Coach Chito guides his U11 Blues Blue to their second tournament championship of the season, this time it was the 2003 Capistrano Cup.

Not to be outdone, Mary's Blues U9 Lime team also won their second tournament of the season. The Orange Soccer Club, Toyota of Orange Classic. They defeated Cypress Elite in the finals 4-0. Amanda Bates (Blues U9 Blue) & Danni Repper (Blues U9) guest played for the team.

THREE HOST TEAMS CAPTURE LABOR DAY BLUES CUP!

	Over the Labor Day weekend the Blues ended the Summer tournament season by hosting the club's own Blues Cup competition for the second successful season. During match play three Blues teams (U11 Blue, U15, U18) won tournament championships and several more advanced to the semifinal rounds. The best story of the tournament, however, had to be Chito Gebhart's U11 Blues Blue team that won it's third tournament championship of the Summer season and second in a row including the Capistrano Cup (photo above). Congratulations to all the teams who participated and we look forward to having an even more competitive tournament in 2004. See you all next Labor Day. Click your favorite photo to enlarge, YOU MAY HAVE TO DISABLE YOUR POP UP BLOCKER! THANKS THE BLUES CUP WAS AWESOME! All we can say is thank you and it would not even begin to be enough. Thank you to all the volunteers, tournament coordinators, administrators, competitors and parents, for making the second annual Blues Cup a smash success. Thanks too to Tournament Director Mike Schiffer, Field Coordinator Paul Cousineau, Scheduler Bob Taylor, and Marketing Director Paula Coxe. Through their coordination we increased tournament sponsorship this year, and along with a connection from one of the parents in the club we were given a generous contribution from Snickers who helped present our tournament this year.

2003 WOMEN'S WORLD CUP

Wow, what a game! Sadly the United States fell short of their goal to win their third Women's World Cup and instead captured third place, but to the soccer fan the Final game was both entertaining and exciting. Germany defeated Sweden 2-1 in overtime on a golden goal for those of you who had no idea. Click the logo on your left for all the details. As Blues News looked over the crowd, several lime jerseys could be seen throughout the stadium. Hopefully the fact that the U.S. National Team is no longer the World Champion will inspire more girls to work hard to perhaps one day be on that field to win back the cup. Not that you would care since it is so far away but the Men's World Cup will be held in Germany 2006 and Blues News will be there to cover it for you in case you can't find the time.

BLUES COAST SOCCER LEAGUE RESULTS

The Summer heat finally died down some what but not the competitive heat from CSL competition. School got back in session and that meant one thing, oh yeah, well besides books, homework, and getting good grades there was Coast Soccer League play. This season each of our teams played at the highest competitive level. U9 & U10 teams all began at the silver level as they fight it out for placement over the next couple of seasons. The rest of our teams were all at the Premier, Gold, or Silver Elite level for now. Below is a chart we put together for fans of our teams which shows which league level they compete at. Blues News also attempts to keep track of our team results, their league record and standing. Of course you could just go to the boring CSL website for the same info by clicking their logo to the right. Hey if we find out about any outstanding team or individual performances we could also make note of it here. Good luck girls and stay healthy! And if you are reading this review by now you know that in Coast League play Blues teams finished with mixed results with respect to Coast League competition this season. This season our club compiled an overall league record of 105 wins, 52 losses, and 43 ties for a winning percentage of .633. Five teams (U09, U10, U11, U12, & U13) won league championships.

TEAM	LEAGUE	RECORD	STANDING	LEAGUE CUP	STATE CUP
U9	SILVER CENTRAL	8-3-1	SECOND	FINALISTS	GROUP
U9 BLUE	SILVER SOUTH	2-8-2	SEVENTH	GROUP	ROUND OF 16
U9 LIME	SILVER SOUTH	12-0-0			QUARTERFINALS
U10	SILVER SOUTH	9-2-1		SWEET 16	ROUND OF 32
U10 BLUE	SILVER DELTA	8-4-2	FOURTH	GROUP	ROUND OF 32
U11	GOLD	11-0-3			FINALISTS
U11 BLUE	SILVER ELITE NORTH	6-3-5	THIRD	ROUND OF 32	QUARTERFINALS
U12	GOLD	9-3-2
U12 BLUE	SILVER ELITE SOUTH	10-2-2	SECOND	GROUP	GROUP

TEAM	LEAGUE	RECORD	STANDING	LEAGUE CUP	STATE CUP
U13	GOLD	8-1-2			QUARTERFINALS
U14	GOLD	3-5-3	NINTH	QUARTERFINALS	QUARTERFINALS
U15	GOLD	3-3-5	SEVENTH	QUARTERFINALS	FINALISTS
U16	PREMIER	5-4-5	FOURTH		FINALISTS
U16 BLUE	GOLD	3-3-5	EIGHTH	SEMIFINALS	GROUP
U17	PREMIER	4-6-3	FIFTH	N/A	QUARTERFINALS
U18	U19 PREMIER	4-5-2	SEVENTH	SEMIFINALS	ROUND OF 16

COAST SOCCER LEAGUE CUP

Following league play the Coast Soccer League hosted the League Cup Tournament. In a great story of Blues club triumph, one of our older teams (U16) won the League Cup but had to defeat their sister team (U16 Blue) in the semifinals en route to the championship narrowly winning on penalty kicks before going onto win in the finals. Right is an after game photo with both teams (click to enlarge).

