Youth: Cleveland rallies to defeat RSL girls in Super-Y Final

TAMPA – Soccer coaches often say the most important time in any game is the five minutes following a goal.

That proved to be the case in the girls under-17 final of the United Soccer League’s Super-Y North American Finals as the Cleveland Internationals got goals from Kate Allen and Megan Gallagher to rally from a goal down to defeat RSL Florida 2-1 on Tuesday morning.

After Cleveland had the better of the first half, RSL came out sharply to start the second. Zoe Lombard had a cross that shot through the 6-yard area, but Connor Zwetsch wasn’t able to get a decisive touch as the ball went through for a goal kick. Zwetsch also had a pair of chances, one that forced a save from the Internationals goalkeeper and another that she sent wide after stealing possession from a defender.

Zwetsch did finally break the deadlock in the 65th minute, picking the ball up in midfield before beating three defenders on a run into the left side of the penalty area and flicking the ball past the advancing goalkeeper with the outside of her right foot.

“They left a gap open, so I just took the gap and took on the two people in front of me,” Zwetsch said. “I had a good angle, so I just found my around them and tapped it in with the outside of my foot.”

But then, as the RSL players were expecting, Cleveland upped its game. As RSL struggled to find a way out fron its own half, the Internationals we able to build a five-minute spell of pressure. That pressure culminated in a turning shot from 25 yards by Allen that flew into the top left corner of the net.

“I was going to shoot with my left foot,” Allen said. “But then I turned and I had an open shot, so just thought I’d hit it, I was looking far post and luckily it went in.”

As RSL’s opener had spurred on Cleveland, the equalizer led to RSL increasing its intensity, and Niki Carter had a shot well saved as she and her teammates pushed to retake the lead.

RSL’s Jessica Giblin then came inches away from restoring the advantage as she fired a free kick from 30 yards out that came back off the underside of the crossbar and away to safety.

“I thought it looked good,” Giblin said. “It was up in the corner, and I could only hope for the best.”

That near-miss took on even greater meaning shortly after, as Gallagher rose to head home a corner from the left that clipped the underside of the crossbar before dropping into the goal. RSL coach Jim Cote said after the game that he told his team that sometimes, it just wasn’t going to be, and the differences between Giblin’s near-miss and Gallagher’s goal only amplified that sentiment.

“It’s a game of inches,” Cote said. “I’m proud of the girls, I thought Amy Werdine was special all weekend, and obviously Connor showed her worth, and Jordan Johnson, every girl contributed, we got big boosts from kids that normally don’t give us that, (Jessica Jagielski) was fantastic this weekend, and again, they were all fantastic. Hats off to the Internationals, they were great, we’re a little disappointed, but proud as well.”

Allen said after the Internationals had been eliminated in group play a season ago, to return and earn the title was a very special feeling.

“Considering we didn’t do so well last year, to come back left us hungry to win this one,” Allen said. “It’s huge for us, considering what we’ve gone through this past season. We’ve grown a lot as a team, and to come back from last year and win this was really big for us. It feels good.”

Youth: RSL boys cruise into Super-Y Final

TAMPA – A pair of first half goals by Kody Thomas, and a fourth straight shutout, moved RSL Florida’s boys under-15 team into the final of the United Soccer League’s Super-Y North American Finals after a 3-0 victory against the Westchester Flames on Monday afternoon.

In a far better performance than in its final group game, RSL controlled the flow of the game from the outset, and took the lead in the 25th minute when Nathan Dalton picked up the ball outside the penalty area after a clearance, and angled a cross from the left to the far post where Thomas was on hand to head home.

Thomas then doubled RSL’s advantage in the 33rd minute, working a quick give and go with Travis Jehs before his shot from the left side of the penalty area deflected off a defender into the net.

RSL put the game out of reach 11 minutes into the second half when Rheese Wiltshire’s corner from the left was flicked in at the near post by Jean Cenoble.

“First half we came out a lot better than yesterday,” RSL coach Steve Wolf said. “I think we knew something was on the line and we had a sense of urgency. A little more disciplined in our shape, and we did the business.”

