Sacramento, CA December 18, 2015 — Placer United’s U14/15 Boys Academy Donates Over 1800 Items to the Homeless

Placer United Soccer Club’s U14/15 Boys United States Soccer Federation Development Academy held a donation collection last week for homeless families in the greater Sacramento region.  The collection was launched on December 9th and ran through December 18, 2015.  The team set a goal of collecting 700 food and toiletry items during the collection period.  The boys exceeded their goal by collecting more than 1,800 items with the help of local families and businesses including Primo Pizza, Costco, Mark Healy from Sysco Foods, and Debbie Hiltz.

The donations were delivered by the Academy boys on December 19th to the Union Gospel Mission in Sacramento, which serves more than 9,000 meals each month, provides shelter for any homeless individual to come in out of the adverse weather and get a warm meal, fresh clothing, a place to shower, and numerous other items they need, 365 days per year.

While there, the boys took a tour and learned about the risks and fears homeless individuals face every day.  “This experience has shown me the importance of helping others, as well as why it’s important for us to stay focused on both school and soccer.”  said Academy Goalkeeper Cole Phillips.  “This was a great way to give back to those who are less fortunate and not provided with the same great opportunities that we are provided with.”

The Placer Academy team consists of seventeen players, practices four days per week and plays one game per weekend throughout their 15-month season.  But this weekend the coach and team wanted to do something different.  “These boys work hard all season long and get to play on some of the best facilities around,” said Coach Kevin Unsworth.  “It’s important we help them develop not only on the field as elite players but off the field as citizens. In an attempt to give something back to the local community we felt it would be nice to organize a small event, while allowing the boys to experience first hand just how fortunate they are to have a stable home life, education and loving families.”

About Placer United Academy: The Placer United Development Academy program provides opportunities for elite players to develop in the most challenging and competitive soccer environment possible.  The Academy connects National Team coaches directly with the Academy clubs to develop and identify players for future Youth National Teams.  The technical, tactical, physical, and mental development of the players are focal points of the competitive curriculum. Placer has trained a number of players who are now State and Region IV ODP players, Region 6 and State PDP players, ID2 players, youth National Team players, USL and MLS players.

 

Girls – 2004-2007

07G Gold  – Placer Jr. Cup Champs, Mustang Stampede Finalists, NorCal State Cup Semi Finalists, Copa Del Rey Finalists

07G Black – Placer Jr. Cup Finalists, NorCal Fall League Silver 1 Champs, NorCal State Cup Diamond Finalists.

06G Gold – NorCal Cup Platinum 2 Champs, Placer Jr Cup Champions, Copa Del Rey Champions

05G Gold – Placer United Girls Cup Semi Finalist, Union FC Champions Cup Champions, Placer United Jr. Cup Champions

05G Black – State Cup Premier 3 Finalist

04G Gold – Mustang Stampede Qtr. Finalist, 2nd Place NorCal Fall League Premier

04G Black – Placer United Girls Cup Finalist,  NorCal Fall League Silver 1 Champion

 

Boys – 2004-2007

07B Gold – Placer Jr. Cup Champs, NorCal Fall League Premier Champs, NorCal Cup Premier Elite 3 Champion

07B Black – Placer Jr. Cup Champs, NorCal Fall League Silver 1 Champs

07B White – Placer Jr. Cup Champs, NorCal State Copper Cup Finalists

06B Gold – Placer Jr. Cup Champs, NorCal Cup State 7 Champs

06B Black –  NorCal Cup Platinum 3 Champs

05B Gold Copa – Finalist Davis Legacy Summer Classico, NorCal Fall League Premier Champions

05B Gold Predators – Copa Del Rey Finalist

05B Black – 2nd NorCal Fall League Silver 1 Division, Vacaville Shootout Champion, Finalist Union FC Cup

05B White – Placer United Jr. Cup Champions, NorCal State Silver 2 Cup Semi Finalists, Copa Del Rey Finalist

04B Gold – Summer Surf Cup Champions, Davis College Showcase Champions, Davis Premier Cup Champions, NorCal Fall League Premier Champions, NorCal Premier Spring League Champions, NorCal Regional Semi Finalists

04B Black – Sac United Suntan Classic Champs, Davis Legacy Super Classico Champs

 

Girls – 2001-2003

03G Gold – NorCal Fall League Premier Champions, Summer Surf Cup Finalists, Davis Legacy College Showcase Finalists, Davis Premier Cup Champions

03G Black – Spring League Champions, Cal Cup Champions, Placer United Girls Cup Semi Finalist, Copa Del Rey Finalist