In more League Cup news the Blues Younger teams took four of five League Cup Championships. Two of our three U9 teams met in the finals with Mary Naimie's Lime team coming out on top against Chris Kales U9 Blues. Above left is a great photo of both teams following the championship game (come on Chris, you can smile too). Thanks parents for keeping the atmosphere positive in a competitive situation. That is one of the things that make our club so great. Here are the champs and the finalists. Congratulations to both teams (click to enlarge). Not to be outdone, also capturing League Cup Championships were the U11, U12, and U13 Blues.

McCALL ZERBONI'S U17 NATIONAL TEAM EXPERIENCE

Being on the Nationals team is an incredible experience. I play on U17’s Women’s National Team. Representing your country and working hard for the United States is extremely thrilling and honorable.

The talent on the team is so amazing. The level of soccer is so high and forces you to always perform at your best. Being in an environment with such talented players helps improve your game a lot and lets you know there is always room for improvement. Just the experience of meeting a lot of very talented girls from around the country is awesome.

Even though we are only together for weeks at a time, we bond so well because we share the same dreams and passion. We are all very different girls with different customs, religions, and beliefs that we have brought from our states, but when we step on the field we unite and perform as a team.

Our last event was in Chula Vista at the Olympic Training center. There we trained every day, worked hard, and bonded. At the end of the week we had a game against Canada. We beat them 4-0. It was so great because at the end of the game, walking off the field as winners, we knew where all our hard work had gone. Our women’s team won the World Cup, our U19’s won the World Cup, and we plan on doing the same. Hopefully we can remain on our streak and make our country proud.

THANKSGIVING TOURNAMENTS

During the Thanksgiving Holiday Blues Teams participated in Thanksgiving Tournaments throughout Southern California. Various Blues teams qualified for play in the San Diego Surf Girl's Cup and others played locally at the Irvine Harvest Cup. Two teams (U11 & U12) went down to defeat in the finals of the Surf Cup while three (U13, U15, U17) lost in the semifinals. In the other direction up at the Harvest Cup, U9 Lime, U10 Blue, and U11 Blue all won championships (Below).

(ABOVE) U9 LIME HARVEST CHAMPS
U10 BLUE HARVEST CHAMPS	U11 BLUE HARVEST CHAMPS

CORNELL COACH VISITS BLUES

Also during the holidays Berhane Andeberhan, long time friend and former college coach of Larry Draluck not to mention Julie Foudy when she played at Stanford, came to visit the Blues on his West Coast recruiting trip at the Surf and Harvest Cup tournaments. He ran a practice session for the U13 Blues during his stay. Thanks Berhane and we hope we can keep up the grades to one day play for you in college!

HOLIDAY TOURNAMENTS

OK, younger Blues parents (clarification...parents of younger Blues teams) are on our case for not getting info on this Winter's younger tournament wins and results in a timely fashion. Blues News response, "you guys are winning too much, we can't keep up". Among the many tournament wins, worth mention (if you don't get mentioned...don't take it personally) was the Winter tournament performance from Chris Vaught's U10 Blues (left) who won three straight tournament appearances (click photo to enlarge).

Speaking of tournaments, mid January could mean only one thing...well besides cold weather it means the younger Celtic Cup at the San Bernardino Soccer Complex. Both the U9 Lime and U13 Blues won tournament championships. Left and Right are the photos (again click to enlarge). After tons of Winter months tournament play younger Blues teams fight it out in the CYSA-South State Cup Championships.

WUSA AND SAN DIEGO SPIRIT

OK, people here is your chance to make a difference in our soccer world. I'm sure you are all aware of the WUSA suspending operations a few weeks ago. This league provided great role models to today's youth, exciting soccer, and the opportunity for young girls to dream of playing the game they love at a professional level. There are players on our teams right now, and millions of little girls all over the country that some day could have the opportunity to play in the WUSA. If the soccer community doesn't support this league, we can't expect anyone else to. As soccer fans and players, there are some things we can do to help revive the league and show potential sponsors and investors that there is a demand for this league. There is an on-line petition that you can sign. This link has been sent to the committee that has been appointed to find financial backing for the league, to show the fans' support for the WUSA. Below is the link. http://www.petitiononline.com/WUSA/petition.html There is also a website that has been set up by the fans to coordinate the effort to save the league. There is a section with names and addresses of potential sponsors. There is a letter writing campaign to encourage corporations to become involved with the WUSA. The address for that site is:  www.wusaid.com  On that site there is also a link to the WUSA "contact us" page for people to send an e-mail telling what the league means to them and why it should be saved. If you are willing to support the companies that support the league, please mention that in your e-mail. One of the committees that has been set up to help find sponsors and investors is using the e-mails sent to the WUSA to show there is a market for the league.