While the Flames did manufacture some chances, a looping shot that went off the top of the crossbar the closest they came to pulling a goal back, RSL’s defense remained solid. Wolf said he was pleased with the performances of center backs Winston Lightbody and Raeshaun Washington, and the way the team was defending as a whole.

“I think defending as a team in the modern game is so important,” Wolf said. “When you can keep a game tight and you can rely on your defense, because there’s going to be days when you’re not on to finish, but if you know that you can keep a team at bay, it says volumes about the team.”

RSL will face Mountain WFC from Vancouver, B.C. on Tuesday at 11:30 a.m. at the Ed Radice Sports Complex, and Wolf said he hoped the players would embrace the opportunity they have in front of them.

“I told them, ‘don’t take this for granted, because you never know when you’ll get this chance again,’ ” Wolf said. “It’s the chance of a lifetime, it’s all about trying to create a moment and create memories by winning the championship.”

Youth: RSL girls rally, advance to Super-Y Final

LAND O’ LAKES – RSL Florida’s girls under-17 team rallied from a two-goal deficit, scoring twice in the final five minutes to earn a 3-2 victory against the Fort Wayne Fever and advance to the final of the United Soccer League’s Super-Y North American Finals on Monday afternoon.

RSL trailed 2-0 early in the second half, but got back into the game on the hour-mark. Connor Zwetsch’s pass towards the top of the penalty area was picked up by Jessica Giblin, who ran at her defender. Giblin lost possession briefly, but regained it and turned to her right, where Thea Linkfield was on hand to shoot low into the right corner of the net.

The goal appeared to energize RSL, as the mid-eighties temperature appeared to begin to take a toll on the Indiana-based squad, and Giblin, Zoe Lombard and Linkfield each had chances shortly after to tie the game.

Fort Wayne did have an opportunity to restore its two-goal advantage with just over 10 minutes to play as Jordan Pawlick knifed through the RSL defense, but in alone she shot wide of the target.

That miss would come back to haunt Fort Wayne in the 86th minute when Jessica Jagielski sent an angled pass into the penalty area looking for Linkfield. Linkfield wasn’t able to get to the ball first, but the pressure she placed on the retreating defender caused a miscommunication between the defender and her goalkeeper, and the defender redirected the pass into her own net.

Linkfield then found the game-winner in the 89th minute, flicking a long clearance to Niki Carter before making a run forward. Carter took the ball, and sent it back to Linkfield, who ran into the left side of the penalty area and shot low into the right corner to complete the comeback.

“Thea and Zoe, the work they did up front for the first 25 minutes was incredible,” RSL coach Jim Cote said. “Then here at the end with Thea, who was relentless, and Niki and those girls just battling. None of those goals were pretty, but the crossed the line, so we’ll take it.”

Fort Wayne had taken the lead in the 29th minute as Marlee Disher capitalized when RSL goalkeeper Jordan Hatton mishandled a header back to her by Amy Werdine, Disher stealing the ball and finishing into an empty net. The Fever then doubled their lead in the 52th minute as Pawlick scored in a sharp first-time finish after a good through-ball had set her up. Cote, though, thought the warm conditions would take a toll on the Fort Wayne players and was proved correct as RSL carried most of the game from the 60th minute.

“I said at the beginning of the tournament, on day one, you’re never going to be out of a game here,” Cote said. “You play in this arena, and the heat, and all these teams are coming from the colder climate, so you’re never going to be out of a game.

“You could see late in the first half their kids were getting tired, and were asking to come off, so I knew if I kept rotating the (players), which is why it’s important to have 18 here who can play, that someone is going to make a difference.”

RSL will face the Cleveland Internationals in the final on Tuesday morning at 9 a.m. at the Ed Radice Sports Complex. RSL defeated Cleveland 3-2 in group play at last year’s championship, but the Internationals were impressive in a 5-0 semifinal with against Seacoast.

“They’re very deep, so we’re going to have our hands full,” Cote said. “We took one away from them last year, and I’m sure they’ll want to get one back on us.”

Youth: RSL boys out of sync, but still earn victory

TAMPA – RSL Florida’s boys under-15 team didn’t perform as sharply as in its opening two games, but a late second half goal by Taylor Cook proved enough to send them into the semifinals of the United Soccer League’s Super-Y North American Finals with a 1-0 victory against the Alliance Academy on Sunday afternoon.

