Think you've got the best six-a-side team in the bay area? The Copa Univision is your chance to prove it over a two-day tournament kicking off on Friday, May 7.
To be held at Cinco Soccer on Henry Avenue in Tampa, the 40-team tournament be split into two groups of 20, and then whittled down to a 16-team single-elimination bracket on Saturday afternoon to determine the winner.
Entry is $100 per team, with a first prize of $1,500 and second place taking $1,000. Games will be played over two 18-minute halves.
For more information, go to: http://www.cincosoccer.com/
Monday, April 26, 2010
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Wharton's Vaughn commits to Florida Atlantic
Wharton's Fallon Vaughn has committed to Florida Atlantic University for the 2011 season according to Wildcats coach Denis Vukorep.
Vaughn, who plays club soccer for Hillsborough County United, scored seven goals and added nine assists for the Wildcats this past season and was an honorable mention on the Tampa Tribune and St. Petersburg Times' All-Hillsborough County team named last week. Vaughn was also named to the Western Conference National Division First team.
The Owls already have a pair of bay area players on their roster in former Plant goalkeeper Courtney Zwetsch and former Countryside forward Katie Kent. Marisa Russo of Mitchell and Stephanie Ferro from East Lake also signed with the Owls in February to join the squad this fall.
Vaughn, who plays club soccer for Hillsborough County United, scored seven goals and added nine assists for the Wildcats this past season and was an honorable mention on the Tampa Tribune and St. Petersburg Times' All-Hillsborough County team named last week. Vaughn was also named to the Western Conference National Division First team.
The Owls already have a pair of bay area players on their roster in former Plant goalkeeper Courtney Zwetsch and former Countryside forward Katie Kent. Marisa Russo of Mitchell and Stephanie Ferro from East Lake also signed with the Owls in February to join the squad this fall.
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Spartans looking for leadership from Swan, Griffin
TAMPA – With eight starters departed from last fall’s side, the University of Tampa men's program may be a team in transition during spring practice, which began last week, and this upcoming fall.
If central midfielders Karl Swan and Ryan Griffin have anything to do about it, though, the Spartans will be back to make another run at a Top-5 finish and a national title.
Two of the three returning starters, Lister Warren being the third, Swan and Griffin have run the center of the Spartans midfield since being moved there during their freshman seasons in a game against Rollins College.
“Ryan Maxwell got red-carded, we were tied 0-0 in the game, he gets red-carded with about five minutes to go in the (first) half, we had to play down a man,” Spartans coach Adrian Bush said. “We popped Ryan and Karl in there, played with three in the middle, and from that day forward they haven’t left the position.”
A big reason for that is how well both players game’s fit together. Griffin is the bigger of the two, listed at 6-foot-3 and 190 pounds, and is constantly in the thick of the game, winning possession in the air and on the ground when opponents have the ball. Swan, at 5-10, 155 pounds, is the distributor, directing play as he uses his passing ability to switch the point of attack and move the team forward.
Both Swan and Griffin played together for RSL Florida prior to becoming Spartans, winning three state championships in five seasons with the club. Swan thinks that while it might have taken longer for the two to jell had they not played prior to UT, the fact that they had was beneficial to the Spartans program.
“With both our strengths, it would have taken a little bit longer,” Swan said. “I think it would have taken a year, maybe even two years to put both our strengths together. It was a great plus we had RSL and played four or five years together.”
That success at the club level, and in their first two season as Spartans has both players believing the side will be as strong in the past two seasons, with Griffin looking forward to taking a more active leadership role on the team.
“We’ve obviously got to take the reins now,” Griffin said. “The team is looking to us now, it’s our time. I’ve always been a very vocal person on my team, as I have for the past two years, but now the words mean a lot more, make sure you compliment the young guys coming in, make sure they can assimilate themselves well into the program.
“I’m not going to change anything personally, still working out the same, but definitely vocally I've got to be the voice of the team.”
