ECNL Championship comes to a close


SEATTLE (July 19, 2010) – The 2010 ECNL National Championship came to a close Saturday at 60 Acres Soccer Complex in suburban Seattle, as teams from three different clubs earned national championships, three additional clubs won Challenge B championships, and PDA was crowned the overall ECNL National Club Champion.

The event, held July 15-17, was the culmination of the inaugural season of the ECNL and included all 120 teams from the 40 current ECNL clubs. The teams were competing for age group championships and promotion and relegation between the Challenge A and B flights in each age group for the 2010-11 season.

Illustrating the competitiveness of play across all three age groups, two of the three national championship games needed penalty kicks to decide the winner. The excitement was not just limited to the championship brackets either, as teams fought hard to earn promotion and avoid relegation, as well as to earn points in the overall National Club Champion standings.

“The National Championship games provided a great end to the first season of the ECNL,” said ECNL President Christian Lavers. “For the first time in girls’ soccer in this country, we have national champions that were determined by their performances in league competition over an entire year, and we have an overall club national champion. The environment for the games was fantastic, the players provided tremendous performances all weekend, and I think we saw that the future of the ECNL, and the future of youth girls’ soccer in general, is very positive.”

“The competitive level of the games was fantastic,” said Doug Bracken, Director of Coaching at Ohio Elite SA and ECNL Vice President. “These games really meant something to the clubs, teams and players. When you put such a big commitment into making the league a reality and being part of the league, it is very special to see the players fighting so hard. This was a special way to end an unbelievable first year.”

In U-17 action, PDA Tsunami claimed the national championship by defeating FC Stars of Mass 3-1 in penalties following a 2-2 tie through regulation and overtime. Ohio Elite SA claimed third place in the U-17 Challenge A division thanks to a 1-0 victory over Lonestar SC.

Albertson Fury, SC Del Sol and San Juan SC all earned promotion to the U-17 Challenge A division for next season, where they will replace West Coast FC, Irvine Strikers and Charlotte SA.

“I think it will be very good for the players to go up to the Challenge A division,” said Billy Wiskel, Director of Coaching at San Juan SC. “There are some special teams and special players in the top flight and that exposure to outstanding opponents is the strength of the ECNL. We feel very fortunate to be in the elite youth-level girls’ soccer league in the country and we’re proud to be one of the initial clubs.”

In the only championship game to not feature penalty kicks, Mustang Rampage earned the U-16 national title by recording a 3-2 triumph over PDA Charge. FC Starts of Mass earned third place in U-16 Challenge A play with a 3-1 win over Crossfire Premier, the host club for the weekend.

“It was a great year for this group, going 11-1 through 12 ECNL games,” said Joe Owen, coach of the U-16 national champion Mustang Rampage. “For us to go 11-1 against that level of competition is really a statement about our players. The competitiveness of the league was fantastic and we’re proud to be a part of it from the beginning.”

Earning promotion to the U-16 Challenge A division for next year were Arsenal FC, SC Del Sol and Connecticut FC. They will replace CESA Premier, Pleasanton Rage and Birmingham United.

After recording the only perfect 9-0-0 record during the regular season, Dallas Sting claimed the U-15 national championship by defeating Arsenal FC 5-4 on penalties following a 2-2 tie through regulation and overtime. CASL Spartan Elite placed third in U-15 Challenge A action by posting a 2-1 victory over Eclipse Select.

“The ECNL is a very competitive league and when you go to the tournaments, it’s very difficult to win,” said Tatu Pecorari, Dallas Sting Technical Director and coach of the U-15 national champions. “It takes a lot of effort both physically and mentally and you need to catch some breaks. I’m excited because fortunately we were able to do that and it was a great weekend.

“This is how we make better players in this country, we need to provide them better competition. There were no winners or losers this weekend because any of those four teams could have won. The level of competition is amazing and that’s what we’re there for, to make the players better.”

Lonestar SC, San Juan SC and Solar SC earned promotion to the U-15 Challenge A division for next season, where they will replace St. Louis Scott Gallagher, Irvine Strikers and FC Stars of Mass.

The 2010-11 ECNL season will kick off with the first of five regular-season events Aug. 27-29 in Temecula, Calif. The ECNL will add 12 new top youth clubs from around the country, bringing the total number of member clubs to 52.
In addition, a U-18 age group will be added to the ECNL for 2010-11.
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