After a scrappy game, RSL appeared to move into a higher gear late in the second half. That pressure culminated when Jarrett Link picked the ball up in midfield and pushed forward. Link had the ball knocked away from him just outside the penalty area, but the ball came to Enrique Barboto, who slid an angled pass to his left to Cook, who shot low into the right corner of the net.

RSL goalkeeper Cody Parker made a pair of good saves to preserve the lead as RSL completed group play with three wins from three games.

“We didn’t play well at all, but when you’re in a tournament, you get the result, and we move on, and that’s the main thing, we move on to tomorrow,” RSL coach Steve Wolf said. “Hopefully we’ll have a better performance tomorrow.”

RSL will play the Westchester Flames in the semifinals, kicking off at 3 p.m. at the Ed Radice Sports Complex. Wolf believes if his side can regain the offensive rhythm it had in its first two games which allowed it to control possession and the pace of the game, it should result in a stronger performance.

“I think the main thing tomorrow is to try and find the rhythm that we had in the two previous games,” Wolf said. “Try to develop a rhythm. Today, there was really no rhythm. We had a bit of a rhythm through the midfield, but we gave away the ball too cheaply, our central midfielders did, and we didn’t do that the first two games.”

Youth: RSL girls underwhelming in final group game

LAND O’ LAKES – RSL Florida’s girls under-17 team completed pool play with their third win out of three on Sunday afternoon, but did so in an underwhelming performance that saw them concede a pair of goals in the first 15 minutes before a late flurry gave them a 5-3 victory against the MPS Renegades.

The Renegades took the lead in the sixth minute, a lifted ball from the midfield finding Scout Benson, who lifted her shot over an advancing goalkeeper. RSL Florida answered a minute later, Thea Linkfield breaking through on the left to shoot home, but MPS retook the lead in the 13th minute, Stephanie Ribeiro driving a low shot from the right side of the penalty area into the bottom left corner of the net.

At that point, RSL coach Jim Cote had seen enough, and in order to liven his team up, withdrew a player, putting his side at a 10-on-11 disadvantage.

“I said when we started to play soccer, we would put another player on. ‘Til then, we were just playing with 10,” Cote said. “If you’re going to walk around, what does it matter if we have 11 or seven? And that’s what we were doing, for the first 25 minutes we were walking around, that just because we had the RSL shirt on the other team were going to walk away and hand us the match.”

The players appeared to get the message quickly, and despite being a player short began to take control of the game. Jessica Giblin had a pair of shots well saved, and then five minutes for the break Ellen Moore tied the game after Zoe Lombard made a run down the right and centered, Linkfield’s initial shot was blocked but Moore came in on the right to knock home the rebound.

Giblin then hit the post early in the second half, but while RSl continued to have the better of the play, it wasn’t until 12 minutes remained that they took the lead for good. Moore stole the ball in midfield, and slid a pass through to Niki Carter on the right. Carter crossed the ball through the six-yard box, and Jessica Jagielski was at the far post to put home the finish.

RSL made it 4-2 in the 82nd minute, Taylor Batye winning possession, this time on the left, and her quick pass through released Lombard for a low shot to finish. Jagielski then scored her second a minute later, capitalizing after Lombard’s shot had been partially blocked, and while MPS pulled a goal back with three minutes to play, Isabelle DeSouza scoring from a corner after her initial shot had been tipped over the crossbar, RSL closed out the victory.

Cote was full of praise for Jagielski, who brought excellent energy to the team off the bench.

“We knew that when you play a team like that that sit in and are condensed, you need to be able to get flank play, you need to be able to have quality service,” Cote said. “Thea was getting it down the left side, we weren’t really getting it down the right, and (Jessica) came in and gave us a huge boost. She had three or four serves that should have been goals, and then she tucked away a couple and got an assist on one. She was the difference in the game today.”

RSL will face the Fort Wayne Fever in Monday’s semifinals. The Fever finished second in Group C, and advanced as the wild card after a pair of wins in three games, scoring 11 goals in the process. Cote expected his side to be sharper with the tournament entering the knock-out stage.