During the WUSA season many of the girls attended several of the San Diego Spirit matches throughout the year. Those lucky or persistent enough to hang around the field were able to get some cool photos with the Spirit players. Since there are so many to post we decided to dedicate an entire page to the San Diego Spirit along with several players from other WUSA teams and some who are Blues Alumni. SPIRIT PHOTOS

2003-04 STATE CUP SEASON

OK, what's next? Well just around Valentine's Day the Younger Blues teams entered state cup. U9 Blues had a fun and fantastic first season capturing numerous tournament championships throughout the year. Two of our three U9's advanced out of their state cup group with one being defeated in the round of 16 and the other in the quarterfinals.U10 Blues also had a great year capturing even more tournament championships over the long season. In state cup play both U10 teams exited in the round of 32.Don't ya hate it when you fight your sister?Well that is precisely what took place when both U11 Blues teams met up in the quarterfinals with the U11 coming out on top of the Blue team in a 1-0 game. Thankfully the two teams were able to get together following the match for a group photo. Click the photo (right) to enlarge. Painfully the U11 Blues advanced to the finals of state cup only to go down on penalty kicks to So Cal United. Great job to all involved! For your convenience you can click the state championship logo up on the left for CYSA-South State Cup information and results.

U12 BLUES GO BACK TO BACK!

Congratulations go out to U12 Blues on winning their second consecutive state championship! Other younger Blues teams had competitive seasons but only only Tad Bobak's U12 girls were left standing when it was all said and done. Not only did Tad's team win Back to Back state championships, but they captured the triple crown of So Cal Youth soccer. In other words they won their league championship, the league cup, and finally the state cup. These girls will now prepare to represent our club and CYSA-South at the Far West Regional Championships to be held in Spokane, Washington from June 21 though June 26. For more Regional information click the US Youth Soccer Logo (right). For a close up of the U12 state champs click the photo below.

U13 BLUES UPSET IN STATE QUARTERS

In a major upset the U13 Blues looking to follow the U12 girls to the state championship were upset in the quarterfinals by Wolfpack. The U13 Blues had a fantastic season also winning the league championship and following it up with the League Cup. The state cup, however, was not to be as following incredible group play and dominating any and all opponents, the Blues ran into a determined Wolfpack team who took an early lead only to go down 2-1 in the second half to the Blues. Suddenly a wind swept free kick took a wicked bounce off of the crossbar and onto the foot of a Wolfpack forward who tied the game 2-2 sending it to overtime. Missing several good overtime chances the Blues went to PK's and were defeated by the Wolfpack.

OLDER BLUES FINISH STATE CUP U15 & U16 DEFEATED IN FINALS

Before returning to club soccer a good portion of our older players were involved in the CIF Playoffs, several winning CIF Championships. In sad news U18 forward Chelsea Card (right) who has signed a letter of intent to attend University of Utah with long time teammate and friend Kiley Jones seriously injured her knee in the first half of her CIF Final Game. Get well Chelsea and good luck in college! After returning from CIF competition Blues teams were involved in several preparation tournaments prior to state cup. The first weekend in March it was the So Cal United Tournament. With many of our high school age players still in CIF playoffs younger Blues filled in the rosters of the U17, U16, and U15 teams. The U14 Blues entered the tournament with a full roster and won the championship. In the weeks to come older teams will play in the Nomads tournament in San Diego and the college showcase tournament in Las Vegas. Younger Blues teams participated in the So Cal United tournament in mid March. Our two clubs have a mutual agreement to attend each other's tournament.

NIKE SO CAL UNITED TOURNAMENT, MARCH
03-04 U14 CURRENT U15 PREPARATION FOR STATE CUP	04-05 U11 BLUES 03-04 U10 CHAMPS	04-05 U10 LIME 03-04 U9 CHAMPS

(BELOW) 03-04 U14 CURRENT U15 MARCH CELTIC CUP CHAMPS

Older Blues teams (U14-U18) began preparing for state cup in March and finished up their season competing for the state championship. U14 Blues lost 1-0 in overtime in quarterfinal play to the powerful Slammers while U15 and U16 Blues got to the state cup finals but both fell short of the championship with the U15s going down to West Coast in a 1-0 OT loss, followed by the U16s who lost in the finals to the powerhouse Slammers team. The U16's were awarded a wildcard giving them a trip to the regionals in Spokane. Congratulations go out to both teams and their coaches Tad Bobak and Randy Dodge. In state cup play the U17 Blues were defeated by Irvine in the quarterfinals while the U18 Blues lost in the round of 16 to West Coast. Coming back from college to play their last youth game the U19 Blues were finalists in state cup before being eliminated by Samba 2-0 in the final. The U19's were awarded another wildcard and attended the Far West Regionals in Spokane giving the Blues 3 teams (more than any other girls club) representing the club.

