Va. State Cup: Nearly all semifinal matchups set

By Jimmy LaRoue

Nearly all Va. State Cup semifinal matchups are set, with just one Under-16 Boys matchup to go before teams arrive at River City Sports Park on Oct. 27-28 for the semifinal and finals in the U-15 through U-18 boys and girls’ brackets, with 22 of the 32 teams making it a part of the Virginia Club Champions League.

The final four in the U-15 Boys bracket includes top-seed FC Richmond Magic vs. No. 5 Loudoun 97B Red and No. 3 Chantilly Strikers vs. No. 2 Arlington SA Impact Red.

In the quarterfinal matchups, FC Richmond defeated No. 8 McLean MPS Legend Green 3-1 Saturday, while Loudoun 97B Red won by the same margin over No. 4 Barca 97 Elite. Chantilly Strikers, meanwhile, picked up a 2-1 win over No. 6 Lee-Mount Vernon Soccer Club Patriots 97 Red, and Arlington SA Impact Red scored a 2-0 win over No. 7 Virginia Rush Nike.

All but one U-16 Boys semifinal matchup is settled, with only top-seeded Beach FC and No. 8 FC Richmond Magic left to decide the final semifinal berth, with the winner taking on ABGC Spartans SC, a 6-1 winner over Roanoke Star U-16 Boys Elite. In the other semifinal matchup, No. 3 ASA Strikers Red, 2-1 winners over No. 6 Team America FC 96, will play No. 2 Herndon Boca Juniors, who defeated SYC Surge 96 White 2-0.

The top two seeds remain in the U-17 Boys Bracket, as No. 1 Loudoun 95B Red, 4-2 winners over PWSI Courage 95 Red, will take on SYA Excel Red, 3-1 winners over No. 5 FC Richmond Magic, while in the other semifinal, No. 6 CSL Junkyard Dawgs Elite, after a 3-2 defeat of No. 3 Beach FC 95B Red, will take on No. 2 ABGC Hawks, 4-0 winners over Stafford Revolution 95B Blue.

In U-18 Boys play, No. 8 SOCA Lightning of Charlottesville pulled off a 2-1 upset of top-seed PWSI Courage 94 Red and will play No. 4 ABGC Knights FC, 9-0 winners over Richmond Kickers Elite. Another ABGC team, No. 3 United Force, will play against No. 2 Reston FC 94. United Force defeated Virginia Legacy SC Wizards 1-0, while Reston FC 94 defeated No. 7 Beach FC U-18 Red Boys 6-2.

Looking at the girls’ side of the brackets, the U-15 Girls semifinals will feature No. 1 Herndon Freedom 97G vs. No. 5 Richmond Kickers Elite and Roanoke Star U-15 Girls Elite and No. 2 PWSI Courage 97G Red. Herndon Freedom picked up its third consecutive shutout in State Cup action, defeating No. 8 Loudoun 97G Red 3-0. The Kickers, meanwhile, also picked up its third straight shutout in State Cup play, taking down No. 4 SYA Cardinals 97 Red 3-0. Roanoke Star U-15 Girls Elite, after an upset of No. 3 ASA Rowdies Red in the opening round of State Cup play, have continued its run of success, pulling out a 2-1 win over Beach FC 97 Fyre and will face PWSI Courage 97G Red, who picked up its third consecutive 2-0 shutout.

After its win over top-seeded VSA Heat 96G in the previous round, McLean MPS 96 Force Green dominated SOCA Storm 7-0 in a U-16 Girls quarterfinal game and will face No. 4 Beach FC 96G Red, 3-2 winners in PKs over ASA Athletica Red. The other semifinal will feature No. 3 FASA Elite Impact 96 (2-0 winners over No. 6 Richmond Kickers Elite) against No. 2 PWSI Courage 96 Red (2-0 winners over FC Richmond Mystx 96.

Blowouts were featured in the U-17 Girls quarterfinal action, as top-seeded BRYC 95 Elite defeated FASA Elite Impact 95 10-0 and will face No. 4 Richmond Kickers Elite, who put together another seven goal performance in defeating SYA FCV Heat 7-1. In the other semifinal, No. 3 PWSI Courage 95 Gold takes on McLean MPS Green Fury 95. PWSI Courage 95 Gold defeated No. 6 Loudoun 95G Red 2-1, while McLean defeated No. 7 ASA Flame 3-1.

In the U-18 Girls bracket, No. 1 VSA Heat Blue defeated Beach FC Red 3-0 and will face Roanoke Star U-18 Elite, who have taken down two top-eight seeds in a row after its defeat of No. 4 Lee-Mount Vernon Soccer Club Patriots 4-1. In the other semifinal, Richmond Kickers Elite (10-o winners over Central Virginia U-18 Girls White) will face No. 2 Herndon Firecats (3-1 winners over SOCA Storm). For the Kickers, it’s their seventh consecutive berth in the State Cup semis.