“We’re just looking forward to the opportunity of playing whoever we play,” Cote said. “At this point, there’s going to be four good teams left, and now you’ve got to take care of your business.”

Youth: HCU closes Super-Y on solid note

LAND O’ LAKES – Hillsborough County United’s boys under-16 team capped pool play with a second straight victory to take second place in Pool B at the United Soccer League’s Super-Y North American Finals. HCU defeated Parsippany 2-0 on a pair of first half goals.

HCU took the lead midway through the first half as Nick Patterson scored his fourth goal in three games, flicking Daniel Barboto’s corner from the left at the near post and into the right corner of the net.

Parsippany almost answered from a free kick from 30 yards out, Hayden Harr’s curling shot going just over the crossbar, but HCU then added its second as Tevin Gage combined well with J.T. Thompson down the right, allowing Thompson to drive a low shot into the left corner of the net to make the score 2-0.

“We’ve kind of sent J.T. back to right back, and he gives a presence going forward,” HCU coach Eric Sims said. “When you can play a player like Tevin and J.T. on the same side, you know it’s a dangerous combination. Those guys work well together, and they’ve very good 1-on-1 and getting down the flank, and that’s what we try to do, get people isolated on the outside and let those guys do what they’re good at.”

HCU goalkeeper Brian Paulluck had to make a pair of good saves to keep Parsippany off the scoreboard as Dan Maldonado had his close-range header saved and Mauricio Gomez was denied when he was put in on the left. HCU’s Jordan See also had a chance to extend his side’s lead as he broke on a long run, only to put his shot wide.

HCU will play in both the Raleigh Showcase and Disney Showcase in December, and Sims said he hoped the team learned some things they can carry forward to those tournaments this weekend.

“We look forward to that,” Sims said. “We definitely want to get our players good exposure, but we want to do well as a collective unit, so we’re looking forward to it.”

Youth: RSL boys cruise into Super-Y semifinals

RSL Florida’s boys under-15 team cruised into the semifinals of the United Soccer League’s Super-Y North American Finals with a 4-0 victory against the MPS Crusaders at the Ed Radice Sports Complex on Saturday afternoon.

As in its opening victory, RSL was able to control the tempo of the game in midfield, using its wide players to create chances against the Crusaders. RSL coach Steve Wolf said he was very happy with the way the side had played.

“I think what I was happy with was our possession,” Wolf said. “We kept the ball well, and it opened up things so we can go forward. We kept the ball well in the midfield, and that opened up the flanks for us to penetrate.”

In addition to the way they possessed the ball, RSL was also also to use it’s strength to its advantage, Wolf saying that often his players were able to overpower their opponents with not only their speed but their strength.

Kody Thomas, Rheese Wiltshire, Travis Jehs and Jarrett Link all scored for RSL, and Wolf said the priority for the side now is to maintain its momentum into Monday’s semifinals with a positive performance against the Alliance Academy on Sunday afternoon.

“We don’t want to let off (Sunday),” Wolf said. “We want to keep the momentum and keep playing the way we have to play. Worry about ourselves and just try to get better with each and every game. It’s very important.”

Youth: RSL girls move into Super-Y semifinals

LAND O’ LAKES – RSL Florida's girls under-17 side moved into the semifinals of the United Soccer League’s Super-Y North American Finals as a strong opening 25 minutes led to a 3-0 victory against the West Michigan Fire on Saturday afternoon at the Land O’ Lakes Recreation Center.

RSL was the sharper side to open the game, controlling possession well, cleaning up loose passes from the Fire while getting to 50/50 challenges quicker. The last of those factors also led to numerous free kicks going RSL’s way, as the Fire were often late in the challenge. That appeared to cause frustration among the Fire’s players and coaches, which was only exacerbated when RSL was awarded a penalty in the 19th minute when Thea Linkfield was pushed down from behind in the penalty area. Jordan Johnson stepped up and side-footed her shot into the right corner to give RSL the lead.

The goal, though, seemed to refocus the Fire, and they began to play better, gaining more possession and starting to develop their own rhythm. But a turnover in midfield gave RSL a chance to counter-attack, and Jessica Giblin’s ball forward allowed Niki Carter to use her pace to get behind the Fire defense and shoot home into the left corner of the net in the 36th minute.

