional Camp for the last year, this past July I had to make a decision. I realized that this was my last year and I had something to prove, I couldn’t give up now. At the end of camp, my name was finally called as one of the 30 or so players who were part of the Region IV ODP Pool and all the hard work had paid off.
I attended holdover camp with the Regional Pool in Ontario and had a blast. Although it was still somewhat of a tryout and still quite a bit of soccer in a span of a week, we had already spent a week together in Moscow so we were all very comfortable with each other. They won’t let us know if we will be traveling with the team until a week or so before the event, but overall it was a wonderful experience and I finally met my goal, while making some amazing friends along the way.
The Best of the Best
The Placer United U16 Girls Gold team demonstrated tremendous character and teamwork during their recent appearance at San Diego Surf Cup, arguably one of soccer’s most prestigious tournaments. With acceptance into the tournament reserved for only the very top teams, the U16 Girls were thrilled to be playing against the best of the best.
After a challenging start in the US Club Regionals in Turlock and the College Showcase in Pleasanton, the girls ended their Pleasanton appearance with a solid 0-0 draw against the Legends, a top Southern California team who dominated bracket play and were the eventual winners of the tournament. Building on that impressive performance, the team set a goal of beating a top ten Southern California team at their next challenge, the Surf Cup. Preparation for Surf included team bonding and fitness, along with positional and tactical training that required the girls to step up their game.
Arriving in San Diego, the team was set to face three very strong teams in bracket play: Albion, ranked #6 in SoCal, Arsenal, ranked #1 in SoCal and FC United Select, the current Illinois State Cup Champion. The team wasted no time in announcing their intent by opening up against Albion with a solid goal by Paige Crouch who received a through ball from Anna Goddi for the first tally of the game. A free kick from 30 yards out was converted by Devon Hamersley and put the team up 2-0 at the half. In the second half, Mary Mae Caldwell and Paige Crouch combined for the third score of the game, while Kaleigh Landberg fought off two defenders to seal the deal with the fourth and final goal in a 4-0 victory.
Looking to play a more defensive game against the very strong Arsenal team, the U16 Girls changed their formation to allow minimal space and to force Arsenal to play in front of them. The entire team rose to the occasion and did a tremendous job defending. Goalkeeper Madalyn Shiffel was stellar in the box, making a tremendous save right before the half and helping the team to preserve a 0-0 draw.
Going into the third and final game of bracket play, the U16 Girls found themselves at the top of the bracket with a win and a tie. No matter what the outcome, the girls would be moving on to the quarter finals, but Coach Gene challenged the girls to control their own destiny by going out and beating FC United Select instead of relying on another team to take care of business. The team responded in a big way by scoring three goals and securing their third shutout in a row. Paige Crouch tallied twice on assists from Mackenzie Moreno and Jena Keffer and Kaitlyn Kassis combined with Kaleigh Landberg for the final goal and a 3-0 win.
Finishing at the top of their bracket with 23 points, the U16 Girls faced Real So Cal in the quarter final game. Starting off a little shaky, the girls found themselves back on their heels for the first few minutes and were fortunate not to concede a goal. After settling down, the match was evenly played through the first half. In the second half, Anna Goddi and Paige Crouch combined for two perfectly executed goals to seal the 2-0 victory and send the team through to the semi-final game. The team had now gone 5 games and 322 minutes without allowing a goal against some top quality competition.
The semi-final match was scheduled for Monday morning against the #3 ranked Slammers from So Cal. The game started off sloppy and a defensive miscue allowed the Slammers to finish a tap into the goal from three yards out. Regrouping, the girls settled down and were back in the game, winning balls and connecting passes. Both teams had their chances, but in the end, the 1-0 score would prevail.
The U16 Girls are very excited about their top showing at Surf Cup and also at the progress they have made so quickly as a team, including how well the five new players have incorporated into the fold. The new players have done a fantastic job in blending with the returning players and making their mark in their new roles. Congratulations to the U16 Girls on a job well done!
Goals For = 9
Goals Against = 1
Goals against Avg. = 0.20
Shutouts = 4