And that is exactly what Bush wants both players to be.
“The leadership part, stepping up and being more vocal as a leader is something we’re going to expect of them,” Bush said. “These guys have played at a very good level and are accustomed to winning, and I think just feeding that type of mentality and that type of work ethic to everyone on the team, and especially the new guys coming in, is going to be the most important thing we can get from those guys.
“They’re team guys. They’re about the team, will play any position that you ask and are just about getting results, that’s all they care about.”
If central midfielders Karl Swan and Ryan Griffin have anything to do about it, though, the Spartans will be back to make another run at a Top-5 finish and a national title.
Two of the three returning starters, Lister Warren being the third, Swan and Griffin have run the center of the Spartans midfield since being moved there during their freshman seasons in a game against Rollins College.
“Ryan Maxwell got red-carded, we were tied 0-0 in the game, he gets red-carded with about five minutes to go in the (first) half, we had to play down a man,” Spartans coach Adrian Bush said. “We popped Ryan and Karl in there, played with three in the middle, and from that day forward they haven’t left the position.”
A big reason for that is how well both players game’s fit together. Griffin is the bigger of the two, listed at 6-foot-3 and 190 pounds, and is constantly in the thick of the game, winning possession in the air and on the ground when opponents have the ball. Swan, at 5-10, 155 pounds, is the distributor, directing play as he uses his passing ability to switch the point of attack and move the team forward.
Both Swan and Griffin played together for RSL Florida prior to becoming Spartans, winning three state championships in five seasons with the club. Swan thinks that while it might have taken longer for the two to jell had they not played prior to UT, the fact that they had was beneficial to the Spartans program.
“With both our strengths, it would have taken a little bit longer,” Swan said. “I think it would have taken a year, maybe even two years to put both our strengths together. It was a great plus we had RSL and played four or five years together.”
That success at the club level, and in their first two season as Spartans has both players believing the side will be as strong in the past two seasons, with Griffin looking forward to taking a more active leadership role on the team.
“We’ve obviously got to take the reins now,” Griffin said. “The team is looking to us now, it’s our time. I’ve always been a very vocal person on my team, as I have for the past two years, but now the words mean a lot more, make sure you compliment the young guys coming in, make sure they can assimilate themselves well into the program.
“I’m not going to change anything personally, still working out the same, but definitely vocally I've got to be the voice of the team.”
And that is exactly what Bush wants both players to be.
“The leadership part, stepping up and being more vocal as a leader is something we’re going to expect of them,” Bush said. “These guys have played at a very good level and are accustomed to winning, and I think just feeding that type of mentality and that type of work ethic to everyone on the team, and especially the new guys coming in, is going to be the most important thing we can get from those guys.
“They’re team guys. They’re about the team, will play any position that you ask and are just about getting results, that’s all they care about.”
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Pinellas rosters for Senior Challenge released
The rosters for the Pinellas County boys and girls team for the Senior Soccer Challenge to be held at Countryside on March 6 have been announced, with a number of the players who competed at the state championships over the past two weeks included in both squads.
South Florida signees Javon Bostic, Ben Sweat and Shane Wixted will be on show for the boys squad, while Palm Harbor University’s girls state final team will have five players represented.
The complete squads are listed below.
PINELLAS BOYS
GOALKEEPERS: Andrew Hindman, Dunedin; Josh Paul, Palm Harbor.
DEFENDERS: Javon Bostic, East Lake; Dominic Gianfrancesco, Osceola; John Holecek, St. Petersburg; Brent Merrick, East Lake; Troy Pruitt, Northeast; Sean Rafferty, Seminole.
MIDFIELDERS: Jordan Beau, Clearwater; Troy Cobb, Seminole; Peter Cundiff, Osceola; Hamza Elotmani, Lakewood; Matt Kimball, East Lake; P.J. McDonald, Palm Harbor; Brice Nardozzi, Indian Rocks Christian; Josh Phillippi, Northeast; Ben Sweat, Palm Harbor; Shane Wixted, Seminole.
