Erika Garcia

Erika Garcia, Placer United alumni and soon to be graduate of Harvard University, just accepted a position with the Programming and Acquisitions Division at ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut.  She will be joining them in June after graduation in May. “I am so excited about the opportunity with ESPN,” said Erika. “I hope that everyone knows that they have been a part of it;  my childhood soccer teams, Placer United, Harvard soccer, my family, and the family I made along the way – I am very grateful for the background and experiences that they’ve given me. I didn’t do this alone!”

Congratulations Erika!

(l-r) Coach Jason Gantt, FC Dallas Coach Oscar Pareja, Coach Paul O’Brien, FC Dallas Midfielder Ryan Hollingshead

While competing at Dallas Cup with the U18 Boys, Coach Jason Gantt and Coach Paul O’Brien attended an MLS FC Dallas’s morning training session. Jason and Paul watched Placer alumni player Ryan Hollingshead train, as well as met and chatted with FC Dallas legend and head coach Oscar Pareja. 

“It was awesome to see Ryan in action on the training field with Dallas,” said Jason. “It seems like only yesterday when he was training and playing with us. He has come such a long way.”

“It’s really very exciting to see one of our own playing at the highest level,” added Paul. “Ryan’s a great example for all our players at Placer United of how hard work and dedication pays off.”

Go Placer!

Coach Paul O’Brien and Canadian International, Kyle Bekker who Paul worked with at 2013 MLS Combine in Florida

Toyota Stadium, home of MLS FC Dallas

U18B 97 Gold
Dallas Cup Opening Ceremony

After an epic battle and win in game three that resulted in one broken leg and numerous amounts of cuts and bruises, the 97 Boys Gold team lined up against a CZ Elite U19 team from Southern California in the quarterfinal of the 2015 Dallas Cup. 

By kick off time, the local news channels were forecasting winds of up to 30 mph and for once it looked like the weather men got it right. With  the teams now lined up for the walk on, the wind really started to increase and there was no doubt it would impact the game.

The whistle blew, the game started, and straight away Placer attacking midfielder Danny Caravez was flattened by a heavy tackle. Five minutes later Danny was flattened again. It now pretty obvious the CZ team were here to compete and it was plain to see why they hadn’t conceded a single goal in their opening games of tournament.

On minute 20 the first real opportunity of the game fell to CZ’s number 9 and Placer United’s  goalkeeper  Robert Quintero produced an outstanding save to deny them an opening goal. With Placer’s midfield now working really hard to win more tackles in the center of the park, the yellow sub started to gain control of the game and created a few chances. Striker Kristian Heptner had two long range efforts pushed wide by the CZ goalkeeper who was becoming more involved in the game.

Minute 30 produced the first controversial moment of the game. Midfielder and Captain KikI Guzman launched a trademark throw into the CZ box. Striker Heptner lost his marker in the box and ran and jumped to attack the ball only to be rugby tackled to the ground, no call.

Minute 35 produced another controversial moment. Again Captain Kiki launched a throw in. The CZ goalkeeper leapt to catch the ball but somehow misjudged it in the wind and the ball seemed to strike him go into the open net. As the submariners peeled away in celebration, the referee ran towards the lineman on the opposite side who said the goalkeeper didn’t touch the ball so the goal was disallowed.

At half time, the game was 0-0 and center back Isaul Bautista was taken to the medical tent with a suspected concussion from a late and heavy hit after clearing a ball just before the whistle sounded.

Ten minutes into the second half, midfielder Danny Caravez had to leave the game as a result of another heavy challenge. With the boys now defending against the wind, the pressure was mounting and the intensity was growing. It was time to stand up and be counted.

On minute 75, the moment we all feared happened. CZ crossed a ball into the box which changed direction in the wind and crashed against the back post. As the Placer backs twisted round to clear the ball, a CZ striker swung his foot, miss hit the ball and it rolled slowly but surely across the line. 1- 0  to CZ with 15 minutes left.

Having come back in the final of big games before, no one was ready to panic just yet. A change in personnel would surely create  a chance. On minute 85, a chance was created but was rolled an inch too wide of the back post. On minute 91, striker Heptner got open and  chested down a cross inside the 18 yard box. He spun quickly and shot. For that few milliseconds, time seemed to stop, as everybody stood and stared intensely waiting to see the net move, but unfortunately the ball again rolled agonizingly wide.

When the whistle finally sounded and the curtain came down, it was a pretty emotional moment for all, as this was the last road trip for the Placer United 97 Boys Gold team.

The boys had put in another tremendous effort  competing against some of the top clubs and teams on the world stage at the 2015 Dr. Pepper Dallas Cup.

Go Placer!

U18B 97 Gold looking a little more relaxed headed into the quarterfinals.

Dallas Cup game three for the boys from Placer United was a game that will live in the memory for a long time. It had everything you could possibly want from a high level competitive youth soccer game.