RSL coach Jim Cote said he was very pleased with the way central midfielders Johnson, Giblin and Amy Werdine had controlled the game from the outset.

“I said to them at halftime that the first 25 minutes were fantastic,” Cote said. “The intensity was high, we were doubling down, triping down on players, team soccer defending was what we needed to do, that’s what I said we had to do before the game.”

Cote said he was also very pleased with the way his side defended, limiting the Fire’s opportunities as they had against Princeton on Friday.

“The back four I thought was fantastic,” Cote said. “It’s the same thing as yesterday, we didn’t give away a lot of chances, and that’s the thing I try to preach to them, that defending is everything and they’ve got to beat all 11 to score, and I think we’ve done a good job of that over the first two days.”

A similar pattern emerged in the second half, as the Fire frustrations led to first their head coach being sent from the sidelines, and then a pair of players being shown two yellow cards, which led to their ejections and the game ending 11-on-9. Between the two sendings off, Zoe Lombard scored RSL’s third, running onto a long ball and flicking her header past an advancing goalkeeper into the vacant net.

RSL will advance as the winner of Group B regardless of its result against the currently winless MPS Renegades on Sunday, and will play Monday at 1 p.m. in the tournament semifinals. Cote said he thought the way the team had performed so far was indicative of the bond the players shared.

“I think they’re excited to see each other again,” Cote said. “I think the excitement of getting the group back together again and realizing what a special group we have, although they’ve had a wonderful year, the energy level to play with each other is certainly there.”

Youth: HCU bounces back, but cannot advance

LAND O’ LAKES – Nick Patterson scored in the second minute to give Hillsborough County United’s boys under-16 team a 1-0 victory against Super Nova FC from Harrisburg, Pa., but Coastal WFC’s victory over Parsippany in the other group game means that HCU cannot advance to Monday’s semifinals of the United Soccer League's Super-Y North American Finals.

It was, however, a far better performance from HCU, who took the lead when Patterson took one touch to control a centering pass from the right by Chase Goodwin at the top of the penalty area, and then fired home a right-footed shot into the bottom right corner of the net.

HCU almost immediately gave up their lead when goalkeeper Brian Paullack was caught in possession by Nova’s Cody Hess, but HCU was able to clear the danger, and Paullack more than made up for his mistake with an excellent diving stop to turn a shot from Nova’s Connor McAliney just around his right post.

As the game wore on, though, HCU controlled the tempo and possession far better than it had in its opening defeat to Coastal, Tyler Hartlage proving critical in the midfield, and almost doubling HCU’s lead just before halftime when his shot went just over the crossbar after a good run from midfield.

In warm conditions, Nova’s players gradually wore down in the second half, a chance by McAliney that was denied by Paullack their best chance to get back on level terms. HCU’s Tevin Gage also had a chance well saved, but as the game wore on HCU took control as it wore out Nova’s players with good ball control and passing through the defense and midfield.

“I think they got the jitters out yesterday, (today we) just relaxed and played,” HCU coach Eric Sims said. “We played like we should have played yesterday. Yesterday I think we played scared to lose instead of trying to win, today we played a much better game, possessed the ball, much more to our style. We did a good job today.”

HCU could tied Coastal with six points were it to defeat Parsippany, and Super Nova defeat Coastal, but Coastal would still advance thanks to their victory over HCU in the opening game of the tournament on Friday.

Youth: Higgins lifts RSL boys to victory

Zach Higgins first-half header proved enough to give RSL Florida’s boys under-15 side a 1-0 victory against the TSF Academy from New Jersey in its opening game of the United Soccer League’s Super-Y North American Finals at the Ed Radice Sports Complex on Friday afternoon.

Higgins rose to head home Travis Jehs’ corner kick from just outside the six-yard box, and RSL was able to control the tempo for the rest of the game with a display of ball possession that impressed RSL coach Steve Wolf.

“I was happy with the way we possessed the ball,” Wolf said. “I thought we possessed the ball well through midfield and kept the ball.”