FORWARDS: Anthony Brenner, Dunedin; Nick Patterson, East Lake; Matt Thompson, Admiral Farragut; Billy Vasquez, Pinellas Park.
PINELLAS GIRLS
GOALKEEPERS: Kim Cohn, Countryside; Casey Merson, Seminole.
DEFENDERS: Colleen Lynch, Palm Harbor; Cina Salemi, Palm Harbor; Christy Rickrode, Dunedin; Maryah Finch, Tarpon Springs; Shannon Walisch, Palm Harbor, Lauren Grove, St. Petersburg.
MIDFIELDERS: Casey McKeon, St. Petersburg Catholic; Thea Linkfield, Countryside; Julia Bosacki, Clearwater; Kendall Narum, Countryside; Stephanie Ferro, East Lake; Noel Forsman, Seminole; Nicole Carter, St. Petersburg.
FORWARDS: Jensen Eifert, Indian Rocks Christian; Tatiana Perez, East Lake; Megan Lawrence, Seminole; Ronnica Harris, Largo; Catherine Brinkman, Palm Harbor; Zoe Lombard, Palm Harbor; Jolie Annichiarico, Clearwater Central Catholic; Kelsey Dougherty-Howard, St. Petersburg Catholic.
South Florida signees Javon Bostic, Ben Sweat and Shane Wixted will be on show for the boys squad, while Palm Harbor University’s girls state final team will have five players represented.
The complete squads are listed below.
PINELLAS BOYS
GOALKEEPERS: Andrew Hindman, Dunedin; Josh Paul, Palm Harbor.
DEFENDERS: Javon Bostic, East Lake; Dominic Gianfrancesco, Osceola; John Holecek, St. Petersburg; Brent Merrick, East Lake; Troy Pruitt, Northeast; Sean Rafferty, Seminole.
MIDFIELDERS: Jordan Beau, Clearwater; Troy Cobb, Seminole; Peter Cundiff, Osceola; Hamza Elotmani, Lakewood; Matt Kimball, East Lake; P.J. McDonald, Palm Harbor; Brice Nardozzi, Indian Rocks Christian; Josh Phillippi, Northeast; Ben Sweat, Palm Harbor; Shane Wixted, Seminole.
FORWARDS: Anthony Brenner, Dunedin; Nick Patterson, East Lake; Matt Thompson, Admiral Farragut; Billy Vasquez, Pinellas Park.
PINELLAS GIRLS
GOALKEEPERS: Kim Cohn, Countryside; Casey Merson, Seminole.
DEFENDERS: Colleen Lynch, Palm Harbor; Cina Salemi, Palm Harbor; Christy Rickrode, Dunedin; Maryah Finch, Tarpon Springs; Shannon Walisch, Palm Harbor, Lauren Grove, St. Petersburg.
MIDFIELDERS: Casey McKeon, St. Petersburg Catholic; Thea Linkfield, Countryside; Julia Bosacki, Clearwater; Kendall Narum, Countryside; Stephanie Ferro, East Lake; Noel Forsman, Seminole; Nicole Carter, St. Petersburg.
FORWARDS: Jensen Eifert, Indian Rocks Christian; Tatiana Perez, East Lake; Megan Lawrence, Seminole; Ronnica Harris, Largo; Catherine Brinkman, Palm Harbor; Zoe Lombard, Palm Harbor; Jolie Annichiarico, Clearwater Central Catholic; Kelsey Dougherty-Howard, St. Petersburg Catholic.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Hillsborough Boys squad announced for Senior Challenge
The Hillsborough boys squad for the Senior Soccer Challenge to be held at Countryside High on March 6 has been announced, with 17 different schools being represented among the 23 players and two alternates selected for this year’s game.
