Eastern Pennsylvania had the most teams advance to the final but it was our neighbor New Jersey that had the most champions crowned on Tuesday at The Proving Grounds.

 

Six teams from New Jersey were among the champions crowned after a hard fought five days of competition.

 

Kearny Thistle United won their second championship Tuesday with a 1-0 win over FC Ballyhoo on a late penalty kick in the 16U Boys Final and was the only club with more than one champion. Kearny Thistle United Paisley won the 19U Girls Final on Monday 1-0 over West Mont United. The four other winners from New Jersey were JAE Academy Plainfield (13U Boys), Scotch Plain/Fanwood SA Ertz (13U Girls), Deptford Premier FC (15U Girls) and Den of Lions Strikers (17U Boys).

 

“Being so close to home so many New Jersey teams had the opportunity to compete and proved to be successful over the last four or five days,” said Ryan Haney, NJ Youth Soccer Operations Manager. “We saw seven teams advance to the National Presidents Cup in Wichita, six of which were crowned champions today. We’re extremely thankful for Eastern Pennsylvania hosting this tournament.”

 

Eastern Pennsylvania had three champions followed by Maryland and PA West with two each and Virginia, New Hampshire and Connecticut each with one.

 

Allegheny Force Outlasts Keystone Athletic on Penalties

 

Just one game had to be decided on penalties on Tuesday and it came late in the day between two teams that battled back and forth through regulation and overtime before to kicks. Allegheny opened the scoring in the first half but Keystone Athletic responded with a penalty kick to tie things up in the second half and took a lead early in the second overtime period but Allegheny found an equalizer off a rebound from a free kick to level things at 2-2.

 

Into penalties, Keystone Athletic had a tough break when a shot hit the underside of the crossbar and didn’t cross the goal line. Allegheny was clinical on their kicks throughout and clinched things when their keeper made a save to open the fifth round of kicks.

 

“We were able to focus at the right time, we were able to pick ourselves up, fight back, create a few chances,” said Force head coach Sotiri Tsourekis. “We got the luck we needed at the right time; that gave us a little extra to get into the shootout and that momentum  carried into the shootout.”

 

The regional title was a first for the Force, which has been to the regionals of the competition multiple times before but never to a final.

 

“We’ve had a squad that’s been together a long time,” Tsourekis said. “It’s a testament to them committing to the team.”

 

By the Numbers

 

Of the champions, PA Classics 17U girls had the most goals over the five days with 21, followed by Kearny Thistle United 16U boys with 20. Den of Lions 17U Boys and Bethesda SC 18U Boys had 18.

 

Just two champions had a loss over the five days. Steel United PA lost 1-0 to Century United in the final group game and avenged that loss in the final and Kearny Thistle United Paisley avenged a 2-0 loss to West Mont United with a 1-0 win in the final.

 

Photos

 

Champions and Finalists

 

Division	Champion	Finalist
12U Boys	DC Soccer Club DCSC Blue Metros 11 (MD)	Keystone FC Elite 11B (PAE)
12U Girls	Beadling SC 2011 Girls South White (PAW)	West Mont United Soccer Association United 2011 Girls (PAE)
13U Boys	JAE Academy Plainfield 10 (NJ)	BVB International Academy - Pittsburgh BVB 10B Premier (PAW)
13U Girls	Scotch Plains/Fanwood SA SPF Ertz (NJ)	Central Susquehanna SC Phoenix 10 (PAE)
14U Boys	FC Stars New Hampshire 2009 Boys Blue (NH)	Takoma Park Soccer Club Thunder 2009 (MD)
14U Girls	Steel United PA 09G Elite (PAE)	Century United Soccer Century V-Girls2009 Red (PAW)
15U Boys	Naugatuck Youth Soccer Boys 2008 (CT)	Southern Chester County SA Dragons B08 (PAE)
15U Girls	Deptford Premier FC '08 Girls (NJ)	Loudoun Soccer Club 2008G Red (VA)
16U Boys	Kearny Thistle United FC B2007- Storm Black (NJ)	FC Ballyhoo 07 Boys Black (PAE)
16U Girls	Allegheny Force FC AFFC 2007 Girls (PAW)	Keystone Athletic KA 2007 Girls Blue (PAE)
17U Boys	Den of Lions Strikers - 2006 (NJ)	FC Millennium International Milan (MD)
17U Girls	PA Classics PA Classics Elite Blue 06 F (PAE)	Torpedoes SC GU17 Red (NJ)
18U Boys	Bethesda SC Green 2005 (MD)	Hulmeville SC Dortmund (PAE)
18U Girls	Lancaster Elite Sprinters (PAE)	BVB International Academy - Pittsburgh 05G Premier (PAW)
19U Boys	Team America 04 BATA (VA)	Vereinigung Erzgebirge SC Gunners (PAE)
19U Girls	Kearny Thistle United FC G2004 Paisley Athletic Academy (NJ)	West Mont United Soccer Association Premier 04/05 Girls (PAE)