Carson, California (July, 15 2010) – Crossfire Premier’s Boys U-18 Soccer team successfully competed in the bracket portion of the US Soccer Development Academy National Finals winning Group 1 and placing them in the National Championship Game at the Home Depot Center In Carson, California Saturday evening, July 17, 2010 at 7pm.
The team from Redmond, Washington faced three outstanding opponents in group play. Crossfire won Group 1 with two wins and a one loss. The team opened with a 1-0 loss against FC Dallas on Sunday, July 12. They then beat the CASL Chelsea from North Carolina 1-0 on Tuesday, and defeated the Derby County Wolves from Michigan, 2-0 Thursday evening.
The US Soccer Development Academy Playoffs Finals Week is being held at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California featuring the top 8 teams in the country competing for the National Title. The Crossfire Premier Boys team will play Vardar, a team from Michigan in the championship game.
"Crossfire Premier being among the top two U-18 soccer clubs in the nation is a sensational result. I am proud of the extraordinary effort made by our boys. All the teams in this group are excellent, and it came down to the last day where three of us could have gone through. Now we will work even harder to win the final," said Crossfire head coach Bernie James.
About the US Soccer Development Academy: The Development Academy is a partnership between U.S. Soccer and the top youth clubs around the country to provide the best youth players in the U.S. with an everyday environment designed to produce the next generation of National Team players. The Academy’s programming philosophy of increased training, less total games and more competitive games is based on U.S. Soccer’s Best Practices utilized by the U-17 U.S. National Team Residency program.
The Academy also connects National Team coaches directly with the Academy clubs to develop and identify players and coaches for future Youth National Teams. Each Academy team is evaluated by a National Team coach at least ten times each year and each Academy club receives two formal evaluations in over 100 categories each year from National Team staff.
The Development Academy is also focused on identifying and developing the next generation of elite referees. U.S. Soccer assigns up-and-coming officials to participate in Academy games at the local level and at national events.
About Crossfire Premier Soccer: The Mission of the Crossfire Premier Soccer Club is to promote the game of soccer by providing the highest possible level of technical and tactical training, skill development, competitive team play, and to provide highly skilled and capable players with an opportunity to further excel in the sport.
It is Crossfire’s goal to become and to be recognized as a consistently successful Premier Soccer Club within Washington State, within our region, and throughout the United States. Crossfire Players, Coaches, Managers and Member Families will strive to be an asset to the sport of soccer and to the community in which they live.
