Thank you to all the players who attended this year’s tryouts.

Congratulations to Placer U17 and U16 as both teams advance to the Nor-Cal finals for the second year in a row on May 8th.

The U17 Boys beat out a strong Walnut Creek team in the quarter final game 2-1, but suffered a huge blow as goalkeeper Luca Liccardi picked up an injury which ruled him out of the semi final game against a highly fancied Morelia team that put 4 past a good San Jaun team.

The boys were already missing some key players due to spring break and injuries, but with the help of some U16 players, Benedict twins, Grant and Kyle, as well as, Sam O’Brien, and with field player Noe Romero standing between the sticks, Placer beat Morelia 1-0 and advanced to their second straight Nor-Cal final which will be played May 8th.

Over the two days, Placer had strong performances from all players, especially Eddy Arreola, Ben Steiner, Brian Ramanis, Paul Villa, and Connor Puhala, to name a few.

The U16 Boys won their quarter final by the score of 5-1 against Tri Valley United who had a player red carded early in the game. The boys did a good job of being patient with the ball and taking their chances at the right time, especially as Tri Valley was coached by the former US Mens National Team, and MLS coach Lothar Osiander. Goals from Gio, Danny, Bert and Swifty sealed the win, and moved them into the semi’s which they won 3-1 against the Aztecs who beat a surprised Marin the day before with a 3-1 victory.

The game was played in heavy rain and gale force winds which affected the short passing game of the Aztecs who couldn’t deal with the high pressure game of the Placer team in these conditions. Coach Jason Gantt praised the overall team performance against two strong teams and takes the boys into the Nor-Cal finals for the second straight year.

Again congratulations to both teams.

Congratulations to Kevin Unsworth and Todd DeCarlo for completing their US Soccer Federation National “C” License this past winter. Both coaches are now well on their way to pressing through the National licenses. Kevin spent a week in Southern California while Todd traveled to Colorado to complete their courses.

These accomplishments demonstrates Placer United’s commitment to providing top level coaches on each of our teams. Coach education is a crucial part of becoming a stronger coach and also enhances personal leadership skills.

Congratulations Kevin and Todd!

Las Vegas Showcase concluded this past weekend and what a weekend it was for the Placer United Girls Gold U15-17 teams. There were over 400 college coaches in attendance at the event to scout the 92-95 age groups. The event also brought hundreds of the best teams in the country together for competition.

Many of the top college programs (in all divisions) were in attendance for the Placer United games. In particular, Anson Dorrance from North Carolina and Jerry Smith from Santa Clara were spotted checking out the action during the Placer games.

The Placer United Soccer Club prides itself on the development of our players and teams and putting them in the best soccer environment to be seen by collegiate coaches.

Placer United U14 Gold 96 team advances in the Premier Group of NorCal State Cup and the U15-U18 teams end their season with strong outings at the Las Vegas College Showcase and Diablo Cup Tournaments.

All of the older girls teams were in action this past weekend as the 2009-2010 season came to a close. Here are the results:

U14 Gold 96 – Defeats Rocklin Strikers 1-0 in penalty kicks to advance to the Quarter-finals of Norcal State Cup Premier Group. They will face Livermore on March 27th in Manteca.

U15 Gold 95 – Semi-finalist in points at Las Vegas College Showcase. Defeated Blast (Ohio) 8-2, Pride Predators (CO) 3-0, AUFC Fusion (NM) 2-0 and lost to the points champion, THUSC (OR) 0-2.

U15 Black 95 – Finalist at Diablo Cup. They drew with the ACC Mavericks 1-1, beat Diablo FC Blue 3-2 and Juventus Firebrands 1-0. In the final, they lost to Diablo FC 94, 0-1 in golden goal overtime.

U16 Gold 94 – Champion in points at Las Vegas College Showcase. They won all 4 games: Internationals (OH) 2-1, East Meadow Express (NY) 1-0, Baltimore Bays (MD) 1-0 and Wall Wombats (NJ) 2-1.

U16 Black 94 – The Black 94 lost 0-2 in their games against very tough competition at Diablo Cup: Ajax, Cal Cougars and Delta.

U17 Gold 93 – Semi-finalist in points at Las Vegas College Showcase. They defeated Orange SC (CA-S) 1-0, Bretwood (TN) 2-1, Mockingbird (KY) 1-0 and fell to Clearwater Chargers 0-1.

Congratulations to all Placer United Older Girls Teams on a fantastic season!

Placer United Girls Black 95 took to the field March 13-14th at the 11th Annual Diablo Cup in Concord. They faced very challenging teams to end their season in the finals.

Placer tied 1-1 in their first game against ACC Mavericks 94-95. Game two against Diablo FC 94 Blue ended in a 3-2 win. Placer faced the Juventus Firebrands in the semi-finals. Regulation play ended in a 0-0 tie but Placer prevailed and won the game by out shooting Juventus by kicks from the penalty mark.

Placer met the tournament hosts, Diablo FC 94, in the final game. The physically challenging contest ended regulation play with a 0-0 tie and then moved into the first 10 minute golden goal over-time period. Diablo succeeded in placing a goal, winning the game for the championship.

Placer United Girls Black 95 has much to be proud of by ending this season so strongly, playing against these highly ranked girls teams.

Placer United Soccer Club will host a boys college day on February 28th from 1-3pm at Del Oro High School Stadium. College coaches, Mike Linenberger Sacramento State, Donnie Ribaudo Chico State, and Ben Ziemer, Sonoma State will run the training session. This training session is open to all male sophomore, junior and senior players from inside or outside of the Placer United Soccer Club.  Mens_College_Training_Flyer