02G Gold – NorCal Regional Semi Finalists, San Diego Surf Thanksgiving Challenge Qtr Finalist

01G Gold – National Premier League Champions League participants

01G Black – Placer United Girls Cup Champions, NorCal Spring Showcase Champions

 

Boys – 2001-2003

03B Gold – Summer Surf Cup Finalist, Davis Legacy College Showcase Finalist, Davis Legacy Premier Cup Champions, NorCal 2nd Place NorCal Fall League Premier, Mustang Stampede Semi-Finalists

03B Black – Davis Legacy Super Classico Finalist

02B Gold – Reno Tahoe Soccer Festival Semi Finalist

01B Gold – Ballistic United Semi Finalist, Sac United Suntan Classic Semi Finalist

 

Girls – 1998-2000

00G Gold – Placer United Girls Cup Champions, Surf Cup College Showcase Champion, Pleasanton Rage Showcase Champions

00G Black – Sac Suntan Classic Semi Finalist, Davis College Showcase Semi Finalist

99G Gold – Surf Cup College Showcase Finalist, Pleasanton Rage College Showcase Semi Finalist, Players Showcase Champions, Placer Girls Cup Finalists

99G Black – Placer United Girls Cup Semi Finalist

98G Gold – San Diego College Showcase Champion, Placer United Girls Cup Finalist, Pleasanton Rage Semi Finalist, Davis College Showcase Champions

 

Boys – 1998-2000

00B Gold – NPL Champions League Winners, Santa Clara Sporting Finalist, Davis Legacy College Showcase Champions, Surf Cup College Showcase Finalist

00B Black – Nomads Thanksgiving College Showcase  Semi Finalists

99B Gold – Juventus Showcase Champions, NPL Champions Leagues Runners Up, Davis Legacy College Showcase Finalist, Surf Cup College Showcase Champion

98B Gold – San United Suntan Classic Champions, Davis Legacy College Showcase Finalist

 

 

 

 

December 18, 2015

Energy FC announced Friday that the club has signed former Premier Development League standout Luis Martinez for the 2016 season.

The 5-5, 140-pound midfielder from Barra de Navidad, Jalisco, Mexico spent the 2015 season with FC Tucson of the PDL, where he was named one of the league scouting network’s top 50 prospects. Martinez played collegiately at Chico State, where he earned All-CCAA honors in 2012.

“We always have our eyes on players as they come through the PDL, and Luis is a player who got great reviews from the staff at FC Tucson last year,” Energy FC head coach Jimmy Nielsen said. “He is a dynamic playmaker we are excited to add to the mix”

Martinez will join Energy FC players for the Plaza Mayor at the Crossroads Posada celebration from 2:00 – 6:30 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 20.

Martinez is the first non-returning player signed by Energy FC for 2016, joining forward Peter Toth, midfielders Daniel Gonzalez and Chuy Sanchez, defenders Coady Andrews and Kalen Ryden, and goaltender Ray Clark as players officially signed for the 2016 season.

Children and adults all around us are homeless, hungry and in desperate need of items this holiday season.  There are over 5,000 people in the Sacramento region that are homeless.  Of those, youth and young adults ages 14-24 make up nearly 10% of the total population experiencing homelessness*.

*Source: SacHousingAlliance.org

Help the U14/15 Boys Academy fight hunger and homelessness in our greater community!

From December 9th to December 18th the Academy team will be partnering with the Sacramento Homeless Union Gospel Mission to help feed families and provide needed supplies this holiday season. Our goal is at least 700 food and toiletry items by December 18th!

The Mission serves over 9,000 meals each month and provides shelter for anyone to come in out of the diverse weather, keeping safe from the heat, cold and dangers of the streets 365 days per year. Seven days a week a homeless individual can get a warm meal, fresh clothing, a place to shower, deodorant, toothbrushes and toothpaste, shaving cream and razors and numerous other items they need.  Mission volunteers are active in the community, supplying food boxes to families who are unable to adequately feed their children, and the elderly who barely make ends meet.  For Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas they distribute a bountiful holiday meal.

The Mission operates without tax or government support of any kind, funded entirely by generous donations of individuals and organizations in the community.  Your contributions will make it possible for them to help people make meaningful life changes and become contributing members of society.

Donating is as easy and is as effective as a hat trick!

Check your panty, or pick up an extra food or toiletry item or two at the store (please see the list below for needed items).