RSL will face MPS Crusaders in its second game of pool play needing a victory to extend its chances of reaching the semifinals. With only the group winner advancing from each of the four-team groups, victories are at a premium for every team.

“I told them to enjoy it tonight, but tomorrow we have to be hungry to play another game,” Wolf said. “We start at zero again tomorrow, and do it all over again.”

Youth: Linkfield gives RSL girls opening victory

LAND O’ LAKES – Thea Linkfield scored in the 84th minute to give RSL Florida’s girls under-17 side a 2-1 victory against Princeton in its opening game of the United Soccer League’s Super-Y North American Finals at the Land O’ Lakes Recreation Center on Friday afternoon.

After numerous missed chances to take the lead in the second half, Linkfield latched onto a pass by Colleen Lynch, and then drove a low shot into the right corner of the net to put RSL ahead. The victory, though, was almost grabbed away in the final minute, when RSL goalkeeper Brittany Bennett was unable to hold a shot by Princeton's Emma Carp, and Amanda Redding put home the rebound. But Redding was ruled to be offside when Carp’s shot was taken, wiping out the goal and preserving a vital three points for RSL.

RSL had taken the lead in the 25th minute, Linkfield finding Jessica Giblin, who sent a through-ball to Connor Zwetsch, who broke through the Princeton defense and shot home from 15 yards out. Princeton hit back from the penalty spot five minutes later, though, Capr shooting low to the right to tie the game.

RSL then had a pair of chances before halftime to take the lead, but Giblin and Amy Werdine were both denied. Werdine then shot wide in the second half before Nicci Carter and Linkfield had opportunities saved and Giblin shot wide after beating Princeton’s offside trap.

It wasn’t all one-way traffic, though, as Bennett made a pair of good saves to keep the game tied before Linkfield’s winner.

RSL will face West Michigan Fire Juniors, which defeated the MPS Renegades 5-3 in their opening game, on Saturday afternoon. Victory there would put RSL in a strong position to make Monday’s semifinals.

“The game tomorrow is probably the deciding factor in who goes out of our group,” RSL coach Jim Cote said. “Overall, it was a good performance by Connor (Zwetsch), Amy Werdine was good, and our goalkeeper played well at the end when we needed a couple of saves.”

Youth: HCU loses lead, game in Super-Y Finals opener

LAND O’ LAKES – Hillsborough County United's boys under-16 side couldn’t hold a two-goal halftime lead, and saw their hopes for a title take a serious hit as they fell 3-2 to Coastal WFC from Vancouver, Canada in their opening game of the United Soccer League’s Super-Y North American Finals at the Land O’ Lakes Recreation Center on Friday.

HCU had taken the lead into the break with a pair of goals four minutes apart by Nick Patterson. Patterson, who had earlier hit the crossbar, opened the scoring in the 36th minute as he beat his defender in a challenge on the left side of the penalty area after a through-ball by Jake Peterson, and shot home into the right corner of the net.

Peterson almost added a second a minute later, stealing possession from a defender, but his shot went over the cross bar. He made up for that miss right before halftime, though, firing home from the edge of the penalty area after losing his marker on another long through-ball from the HCU midfield.

Despite being up 2-0, HCU coach Eric Sims was not happy with the way his side was playing, giving away possession cheaply in midfield, failing to control possession in an effort to make Coastal work harder to chase the ball and win possession back. Coastal made HCU pay for that slackness early in the second half, as Coastal picked up the ball in midfield on a giveaway, and quickly went on the attack. Isaac Jacobson’s run from midfield beat the offside trap, and he finished well to make the score 2-1.

After Patterson had seen a tame free kick easily saved as he tried to restore HCU’s two-goal advantage, Coastal struck again in the 55th minute, Caleb Clarke starting and finishing a well-worked move to make the score 2-2.

HCU goalkeeper John Nardozzi did well to deny Coastal twice as it threatened to take the lead, saving from Clarke and Declan Rodriguez, but he was unable to deny Isaacson his second in the 78th minute as Isaacson knifed through the HCU defense to finish left-footed.

Isaacson said the high pressure his side applied in the second half was important to turning the game around.