First, the night time kick off was delayed for over an hour due to major lightning strikes. At one point it looked like the Dallas Cup committee was going to tell the teams to come back the following day. One and a half hours after the original kick off time, the call came down for the tournament committee that it was now safe to proceed.

With the game on and a place in the Dallas Cup quarterfinals on the line, Placer United faced a top U18 USSF Academy team from one of the biggest and best clubs in the nation, the Dallas Texans. There were about 200 or more noisy Dallas supporters in the stadium.

The decision to play the game in the floodlit Richland College stadium was a good one, as the hostile crowd was corralled in the stands and not on the field sidelines. During the warm up the crowd was really getting all over the submariners chanting and shouting hoping to get Placer unfocused.

At 7:45pm the game kicked off and the atmosphere became electric. The boys in yellow seem to thrive in the atmosphere and quickly settled into the game as they pinged the ball around the night time moist field. With only 10 minutes elapsed on the stadium clock, the Texans goalkeeper was called into action and produced a big time save to deny  Placer striker Kristian Heptner the opening goal. Steadily Placer gained more and more control of the game as they took advantage of the open spaces down both flanks. Both Placer full backs, Matt Carnafax and Zac Anderson, were now causing the Texans tons of problems with the timing of their runs in behind the Texans back. The only reason the score was still 0-0 was due to the Dallas goalkeeper who made string of fine saves from forwards Heptner, Loomis and Arnstein.

On the 30th minute, the score and the crowd changed as Thomas Arnstein curled a sweet strike beyond the fully outstretched hand of the Dallas goalkeeper to give Placer a 1-0 lead.

On minute 40 the game changed again. Placer U17 player Hunter Loomis broke free of the Texans back line and ran onto a neatly threaded pass. As the Texan goalkeeper slid out to intercept the ball, the players collided and remained on the ground. The referee rushed over to the spot and immediately summoned for both coaches to enter the field. From a distance it looked like Hunter was in a bad way. A quick decision was made and an ambulance was summoned. Within ten minutes, Hunter was lifted onto a stretcher and loaded into the ambulance but not before the referee issued Hunter a red card for a reckless challenge.

Upon sight of the red card, the Texans crowd erupted into cheering as they sensed an advantage playing against a Placer team with only 10 players. Coaches Gantt and O’Brien quickly reorganized the shape of the team to make sure to finish the first half with a 1-0 lead.

The second half started off with a bang when within two minutes the Texans were awarded a PK and they tied the game 1-1. The boys in yellow needed to be strong as the Texans backed by a frenetic crowd could now smell blood. The next 15 minutes saw some of the best defending by a Placer team ever, as time and again players threw themselves in front of crosses and shots trying to keep their dream alive.

The Texans hit the post. They hit the bar. Nico Figuero cleared off the line. It seemed only a matter of time before Dallas would score. But every time it looked likely, a Placer player stepped in with a huge challenge. With the pressure now mounting and the crowd getting louder some of the Placer players started to tire.  It was going to take something special to keep Placer in the Dallas Cup. On the 80th minute something special arrived.

Lone striker, Kristian Heptner, received a ball surrounded by three Texans but somehow managed to swivel free. As he was getting ready to run towards goal he got tripped up from behind and the referee awarded a free kick. The kick seemed a long way out but Kristian felt confident. The referee blew the whistle, but Kristian took another minute before unleashing an unstoppable shot into the roof of the net. The crowd went silent and the Placer bench went wild. Placer United was one man down but 2-1 up with less than 10 minutes to play.

The remaining 10 minutes seemed like an hour. But when the referee finally blew full time it signaled the start of wild celebrations for a group of boys that refuse to lay down.

What a night! What a victory! Placer United moves on to the Dallas Cup quarterfinals.

Go Placer!

Game two at the Dallas Cup with MLS visitor Ryan Hollingshead of FC Dallas

The competition at Dallas Cup is exactly like the weather, heating up all the time and game two for the Placer 97 Boys promised to be a sizzler both on and off the field. The opposition awaiting the boys on the manicured fields of Richland College was a team from south of the border called CF Monterrey Rayados Waller. This was the second team the boys would play from a different country and it looked like this would be a really tough game. The Mexican team had narrowly lost their first game the day before to a highly talented Dallas Texans USSF Academy team by a score of 2-1.

The midday kick off seemed to suit the Monterrey boys better as straight away they created a couple of quick chances. Luckily for the boys representing the stars and stripes, the Mexican striker left his shooting boots in his back pack. With about 20 minutes gone on the clock, the Yellow Submarine finally surfaced and launched a wave of attacks which required the Monterrey goalkeeper to pull out two back-to-back saves from starting Placer striker Brandon Powers.

On minute 35, the break through arrived. After a neat and tidy passage of play between two Placer U17’s, Zac Anderson and Hunter Loomis saw the ball and threaded into the path of Brandon who shot towards goal. The GK again got a hand to the ball to deny the striker a goal but up stepped Diego Buenrostro to slot the rebound into an open net. The half time whistle sounded and the score read 1-0 to Placer.

