The inaugural US Club Soccer Champions Cup concluded in Orlando on April 16th with Schulz Academy finishing 2nd overall in the nation. US Club Soccer invited their 8 best clubs from the thousands registered in the U.S. to compete for the club championship which lasted four days. The concept of the competition is brand new, as instead of competing for individual team honors, teams compete for an overall club championship.
The competition was held at Disney’s Wide World of Sports from Thursday, April 13 to Sunday, April 16. Each club was represented by their U13, U15 and U17 age groups. CASL from North Carolina won the Champions Cup by virtue of winning the U13 and the U17 age groups. However Schulz Academy won the U15 age group, beating CASL 1-0 in the final, and with strong performances from their U13 and U17 teams, Schulz Academy secured the overall 2nd place and an automatic berth to next year’s Champion Cup.
Schulz Academy Director Dr. Josef Schulz accepts the award for the Academy's 2nd place finish in the Champions Cup club competition. The U15 Boys, winners of their age group, accompanied Dr. Schulz to the victory podium. |
“For us it was already an honor to be invited to the Champions Cup, because only the most successful soccer organizations of the country over the last few years were allowed to participate. To be officially ranked now number 2 overall as a club in front of clubs like Richmond Strikers from Virginia, Atlanta Concorde from Georgia or Colorado Rush is a great achievement for our organization, and we are very proud of this”, Dr. Josef Schulz, director of the Schulz Academy said in a statement to the press.
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| Standing 2nd row (from left to right): Sean Hart, Alex Bidos, Kevin Noble, Axel Miranda, Alvaro Bastidas, Tony Assenza, Head Coach Dr. Josef Schulz, Chris Mechel, Ade Ellis, Ricardo Singh, Luca Bondi, Eric DeSousa. First row: Donovan Henry, Mashu Duek, Francisco Pelicon, Sevin Barnes, Darrian Pulchan, Scotty Power, Wendel James, Diego Castellon, Joao Mendes, Andres Londono-Morales |
The Schulz Academy U15 Boys demonstrated the strength of this age group in South Florida. In the first game of the group vs. Internationals SC from Ohio, Ade Ellis and Alex Bidos scored in the 2-0 victory. With the 2-0 win in the second match vs. Atlanta Concorde, Schulz Academy secured first place in the group and an eventual showdown with soccer powerhouse CASL. Captain Donovan Henry and Chris Mechel (assisted by Henry) scored the goals for Schulz Academy.
In the final CASL from North Carolina proved to be an extremely tough opponent. However, Schulz Academy matched their opponent’s intensity from the start. Both teams traded good scoring opportunities early on, but it was Schulz Academy with great runs from forwards Tony Assenza and Donovan Henry who looked the more dangerous side. In the 25th minute Schulz Academy got a break-though when Donovan Henry was fouled inside the box in his effort to score. Francisco Pelicon executed the penalty with a shot into the left lower corner that send the CASL goalkeeper the wrong way. CASL displayed their quality by apply a lot of pressure throughout the game, but Schulz Academy was equal to the task limiting CASL to just one or two scoring opportunities.
“We had the better chances, and I think we deserved to win the final. The whole team showed an unbelievable desire to win, and I was very pleased how they executed the game plan. The 2nd place secured an automatic invitation to next year’s Champions Cup, where we will try to challenge powerhouse CASL for first place. The fact that 2 teams from Florida won the 2 most competitive tournaments of the year in the U15 age group (Kendall Soccer Coalition won the Dallas Cup and we won the Champions Cup) just shows the talent in this State.” added Dr. Josef Schulz.
Below are the final ranking after the 4 day event at the Champions Cup:
