Champions crowned at US Youth Soccer Far West Regional Championships

Scores & Standings

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BOISE, Idaho — The 2019 US Youth Soccer Far West Regional Championships came to an exciting conclusion on Sunday in Boise as 14 teams claimed titles.

Even though these teams secured the first place spot, it would only be the beginning of another journey as each team also secured berths to the 2019 US Youth Soccer National Championships, which will be played July 22-28 at the Overland Park Soccer Complex in Overland Park, Kan.

Cal South, Nevada and Utah led the way with four Far West Regional Champions each while Cal North and Washington would each secure one.

2019 US Youth Soccer Far West Regional Champions

A few notes from Sunday’s finals:

13U Boys
Rebels SC (CA-S) claimed the 13U Boys Far West Regional title in kicks from the mark over Newark Elite Soccer 06B Orange (CA-N). Rebels SC wasted no time scoring and notched an early goal in the fifth minute from Dan Licea. Newark Elite made it a tie game midway through the second half thanks to a goal from Jesus Lua Amaya – his sixth of the event. Neither team was able to find another goal in regulation or overtime and the game headed to kicks from the mark. The Rebels outlasted Newark to win 3-2 on kicks and to claim the 13U Boys Far West Regional Championship.

13U Girls
Albion SC Academy Whittaker (CA-S) took the championship title with a win over Legends FC 06 Pre-Academy (CA-S) after Legends valiantly fought to take the game into overtime. In the 19th minute, Albion SC struck first with a goal from Ava Schall and would follow up with another goal in the 35th minute with a finish from Dyllan Williamson. Legends FC fought back and inched the game within one goal with a score from Brittany Brown for a 2-1 halftime score. Midway through the second half, Kyla Schuster scored for Legends FC to level the teams at 2-2. Regulation ended and, with no more goals in overtime, the game headed to kicks from the mark. Albion SC outlasted its Cal South counterparts, 5-4, to earn the 13U Girls title.

14U Boys
LVSA 05 Red (NV) came out with a, 2-1, victory over LAUFA 2005 (CA-S) to take the 14U Boys regional crown. Isaac Calderon of LVSA would finish the game with two goals and leave the tournament as the top goal scorer in his age group with 13 goals. The first half ended with Calderon netting his first of the match in the 25th minute. In the 63rd minute, LVSA earned itself some breathing room as Calderon scored his second goal of the day. Despite being down, LAUFA continued to play hard and scored late as Bryan Saavedra found the back of the net. LAUFA continued to push but could not find an equalizer and LVSA 05 Red claimed the 14U Boys title.

14U Girls
All it took was one goal for Snohomish United 05 Black (WA) to earn the 14U Girls Far West Regional Championships title in a, 1-0, match against Forza FC 05 DN (UT). Maki Quiyono was the lone goal scorer, notching a goal in the 31st minute. Each team pressed for additional goals but, with no goals found, Quiyono’s goal was enough offense to push Snohomish to victory. After a, 4-2, victory in its first game, Snohomish went on to finish the tournament by scoring 15 additional goals and without conceding another goal.

15U Boys
Downtown LVSC 04 Gold (NV) became the 15U Boys Far West Regional Champions after a, 2-1, victory over LA Galaxy South Bay 04 Elite (CA-S). LA Galaxy started off quick with a goal from Luke Sheldon in the eighth minute to take a 1-0 lead into halftime. LVSC came out at halftime determined to get a victory and equalized just one minute after the break on a Braden Flannery goal. Nicholas Walker put LVSC in the lead in the 66th minute and, after some close calls, LVSC held on to the lead and secured its place in the 2019 National Championships in July.

15U Girls
Utah Celtic FC (UT) defeated 04 Boise Thorns Elite (ID), in kicks from the mark to become the 15U Girls Far West Regional Champion. Utah Celtic FC started off with high pressure, and scored two quick goals to start off the first half. Ellie Tadje opened the scoring in just the third minute before Pyper Vance added another for an early 2-0 Celtic lead. The Boise Timbers wouldn’t go down easily in its home state and fought back to cut the lead in half in the 30th minute with a goal from Celeste Pinkerton. Avery McBride tied the game in the 62nd minute for the Boise Timbers to send the game into overtime. With a scoreless overtime, both teams headed to kicks from the mark where Utah Celtic would emerge victorious and now has a place in the 2019 US Youth Soccer National Championships.

16U Boys
In the 16U Boys age group, defending 2018 National Champions LVSA 03 Silver (NV) became Far West Regional Champions following a, 1-0, win over WPFC B03 Black (WA). LVSA had an impressive run in the event, scoring 11 goals and allowing just one. The defensive presence throughout the event showed in the final as LVSA locked down its defense to hold the clean sheet. Jesus Vega would seal his team’s victory as he scored a goal in the 96th minute. After just missing out on qualifying through National League, this victory ensures that LVSA has a chance to head back to Nationals to defend its crown.

16U Girls
LVSA 03 Red (NV) claimed the 16U Girls regional crown with a, 3-0, victory over Arsenal Colorado Academy 2003 (CO). Olivia Garcia of LVSA continued her spectacular offensive performance at the event and scored early in the fourth minute. Garcia came out hot in the second half and scored just three minutes in to make it 2-0. LSVA added a final goal in the in the 48th minute from Jacqueline Hillegrass to get some added breathing room before the final whistle. LVSA had a dominant performance over the course of the tournament, scoring 31 goals and allowing just a single goal. Even with the loss, Arsenal Colorado Academy will get the opportunity to head to the 2019 US Youth Soccer National Championships with LVSA already advancing by topping its group in the US Youth Soccer National League.

17U Boys
It took all the way through kicks from the mark but Santa Clara Sporting 02 Green (CA-N) outlasted Desert United Coachella to claim the 17U Boys Far West Regional crown. After a scoreless first half, two late goals sent the game into overtime. Diego Baca of Santa Clara Sporting scored the game’s first goal in the 80th minute before Desert United equalized in the 87th minute with a goal from Jose Torres. Santa Clara’s Tamba Mattiascored twice in overtime, but Torres completed his hat trick with two overtime goals of his own to send the game to kicks from the mark. Santa Clara outlasted Desert 6-5 from the spot and now advances to Nationals.

17U Girls
With a, 4-2, victory against Sparta 02 Premier SP (UT), Legends FC G02 Academy II (CA-S) finished the tournament with six consecutive victories and became the 17U Girls regional champion. A tight game was played by both teams with Legends striking first in the third minute with a goal from Kaya Pigoni. Sparta responded with two goals in the first half in the 20th minute and 38th minute with goals from Samantha Sofonia to take a 2-1 lead into halftime. Legends FC’s Lindsey Turner made sure her team still had a chance to fight for a win, leveling the score at 2-2 with a goal before the end of regulation. The game headed into overtime and the Legends offense kicked it into overdrive. Jonnie Sanchez and Marissa Vasquez added goals in the 98th and 111th minutes and the defense held the Sparta attack at bay to help Legends earn the regional crown.

18U Boys
Sparta 01 Premier JK (UT) heads to the National Championships after taming the high-profile Strikers 2001 Black (CA-S) offense to earn a, 2-0, victory in the 18U Boys regional championship match. Sparta went into halftime with the momentum after Ryen Jiba put the ball in the net in the 22nd minute. After battling back and forth with missed opportunities for each side, Sparta shut the door on Strikers when Arturo Martin Pimentel scored in the 90th minute to seal the win.

18U Girls
Celtic FC Premier JR (UT) defeated La Roca PO (UT), 4-1, to become the 18U Girls Far West Regional Champion. Neither team could find the back of the net in the first half until a late flurry when Paola Garcia and Hallie Fernandez of Celtic FC broke the stalemate just before the halftime whistle. Jocelyn Bybee extended the lead sixty-one minutes in before La Roca finally found a goal of its own from Lauren Howe. Bybee added a late insurance goal and Celtic earned a, 4-1, victory over its in-state opponent. At the end of the event, Celtic FC leaves with four different players tallying three goals or more over the course of the six days. La Roca still heads to the 2019 US Youth Soccer National Championships with Celtic already having qualified via the US Youth Soccer National League.

19U Boys
FC Golden State White (CA-S) pulled away from Downtown LVSC (NV) in a, 4-2, win to take the 19U Boys regional crown. Downtown’s Ethan Kovach got the ball rolling in just the second minute of the game when he netted a goal. FC Golden State countered in the second minute with a score from Carlos Diaz to equalize and then Diaz added a second to help earn Golden State a, 2-1, halftime advantage. Tanner Stensvon leveled the score for LVSC but then Golden State pulled away with two more second half goals. Daniel Castaneda and Daniel Silva added two goals late to seal the win for the Cal South side. With the win, Golden State punches its ticket to the National Championships and has a chance to compete for the James P. McGuire Cup.

19U Girls
Celtic FC 00 Premier (UT) used its offensive power to score two goals in each half to earn a, 4-0, win against CDA Slammers FC HB 00 Elite (CA-S). Celtic’s first half goals came from Samantha Brady and Hailee Atwater as it headed into halftime with a, 2-0, advantage. Just three minutes into the second half, Tara Warner made it 3-0, building on Celtics increasing lead. Sydney Bushan added an insurance goal in the 54th minute and the Celtic defense held strong to earn the clean sheet and the victory. Celtic tallied a total of 22 goals with 0 goals allowed over the course of the competition and now heads to Overland Park, Kan., for a chance at the national title.

The US Youth Soccer National Championships will consist of US Youth Soccer Regional Champions in the 13U through 19U Boys and Girls age groups, as well as the US Youth Soccer National League qualifiers in the 14U through 19U Boys and Girls age groups to complete the field of teams.