DALLAS (Tuesday, July 25, 2017) – Two Arizona teams will look to return home as champions as the 2017 US Youth Soccer National Championships in Dallas kicks off today.
Earning a chance to compete at the National Championships are Tuzos Academy 02 Boys and Scottsdale Blackhawks 00 Girls.
How they got there
Tuzos clinched a spot in the US Soccer National Championships by winning their group (U15) at the US Youth Soccer Far West Regional Championships in Seattle, Washington.
Tuzos went 2-1 in group play and stormed through the quarterfinals and semifinals with a 5-1 win over Heat FC and a 1-0 win over Timbers Eastside, respectively. In the final, they defeated fellow Arizona side Excel Soccer Academy 2-0 with goals from Eliseo Sanchez and Ivan Pino Cabrero.
Tuzos’ Justin Villalba led all goal scorers with nine goals throughout the Far West Regional Championships. Click here to watch Tuzos talk about winning the Far West Regional League and what they are looking forward to at the National Championships.
Blackhawks booked their ticket with a dominate performance in the National League, where they went 7-0 in group play (each group winner advances to the National Championships – 4 groups total). The squad scored 14 goals and conceded just three.
They qualified in thrilling fashion in the final match as they needed a win over draw over FC Pride 00 Elite (IN). Blackhawks won 1-0 with Emily Chioa scoring the match-winning goal in the 49th minute.
Allison Broderick led the team in goals with four while Chioa notched three. Hannah Hale and Linsday Hubbard has two each. Click here to watch Blackhawks talk about winning the National League and what they are looking forward to at the National Championships.
Looking at the National Championships
Each age group has two groups of four teams that will compete on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. The top two teams from each group will advance and compete in the Semifinals on Saturday, July 29. The winning teams will then square off in the National Championship on Sunday, July 30.
Tuzos is in U15 Group A with St. Louis Scott Gallagher (MO), Boca OC White (CA), and ID Club Division 02 (TX).
Blackhawks is in U17 Group B with the other winning teams from the National League. They are Cup 00 Gold (OH), Celtic FC (UT), and Sporting Omaha FC Elite (NE).
The Tuzos and Blackhawks matches will be LIVE streamed on Wednesday. Click here to watch.
AYSA will be providing full coverage after every day at the National Championships.
Tuesday, July 25
7:00 AM – Tuzos Academy 02 vs ID Club Division 02 (TX-S)
1:00 PM – Scottsdale Blackhawks vs Cup 00 Gold (OH)
Wednesday, July 26
9:00 AM – Tuzos Academy 02 vs Boca OC 02 White (CA-S) LIVE STREAM
11:00 AM – Scottsdale Blackhawks vs Sporting Omaha FC Elite (NE) LIVE STREAM
Thursday, July 27
7:00 AM – Tuzos Academy 02 vs St. Louis Scott Gallagher SC Elite (MO)
1:00 PM – Scottsdale Blackhawks vs Celtic FC (UT)