Sickles leads the roster with four players selected, while Class 2A state champions Tampa Prep will be represented by Wes Sever and Anthony Baumann in the game against the Pinellas All-Stars.
The full squad, to be coaches by Wharton's Scott Ware and Gaither's Eric Sims, is listed below.
Goalkeepers: Brandon Stout, Sickles; Derrick Miranda, East Bay
Defenders: Gil Davis, Sickles; David Campbell, Wharton; Josh Santos, Gaither; Ben Wiley, Sickles; Brendan McCarron, Tampa Catholic; C.R. Lewis, King.
Midfielders: Boris Simeunovic, Sickles; Ellis Curry, Freedom; Luis Rodriguez, Leto; Steven Scrivens, King; Jesus Torres, Armwood; Jake Felman, Berkeley Prep.
Forwards: Billy Fanning, Durant; Miguel Cadavid, Jesuit; T.J. Roehn, Berkeley Prep; Steven Gonzalez, Newsome; Esgar Montelongo, Plant City; Anthony Baumann, Tampa Prep; Wes Sever, Tampa Prep; David Castillo, East Bay.
Alternates: M Brad Keefe, Brandon; F Fedson Hilaire, Middleton.
Tribune girls soccer correspondent Jarrett Guthrie has details of the girls roster, announced last week. That squad can be found here.
Sickles leads the roster with four players selected, while Class 2A state champions Tampa Prep will be represented by Wes Sever and Anthony Baumann in the game against the Pinellas All-Stars.
The full squad, to be coaches by Wharton's Scott Ware and Gaither's Eric Sims, is listed below.
Goalkeepers: Brandon Stout, Sickles; Derrick Miranda, East Bay
Defenders: Gil Davis, Sickles; David Campbell, Wharton; Josh Santos, Gaither; Ben Wiley, Sickles; Brendan McCarron, Tampa Catholic; C.R. Lewis, King.
Midfielders: Boris Simeunovic, Sickles; Ellis Curry, Freedom; Luis Rodriguez, Leto; Steven Scrivens, King; Jesus Torres, Armwood; Jake Felman, Berkeley Prep.
Forwards: Billy Fanning, Durant; Miguel Cadavid, Jesuit; T.J. Roehn, Berkeley Prep; Steven Gonzalez, Newsome; Esgar Montelongo, Plant City; Anthony Baumann, Tampa Prep; Wes Sever, Tampa Prep; David Castillo, East Bay.
Alternates: M Brad Keefe, Brandon; F Fedson Hilaire, Middleton.
Tribune girls soccer correspondent Jarrett Guthrie has details of the girls roster, announced last week. That squad can be found here.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Rowdies to unveil uniforms, preseason schedule Wednesday
The FC Tampa Bay Rowdies will unveil their uniforms for the team’s inaugural season, and the remainder of the clubs preseason schedule, at a press conference to be held on Wednesday at 10 a.m. the club said in a statement issued on Tuesday morning.At the second player combine, held in Liverpool, England, late last year, the side was outfitted by Under Armor in its scrimmage against Wrexham, but it is unclear if that partnership will carry over to the regular season.
The first three of the Rowdies preseason games became public last week, with games against the University of Tampa, FC Dallas and the Philadelphia Union all slated to be played at Pepin Stadium. The Rowdies had previous said they expected to have five or six preseason games in all.
The Rowdies are also appearing to step up their visibility efforts within the soccer community. After an autograph session with Pascal Milien, Adam Nowland and Joe Donoho at the BAYSL Fields in Brandon on Saturday, the club confirmed it will have a presence just inside the entrance gate at Wednesday night’s United States vs. El Salvador game at Raymond James Stadium.
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Preps: Tampa Prep takes Class 2A Championship
It was a remarkable night for Tampa Prep's boys, and the massive crowd they brought with them to the University of Tampa's Pepin Stadium on Friday night.
For the third time in four years, and fourth time overall, the Terrapins earned the Class 2A State championship with a 2-1 victory against Delray Beach American Heritage.