THANK YOU CHITO A U11 BLUE POEM

You have to read this poem people because it epitomizes Blues spirit. Blues News recently attended the Blues U11 Blue Holiday gathering and was impressed with team unity, spirit, and good feelings among the team and parents. At the function this poem was read for Chito as he was given several gifts from the girls.

This season's been awesome and so much fun. So this poem's to thank you for all you have done. To thank you for sharing your knowledge and time. We'll try to put all our thoughts in a rhyme. It started in June when practice began. We worked and we worked, we ran and we ran. Then soon as it was time for the games to begin. Pre-season tournaments we wanted to win! So excited and anxious, we all packed up. We headed down south for the Pegasus Cup. We brought home a trophy and medals galore. But oh that's not all; we have done so much more! We captured the Capo Cup; who would have thunk. That our 17 girls and coach had such spunk? But in Mission Viejo we ran out of tricks. When it all came down to penalty kicks. So you got us together and taught us more stuff. Cuz you knew that Blues Cup was gonna be tough. You worked us so hard; don't know how we survived. 'Til Labor Day weekend finally arrived. We played each game with our hearts and soul. Each one of us helped put that ball in the goal! In the end we were proud to see that our name. Was listed to play in the championship game. We showed up to play that team from up North. They never expected the fight we'd put forth. Yes So Cal United played hard, but yet. It was only our team that put one in the net! We proved we were champs, we'd won Blues Cup. We ended the summer with our confidence up! But you warned us all at the start of the season. To not lose focus, and you had good reason. Cuz each Silver Elite team we would meet. Now knew the Blues-Blue was the team to be beat! We started out slow with a long string of ties. And some losses which nearly put tears in our eyes. But you kept the faith, you helped us to see. We must work as a team to be all we can be. With cleaner collections and closer support. Our game became stronger, we're glad to report. We finished our season with four solid wins. Only eight goals against, eighteen we put in. Placing third in bracket, we'd pulled ourselves up. We wound up as champions of the Nike Harvest Cup. We'd been up, we'd been down, up once again. But soccer's like life, you don't always win. We were beat in League Cup, it's hard to admit. But we won't give up, we're not gonna quit! Cuz life has lessons, soccer's the same. win some, you lose some, you learn from each game. So we'll swallow real hard, we'll pick ourselves up. We'll come back with all we have at State Cup! Tonight we want to make sure you're aware. We're glad you're our coach, it shows that you care. You've taught us to dribble, to pass, and to shoot. Our parents have nearly learned to stay mute??? Thank you for teaching us all that you know. We realize we still have some ways to go. We want you to know what we don't often say. With you as our coach we are well on our way!

2004 STATE CUP REGIONAL NEWS

Back from beautiful Spokane and the Region IV (that's us) Far West Championships. We had three teams competing and although none captured the championship all three represented the Blues in fine fashion. Our state champion U12 Blues were eliminated in the finals going down to Crossfire Premier from Washington 1-0. Our U19 Blues, state cup finalists and wildcard team lost 2-1 in semifinal play to eventual champion Pleasanton Rage. The battered and bruised U16 Blues, state cup finalists and wildcard team, lost in the quarterfinals in golden goal play 2-1 to Sereno Eagles from Arizona. The 16's put up a great fight but ultimately didn't have enough healthy bodies to keep up with Arizona. They did, however, win the U16 Fair Play award at the tournament. Blues correspondent Kristin Halverson was our roving reporter for Blues news, she covered the U12 Girls.

Kristin's story along with the Regional Photos

OK so now the 03-04 season is officially over! Guess what, state cup was just another tournament although from a club standpoint, the nicest one to win. Of course there are also benefits for the players and teams too. Because of the added importance of state cup whether real or imagined, both teams and players gain added confidence by experiencing the pressure of the competition. Learning to perform under pressure is vital if one is to be successful at the higher levels of the game. If you have some extra time please read our editorial about this environment of soccer know it alls. Yes they were at it again attempting to define our club with inaccuracies. If our critics are interested in defining our club at least we can give them accurate information for them to criticize us about. This could be fun! Good bye and see you next season!

BLUES NEWS VIEWS 2004 EDITORIAL

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