U10B Red Win Davis Clasico with Coach Kevin

At 4:30 a.m. on Saturday morning all around Placer County, the ringing of alarm clocks, followed by the grinding of coffee beans and the sizzle of bacon and eggs was heard loud and clear. “Why?” you ask. Err Hello! It was the start of the new 2013/14  EPL season.

When the final whistle blew, Liverpool went to the top of the league. It was time for families to pack their bags and jump into their soccer transporters as Placer United teams were off to compete in tournaments in Davis and Woodland.

Out in Davis we had four Placer United teams make the finals on a sizzling hot Sunday afternoon. On the girls side the U11G White team went into the final unbeaten in their bracket play. They girls played tough and hard but couldn’t replicate the same energy and soccer they had produced in the earlier games due to the hot sun.  With the game tied 0-0 they were eventually beaten on PKs.

Over on the boys side, the U11B White team also topped their bracket and went into the final on the back of  playing some really good soccer and scoring some quality goals. They started the final really well and got their reward with a good goal. But with five minutes left, the weather eventually took its toll and they conceded two late goals to lose out 2-1.

The U11B Red team continued to show why they are one of the top teams around as they started the tournament exactly where they left off the weekend before, winning their three bracket games  and advancing to the final. In the final the boys started off  really quickly and notched up two goals before half time which was enough to secure back-to-back tournament wins.

In the U10Boys Premier Division, the Placer Boys Red team ran away with the title. After scoring 19 goals in bracket play they produced another goal fest in the final as they ran out 6-0 winners to cap off a great weekend of soccer for Placer United teams in Davis.

Over in Woodland, we had both the U16 Boys teams competing in the Premier Division of the Woodland Cup.  The Red team won the Championship game 6-0, and the White team finished 4th overall. Both teams battled really well and were really exhausted as they entered the tournament on the back of a week of high school tryouts.

Big congrats to all our teams competing in Davis and Woodland. A special mention for Maclean Learned, the U11 Boys Premier Final MVP, and Chase Tanon, the U10 Boys Premier Final MVP. Way to go guys!

As you can see it was another great weekend of soccer. Stay tuned for more!

Cody Sunquist at the Milk Cup during the Liverpool Academy game against Southhampton. Photo courtesy of sports photographer, Damian McKee

Placer United’s Cody Sundquist is off again only this time he’s not traveling twelve hours around the world to play. He’s making the one hour trip to L.A. to participate in the latest U14 National Team 9 day Camp at the Home Depot.  READ MORE.

Cody visited Liverpool FC this past March to train with their Academy teams. He was invited back to England for a full month of training this summer where he had the opportunity to play with their  ‘98 squad at the prestigious Milk Cup Tournament held every year in Northern Ireland.

Way to go Cody! Congratulations from all of us at Placer United!

Placer United U11B Red, Santa Clara Sporting Invitational Champions

The Placer United U11B Red team, coached by Matt Bernard, won the Santa Clara Sporting Invitational this past weekend. The boys played six top ranked teams in route to the championship and were undefeated the entire weekend. They played Turlock FC, Mustang Roma, Almaden FC and Santa Rosa United in the first half of the weekend. The boys finished with a definitive 5-1 win over San Juan in the semi-finals and beat Ajax 1-0 with a goal in the last 90 seconds of regulation to bring home the championship.  CHECK OUT THIS GOAL!

Contributed by Michelle Schreiner

U10G Red at Mustang Stampede

It was a great weekend for Placer United Soccer Club at the Mustang Stampede this past weekend. All of our teams were seeded in the top division of the event and faced solid competition. Five of the teams made it out of bracket play and into the quarter-finals. Placer United showed great club culture and spirit as players and families were able to watch and cheer for the other teams in the club.

Additionally, a few college coaches were also in attendance at our U15 games as they were evaluating the age group.