Wes Sever's words just after charging around the Pepin Stadium field with the 2A trophy in the grasp exemplified the exhiliration the entire side appeared to be feeling.
"This is exhilarating. Amazing. Now I know what Matt Hebert, Sam Wiand the seniors my freshman year, and in my sophomore year Ryan Griffin, Brad Sienkiewicz, this is what it feels like to win your senior year. Never would I have thought we would have been back on this stage in front of our home crowd to beat a team like American Heritage tonight. It's absolutely exhilarating.
"I can't explain to you in words how much this means to me, how much this team means to me, how much the Tampa Prep community (means to me), and having all these fans here tonight, it's absolutely amazing. Words can't describe what I'm feeling right now, what I feel for these players, what I feel for these coaches, what I feel for the administration. Everyone in the school, I love it, they were behind 100 percent of the way. We brought our entire school out here, and for the semifinals, it's just absolutely amazing."
That gives two bay area teams state championships, with Seminole and Palm Harbor looking to add to the haul this afternoon and evening as they face Melbourne and Boca Raton respectively in the Class 5A and Class 6A finals.
Seminole earned its place in the final with a 1-0 victory against Tallahassee Lincoln, Shane Wixted scoring on a penalty in the final minute of the first half after Charles Lynch had been brought down in the area.
Palm Harbor will get a shot at a second straight state title, duplicating the accomplishment of their girls team last week, after a 2-1 victory against Miami Killian that turned on a brilliant save by Hurricanes goalkeeper Josh Paul and a brilliant solo goal by Ben Sweat, both coming with a span of about 80 seconds.
If you can't get to Pepin Stadium this afternoon or this evening, Seminole is schedule to kick off at 4:30 p.m., Palm Harbor at 7 p.m., you can follow live updates of both games via the TBSB twitter feed, which can be found at twitter.com/tbsoccerblog.
For the third time in four years, and fourth time overall, the Terrapins earned the Class 2A State championship with a 2-1 victory against Delray Beach American Heritage.
Wes Sever's words just after charging around the Pepin Stadium field with the 2A trophy in the grasp exemplified the exhiliration the entire side appeared to be feeling.
"This is exhilarating. Amazing. Now I know what Matt Hebert, Sam Wiand the seniors my freshman year, and in my sophomore year Ryan Griffin, Brad Sienkiewicz, this is what it feels like to win your senior year. Never would I have thought we would have been back on this stage in front of our home crowd to beat a team like American Heritage tonight. It's absolutely exhilarating.
"I can't explain to you in words how much this means to me, how much this team means to me, how much the Tampa Prep community (means to me), and having all these fans here tonight, it's absolutely amazing. Words can't describe what I'm feeling right now, what I feel for these players, what I feel for these coaches, what I feel for the administration. Everyone in the school, I love it, they were behind 100 percent of the way. We brought our entire school out here, and for the semifinals, it's just absolutely amazing."
That gives two bay area teams state championships, with Seminole and Palm Harbor looking to add to the haul this afternoon and evening as they face Melbourne and Boca Raton respectively in the Class 5A and Class 6A finals.
Seminole earned its place in the final with a 1-0 victory against Tallahassee Lincoln, Shane Wixted scoring on a penalty in the final minute of the first half after Charles Lynch had been brought down in the area.
Palm Harbor will get a shot at a second straight state title, duplicating the accomplishment of their girls team last week, after a 2-1 victory against Miami Killian that turned on a brilliant save by Hurricanes goalkeeper Josh Paul and a brilliant solo goal by Ben Sweat, both coming with a span of about 80 seconds.
If you can't get to Pepin Stadium this afternoon or this evening, Seminole is schedule to kick off at 4:30 p.m., Palm Harbor at 7 p.m., you can follow live updates of both games via the TBSB twitter feed, which can be found at twitter.com/tbsoccerblog.
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