“Throughout the season we’ve been a high-scoring team, and the more we press, the more we score,” Isaacson said. “We’re not a very selfish team, we like to create each other goals, and that’s how we scored all our goals today, not in 1-on-1 battles.”

Sims said he felt this was the most important game for HCU in the opening round, and acknowledged that his side would need a break or two to go his side’s way if they were to advance, but he expected his side to give their all in their remaining two pool play games.

“I told them at the beginning that I thought this was the game that we needed to win,” Sims said. ”If we wanted to win the tournament, we needed to win this game. I don’t really know much about the other teams, but I don’t imagine that they’re going to beat that team, but you never know, soccer’s a funny game, so we’ll come out tomorrow and try to put together a win.”

Youth: Experience crucial for HCU under-16s at Super-Y

Hillsborough County United's boys under-16s will try for a third time to win a United Soccer League Super-Y North American Finals title when they open play Friday at the Land O' Lakes Recreation Center against the Coastal WFC from Vancouver, Canada.

HCU was eliminated from the tournament in the semifinals last season, and had reached the final as an under-13 squad. HCU coach Eric Sims is hoping experience will pay off for his side.

"These guys have been in this tournament before, have experienced playing in matches like this, so you would think that experience would help them," Sims said. "I've seen them mature, definitely, especially from a work-rate standpoint, they just see the value of working hard and playing as hard as they can while they're playing. I think with them being in the tournament in years past, and getting to extended play, will hopefully give them experience to do well this year."

HCU is led going forward by Nick Patterson and Kofi Forkuoh, who combined to score 19 of the side's 39 goals during the Southeast Division season. The side is also strong defensively, with goalkeeper John Nardozzi and defenders Josh Santos and Charlie Delmar. The most important thing, though, is going to be getting off to a good start in the opening game against a Coastal team that dominated its division, winning 11 of 12 games, while only allowing six goals.

"You definitely want to start off by getting three points," Sims said. "If you don't do that, only getting a point or getting no points in the first game, you put yourself in a big hole where you don't control your own destiny. If you come in and get three points in that opening game, it's a good start, and it's a good confidence booster, but you also control what your team does."

Youth: RSL Girls confident entering Super-Y Finals

After the disappointment of being eliminated on goal difference in the opening round last season, RSL Florida’s girls under-17 team is looking forward to making one final attempt to win a championship at the United Soccer League’s Super-Y North American Finals, which begin on Friday afternoon.

“We’ve had a really good summer and fall together,” RSL coach Jim Cote said. “Scored a lot of goals and given up very few, and they’re looking forward to the opportunity.”

Last year, the opening game of the tournament proved critical for RSL as they fell 1-0 to the Cal Odyssey. As with any tournament that features pool play, a positive result in the opening game is going to be critical if the side is to advance. Cote, though is optimistic for his team’s chances, as his players have continued to play well to start the high school season, boosting their confidence ahead of the weekend.

“The high school is great because our kids are scoring a lot of goals, and they have a different level of confidence,” Cote said. “I think we have seven or eight players on our team who are already over the 10-goal mark for their high school teams, and that builds confidence.”

What should also help the team is its familiarity with one another. In previous season’s the sides RSL sent to the Super-Y Finals were often an amalgam of two, or more, teams. This season, all 22 players have been together for close to a year, with 18 of them having played together for two years. While the side will be missing defenders Kara Buono and Linsdey DiLeonardo to injury, Cote believes the team has the depth to where the incoming players won’t miss a beat.

“This group of 22 have played together all year, trained together, know each other inside and out,” Cote said. “18 of the 22 have been together for two years now, so they feel good about themselves, they have a little bit of arrogance about them, not cocky, but arrogance. They feel they’re a good team, and that they can compete with anybody.”

That’s an attitude they’ll need to maintain as they face a tough opening group. With the three group winners and one wild card second placed team advancing to the semifinals, RSL will need to be at its sharpest to move on.

“We open on Friday at 3 against Princeton which, you’re playing out of New York, New Jersey, that northeast region, you’ve got to be pretty good to get out of that, that’s the first task,” Cote said. “Then we get Chicago and then MPS renegades, which I believe lost in the final last year, so we have three good teams in our group, we’re going to have to let the chips fall where they may and get after them.”