The U14G Red reached the semi-finals. They opened up with a 3-1 win over the WFC Rangers of Washington. In Game #2 the girls had a 3-1 win over the DeAnza Force. In Game #3 the girls played the Camarillo Eagles from down south and came up short in a 1-0 defeat. Their results were still good enough to push them into the quarter-finals against the NW Nationals of Washington. In the quarters, the girls had a 1-0 lead for most of the game and then the Nationals tied the game with one minute remaining. The game went to two golden goal overtime periods and the game was still deadlocked. The girls came out victorious in the penalty kick shootout to move into the semi-finals. In the semi’s the girls drew 0-0 with San Juan and then lost 4-3 in kicks.

The U15G Red also made it to the quarter-finals after competing well in group play.  The girls opened up with a 1-0 win over the VSC Storm from Cal-South. They had many scoring opportunities to extend their lead and held on for the win. In Game #2, they saw the Irvine Strikers and dropped the game 4-1. In this game, the girls were very unlucky as they rang the crossbar/post three times and had many scoring chances. After the defeat the girls rebounded with a 3-0 win over the DeAnza Force. After a few injuries the girls limped into the quarters and had a good showing versus Mustang but fell short.

The U13G Red had a great showing and won their group with two wins and one draw. In Game #1 the girls played a very powerful DeAnza Force squad and won 2-0. In Game #2 the girls had a 5-0 decision over Washington Premier. In the final group game the girls drew 1-1 with the Santa Rosa Riptide. The girls then faced the Burlingame Rays in the quarter-finals. The game was back and forth with great possession, quality scoring chances and fantastic defensive work by both teams. Burlingame scored early in the second half and withstood numerous chances by our Placer girls.

The U11G Red dominated the opposition in group play with three consecutive wins. They scored five goals and did not concede a goal.  They defeated the State Champion West Valley Magic and the Pleasanton Rage by the score of 2-0.  In Game #3 the girls defeated the Mill Valley Rockers 1-0.  In the quarter-finals, the girls dominated the entire game versus Barcelona with great possession and numerous scoring chances, but could not find the back of the net.  Barcelona scored a late goal against the run of the play to move on to the semi-finals.

The U10G Red also won their bracket with two wins and one loss. The girls opened up the tournament with a 5-1 score line.  In Game #2 they took a 1-0 loss to the Stockton Storm in a back and forth match. The girls rebounded to win the bracket with a 2-1 win over Santa Rosa. In the quarter-finals the girls battled to a 1-1 draw through regulation and sudden death overtime but fell short in penalty kicks.

The U12G Red had a great weekend of soccer and showed a very classy playing style, keeping great possession and creating numerous scoring chances throughout the weekend.  The girls opened up versus Cascade FC from Oregon. This was a back and forth affair with both teams attacking relentlessly. The game ended in a 3-3 draw. The girls played great soccer in Games #2 and #3 versus Loomis and Santa Rosa but came up on the short end.

Congratulations to all of the players, families and the soccer club. What a great weekend!

The Placer United U18G ’97 White went undefeated over the weekend and won the premier bracket of the Sac United Suntan Classic. In game #1, the girls started off fast and furious en route to a 5-0 win over Cap FC. In game #2, the girls defeated the host, Sac United, 2-1. In the semi-final, the girls played the Folsom Arsenal. This game was a physical battle and the team capitalized on two scoring chances, one in the first half and one in the second half. In the final, the team prevailed in a penalty kick shootout after two five minute overtime periods against ARFC.

The U15G ’99 White also had a great run through the tournament making it all the way to the final. The girls notched two consecutive 2-1 victories over Eureka and the host, Sac United. In the semi-final, the girls grinded out a 2-1 victory over the Roseville Impulse. In the final, the team faced a very talented San Rosa United Ice team and came up on the short end.

The U14G ’00 White also went undefeated over the weekend. They had two 0-0 draws with the Monarcas and Fair Oaks. In game #3, they defeated EDYSL 1-0. In their final consolation match the girls drew once again versus the Monarcas 1-1.

The U12G ’02 White played great soccer all weekend. They were involved in two high scoring matches but unfortunately came up a bit short.  They lost 5-2 to host, Sac United, and 4-3 to Santa Rosa Fury. In their final match they beat Fair Oaks 7-0 to end their weekend.

Thank you to everyone for a great weekend of soccer!

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.