CLASS OF 2001 TAKES SHOW TO TEXAS SHOOTOUT
On
the weekend of June 3 & 4, Blues Juniors (Pictured On Right, Hit Photo
for Big View) from different Blues Teams took a trip to Houston to
play in the Texas Shootout. The tournament is a college showcase event
attended by the country's top college soccer coaches for evaluation
purposes.
The girls braved the heat and mosquitoes and left a strong impression with college coaches as they won two games and tied one. The format of the competition is not that of a tournament. There are no trophies or championships to win. The teams just play quality opponents in full length games in order to demonstrate their talent to the coaches who are there to evaluate. This has now become an annual event for the Blues and the club looks forward to participating next summer.
2001-2002
SUMMER TOURNAMENTS
Over
the summer months 2001-2002 Blues teams attended several California
Soccer tournaments beginning with the San Diego Surf Tournament and
ending with the Pleasanton Tournament over the Labor Day Weekend. In
between these tournaments Blues teams competed in various local tournaments
on an individual team basis. In summer tournament play U11 Blues (U10
state cup finalists & U11 Silver CSL Team???) and U15 Blues won
the Slammers Tournament. Hit U11 team photo (left) photo to see a big
version and their trophy which may be as big as a couple of the girls.
Three Blues teams captured the Capistrano Cup Championship (U13, U14,
U16), U16 fullback Makenzie Beahm (right with her mvp ball and her
nutrition of champions) was named MVP of the Capo Cup championship
match. U15 Blues won the Pleasanton Tournament while three Blues teams
(U13, U14, U18) were defeated in the Championship Game.
COAST
SOCCER LEAGUE
Coast
Soccer League play ended in November and early December with league
cup play. From top to bottom Blues teams were extremely competitive
in League Cup, capturing three championships (U10, U15 (Right), U17),
placing two other teams in the finals (U11, U18), two teams in the
semifinals (U12, U13), and three teams in the quarterfinals (U14, U16,
U17II).
2001-2002 STATE CUP
During
February, younger Blues teams held competition for the CYSA-South State
Cup. Blues teams attended various tournaments over January in preparation
for the cup. Both U10 teams did well with one team being eliminated
in the round of 16 and the other going out in the quarterfinals. The
U11 Blues surprised all of Southern California losing 1-0 to eventual
state cup champ SD Surf in the semifinals. U12 Blues had a disappointing
state cup and failed to advance out of their group. The heartbreaker
was the defending state cup champ U13 Blues who were eliminated in
the round of 16 because of a paper work snafu. They won the game on
the field and were en route to the quarters but had to forfeit the
game in the end.
 Long
time U17 Blues player Kelly Finkenberg who decided to attend
San Diego State suffered a serious knee injury during the state
cup and had surgery to repair torn ligaments. Since her injury
she is on the road to recovery. Kelly, we love you! Blues News
wants to give mention to the sportsmanship demonstrated by
the U17 finals opponent Samba team and their coach who showed
tremendous concern for Kelly's welfare during her ordeal. Thank
you Samba players, parents, and coaches.
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High School Soccer finished in March, congratulations to San Clemente
and Santa Margarita who won their respective CIF Championships. Congratulations
also go out to Capistrano Valley and Mater 
Dei who were CIF Finalists
this year. All four teams had quite a few Blues Players on their rosters.
Here are a couple
of items for all you high school soccer lovers. CIF
Teams were posted and WOW, the Blues were well represented on all
teams. Special mention goes out to Division I & II Offensive Players
of the Year, McCall Zerboni & Brooke Thulin; Division III Defensive
Player of the Year, Daniella Bosio. Congratulations to all
the girls.
FAR
WEST REGIONALS
Following the high school season the older Blues teams began their state cup. Mirroring last season, U16 & U17 Blues teams once again captured State Championships. You can check out photos of the champs along with all the Blues (State, Regional, National) championship moments on our Champions Page. The sad part of the older State Cup was that our defending State Champ U18 Blues were unable to three-peat going down to a hungry and talented SD Surf team in overtime. Both state champions went on to attend the Far West Regional Tournament in West Jordan, Utah. Although both teams were successful with respect to obtaining opportunities to be evaluated by the many college coaches attending the tournament, neither team was able to achieve their ultimate goal of advancing to the national finals. The U17 Blues were defeated in overtime in the semifinals by the eventual National Champions, the Pleasanton Rage, after a courageous performance enduring numerous injuries. The U16 Blues lost in the quarterfinals to the representative of Arizona.
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| (Above) Since we may not ever get any more photos of these girls (U17), we thought we would post this photo first. Here the U17 Regional Blues get together outside the park where the pre-tournament event was held. |
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| (Above) Not to be outdone, the U16 Blues take their pre-tournament photo inside the water park where opening ceremonies were held. |
ADULT
BLUES NATIONAL CHAMPIONS
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 After
a 17 year dry spell and lots of pain, the Southern California
Blues Adult Women captured their first ever National Championship
by a 5-0 score after being turned away in last year's finals.
The entire story to follow shortly as soon as my Adult Blues
Reporter gets back to me! Anyway, below is a photo of the National
Champions! |