Youth: California-South dominates USYSA Region IV finals

Host California-South won eight of the 16 age-group titles at the Region IV (West) finals in Snickers U.S. Youth Soccer championships June 20-26 at the Kern County Soccer Park in Bakersfield (under-16 through under-19) and the San Bernardino CYSA-South Soccer Complex in San Bernardino (under-12 through under-15). Champions in the U-16 through U-19 divisions advance to the Snickers US Youth Soccer National Championships July 20-25 at Disney's Wide World of Sports complex in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. The La Jolla Nomads led the California-South effort, winning three boys titles (U-13, U-14 and U-19). The U-19 Nomads will attempt to win their third national championship in four years after edging last year's U-18 regional champion, Colorado Rush Nike, 2-1 on Brandon McNeil's goal nine minutes into overtime. The U-14 Nomads upended last year's under-13 champion, Santa Rosa (Calif.) United Heat, 2-1, while Ryan Guy scored both goals in the U-13s' 2-1 win over Cal-South rival North Huntington Beach. The Claremont (Calif.) Stars U-17 boys, last year's U-16 national runners-up, earned their second consecutive regional crown and fourth overall with a 4-2 victory over Colorado Rush Nike. San Diego's San Dieguito Surf U-16 girls also notched back-to-back titles and their third regional title with a 1-0 triumph over the De Anza Dynamite (Cupertino, Calif.), the Surf's fifth shutout in six tournament games. The Mission Viejo (Calif.) Mirage U-18 girls won their first regional title since 1993 with a 2-0 win over FC Portland (Ore.) Yellow behind Erin Misaki's two goals. Three other Colorado Rush Nike teams claimed championships (U-16 boys, U-13 girls and U-17 girls). The Rush U-17 girls knocked off last year's U-16 regional champion, San Ramon (Calif.) Crunch, 2-1 in overtime. The Devastation (Bountiful, Utah) U-19 girls became that state's first girls team to advance to the national championship by edging the Las Virgenes Blazers (Los Angeles) 4-3 in penalty kicks for a 4-3 triumph. Devastation trailed 3-1 in the second half before goals by Jordan Kriger in the 73rd minute and Rachelle Dixon with five minutes left in regulation tied the score. The Classic FC Bandidos (Albuquerque) Under-15 boys claimed New Mexico's second regional title ever with a 3-0 victory over the San Dieguito Surf. The Far West is arguably the most competitive of the four regional tournaments. This region has produced 24 national champions this decade, the most of any region. Region II (Midwest) teams have earned 15 age-group titles, followed by Region I (East) with 13 and Region III (South) with 10.

Final Summaries

Under-19 Boys La Jolla (Calif.) Nomads 2, Colorado Rush Nike (Littleton) 1 (OT). Goals: Garrett Bartolotta 13, Brandon McNeil 99; Jeremy Shelton 27. Under-18 Boys FC United 80 (Tacoma, Wash.) 3, Bulls Red (Honolulu) 0. Goals: Zachary Tallman 48, Joseph Walton 79, Paul Czarnowski 81. Under-17 Boys Claremont (Calif.) Stars 4, Colorado Rush Nike (Littleton) 2. Goals: Kirk Fonseca 24, Tony Lawson 32, Hugo Casillas 79, Cesar Escobedo 85; Zachary Piercy 48, 56. Under-16 Boys Colorado Nike Rush (Littleton) 1, San Juan Lightning (Sacramento, Calif.) 0. Goal: Ben Draughon 46. Under-15 Boys Classic FC Bandidos (Albuquerque, N.M.) 3, San Dieguito Surf (San Diego) 0. Goals: Morgan Ortiz 28, Benjamin Ashwill 50, Matthew Lamb 59. Under-14 Boys La Jolla (Calif.) Nomads 2, Santa Rosa (Calif.) United Heat 1. Goals: Arturo Nunez 8, Sharrod Davis 18; Marco Garcia 63. Under-13 Boys La Jolla (Calif.) Nomads 2, North Huntington Beach (Calif.) 1. Goals: Ryan Guy 12, 62; Josef Vargas 35. Under-12 Boys Watsonville (Calif.) Chivas 4, Sereno 87 Golden Eagles (Phoenix) 1. Goals: Miguel Silva 36, Armando Martinez 41, Esteven Lopez 56, Jos Ornelas-Hernandez 63; Ryan Wielgus 3. Under-19 Girls Devastation (Bountiful, Utah) 4, Las Virgenes Blazers (Los Angeles) 3 (PKs, 4-3). Goals: Kiley Blood 45, Jordan Kriger 73, Rachelle Dixon 85; Staci Duncan 20, Breana Boling 23, Erica Florez 54. Under-18 Girls Mission Viejo (Calif.) Mirage 2, FC Portland (Ore.) Yellow 0. Goals: Erin Misaki 11, 49. Under-17 Girls Colorado Rush Nike (Littleton) 2, San Ramon (Calif.) Crunch 1 (OT). Goals: Mary McDowell 77, Katie Henderson 99; Michelle Mangiardi 23. Under-16 Girls San Dieguito Surf White (San Diego) 1, De Anza Dynamite (Cupertino, Calif.) 0. Goal: Brooke Roby 29. Under-15 Girls Wolfpack Blue (Fountain Valley, Calif) 1, Colorado Rush Nike (Littleton) 0 (OT). Goal: Tami Fipps 93. Under-14 Girls Southern California Blues (San Juan Capistrano) 2, San Ramon (Calif.) Illusion 0. Goals: Tessa Baker 36, 53. Under-13 Girls Colorado Rush Nike (Littleton) 2, Sereno 86 Golden Eagles (Phoenix) 1. Goals: Jenna Billingsley 53, Caroline Lea 68; Alissa Oldenkamp 31. Under-12 Girls Santa Rosa (Calif.) United Storm 1, San Dieguito Surf (San Diego) 0. Goal: Danielle Spann 42.
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