The second half started just like the first with the Monterrey team quicker to the ball and it didn’t take long before the game was tied up. A free kick was awarded and launched into the Placer 18 yard box. A Mexican player got open, he rose and headed past the outstretched hands of Placer GK Robert Quintero and that triggered a massive celebration on the opposition bench. But the celebration didn’t last long when 90 seconds later Placer took the lead again.

Another great build up involving left back Zac Anderson led to Zac swinging in a great cross. As the ball was traveling into the six yard box, Diego sprinted and threw himself between two defenders to nod the ball into the bottom corner and score his second goal of the game. This time the Placer bench erupted into celebration as it was a goal of pure quality and sent a message that the submarine would not be sunk.

With the Placer boys back in control of the game, Coach Gantt sent on UC Davis bound Kristian Heptner with simple instructions—go score goals and Kristian did just that. In minute 55 he scored his first and by minute 65 he had completed a brilliant hat trick of goals which left the Mexican team completely stunned.

Jesse Gonzalez added another goal to finish out the game with the score reading Placer United 6, CF Monterrey Rayados Waller 1.

Next up for the boys is the USSF Academy team and local home boys the Dallas Texans.

Go Placer!

A somewhat serious and focused U18 Boys 97 Gold team before their first match at Dallas Cup on Monday.

Dallas, TX — After a spectacular run of number ones in 2014, the call went out at the start of the New Year to put the band back together for a 2015 final farewell road trip. With all band members and roadies in agreement, Dallas Cup 2015 was chosen as the venue to try and add one more title to an already impressive resume. 

On Monday afternoon dressed in their familiar all-yellow kits, the boys took center stage against a big strong-looking U19 college team from England.

From the first whistle and in typical British bulldog fashion, the boys from across the pond came out looking to set the tone as they flew into tackles looking to sink the Yellow Submarine. After some verbal warnings from the center referee regarding some ankle tapers on the submarines rhythm section, the game finally settled down.

On the 25th minute the boys finally gave the watching crowd something to cheer about. A neat combination down the left wing and a cross to an unmarked Max Kearney put Placer up 1-0. Ten minutes later another neat combination, this time on the edge of the box between Danny Caravez and Kristian Heptner, saw Danny volley home a second Placer United goal. With half time quickly approaching the Placer back line got caught out by a long ball to the speedy British number 9 and the Bulldogs scored to end the half  2-1 in favor of Placer United.

Over the course of the second half with the Dallas temperature close to 85 degrees, the Bulldogs started to fade. The Yellow Submarine was now in total control and fully enjoying being back on center stage.

Hunter Loomis in particular was starting to cause problems for the British back line as he continuously out paced their defenders and latched onto to a few neat through balls from the man of the match, Danny Caravez. Hunter struck the post twice before finally forcing an error which led to Placer taking a 3-1 lead and claim the first victory of the final road trip.

Next up for the boys is the Mexican Academy team CF Monterey.

Go Placer!

Congratulations to Placer United Alumni Jake Feener who signed with professional soccer team the Tulsa Roughnecks of the USL. Jake graduated from Seattle University in 2013 were he was named first team All-Conference and the MVP of the WAC Tournament.  Before college Jake attended Jesuit high school where he recieved tons of accolades.  He holds the California State record for shutouts and California record for shutouts in a career.  He was named ESPN Player of the Week. He was a member of the All-Region and All-American high school team. He received the Athletic Directors Award. He still holds the Jesuit record for least goals scored against. He was named the Sacramento High School Player of the Year in 2009.

A big shout out to Jake and look out for him when he lines up against Sac Republic FC.

Go Placer!

Seth Casiple — photo by Portland Oregon photograhper, Craig MItchelldyer

Portalnd, Ore. – The Portland Timbers’ USL side, Portland Timbers 2, have announced their second wave of signings today, adding five players to the team roster: goalkeepers Justin Luthy and Daniel Withrow, defender Matt Rose, midfielders Blair Gavin, Seth Casiple, and Tim Payne, and forwards Fatawu Safiu and Rundell Winchester have all signed with T2 for the side’s inaugural season.

An alumni player with Placer United, Casiple, 22, was acquired by the Portland Timbers in the 2015 MLS SuperDraft after being invited to participate in the 2015 adidas MLS Player Combine. A Rocklin, Calif., native, Casiple played four years for the University of California-Berkeley, scoring six goals and providing 27 assists in 75 matches (74 starts). As co-captain his senior year, he scored one goal and provided seven assists in 19 games played in 2014. He was selected to the NSCAA All-Far West selection second team, as well as the All-Pac-12 first team, while his 27 career assists rank fourth all-time in Cal men’s soccer history. Casiple has also been called up twice to train with the U.S. Under-20 Men’s National Team in 2012 and helped the Austin Aztex earn a 2013 USL PDL championship.

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