Drop your donation off into the boxes labeled “Food Collection Box” in the entrance of Placer United Soccer Indoor Training Center located at 1091 Tinker Rd., Suite 300, Rocklin, CA  95765.  “Tinker” is open weekdays in the afternoons from 4:45pm to 9pm, and 9pm to 5pm on Saturdays.

Help Spread the Word! Forward this email to friends and family and encourage them to donate.

Make a Tremendous Difference With A Simple Donation of Food or Toiletries Below.

Canned

• Soup
• Meat
• Vegetables
• Sauces
• Beans
• Peanut ButterJelly
• Chicken, Tuna

Boxed

• Cereal
• Rice
• Pasta (all types)
• Containers of Oatmeal
• Granola Bars
• Trail Mix Packs
• Water Case

Toiletries

• Soap
• Body Wash
• Deodorant
• Razors
• Toothpaste/ ToothBrushes
• Shaving Cream
• Combs
• Lotions
• Tissue Packs
• Wet Wipe Packs

Other

• Blankets
• Tarps
• Backpacks
• Duffle bags
• T-Shirts
• Beanies/Hats
• Socks
• Umbrellas
• First Aid Kits
• Garbage Bags
• Gloves
• Hand Sanitizer
• Hand Warmers

Together, we can help give less fortunate individuals in our area the perfect gift by fulfilling their needs this holiday season.

Questions?  Please contact U14 Academy Coach Kevin Unsworth or Manager Chemene Phillips

Thank you in advance for your support!

The Placer United boys and girls teams that traveled to San Diego over the holiday weekend had a great Thanksgiving at the 2015 soccerloco Surf College Cup. The new Surf Cup showcase format really suited us as four Placer teams continued where our younger’s left off at Summer Surf by playing through to the last day to earn Surf Cup championships.

Each of the final day games had tons of college coaches filling up the sidelines as they scouted for their next group of players. With parents chewing on fingernails the Placer boys and girls gave it their all and left everything on the field.

At the end of some tense, nerve wrecking, back-and-forth, fast-paced action-packed games, three Placer teams succeeded in being named Surf Champions.

A big congratulations to the following teams:

• Placer U16G 00 Gold – Surf College Cup Stone Steps Champions
• Placer U16B 00 Gold – Surf College Cup finalists
• Placer U17B 99 Gold – Surf College Cup Seaside Champions
• Placer U18G 98 Gold – Surf College Cup Moonlight Champions

Great job Coaches Jason Gantt, Matt McDougall, and Ron Benjamin! Go Placer!

A big congratulations to our U10B 06 Black team and Coach Jorge for taking home the 2015 U10 NorCal Platinum 3 Cup Championship.

The boys had a great run in this year’s NorCal event beating a very strong Livermore team in a back and forth semi final game. The team followed up that win by beating the highly favored mighty Mustang United team in the final.

Congratulations again boys. Go Placer!

A big congratulations to the Placer United U12B 04 Gold team as they were crowned Champions of NorCal U12 Premier Division last weekend.

The team has already complied an impressive list of championship wins:

• 2015 NorCal Spring Premier Division
• 2015 Davis College Showcase
• 2015 Summer Surf Cup
• 2015 Davis Premier Cup

The Fall Premier League title will now be the 5th major competition the boys have won this season.

Congratulations to each player, parents and Coach Paul!

Great job, Go Placer!

A huge congratulations to the eleven boys and seven girls from Placer United Soccer Club who were chosen to participate in this weekend’s By-Invitation-Only PDP Camp held at Davis High School. To have a total of eighteen players represent the soccer club is a really high achievement by our coaches in the 2003 and 2004 boys and girls age groups. Great Job! Go Placer!

2003/2004 Girls

• Karley Garcia
• Emma Hofmann
• Kate Killer
• Lucy Newlin
• Kellie Pagador
• Grettel Sainz
• Emma Schafer

2003/2004 Boys

• Jared Bautista
• Lucas Bost
• Payton Brennan
• Jacob Goehring
• Robbie Mora
• Donovan Sessoms
• James Shepard
• Lucan Summers
• Chase Tanon
• Jackson Tucker
• Rami Zantout

October 21, 2015—Pete LaFleur
editor@collegesoccer360.com

Arizona State sophomore forward Jessica Raybe (Lodi, Calif.) – who scored early and then set up the decisive penalty kick in double overtime at Washington – is the top honoree among CS360’s week–9 Primetime Performers Honor Roll for Division I women’s soccer, covering games played from Oct. 12–18, 2015. Raybe is the CS360 National Primetime Player of the Week, while the 15 Primetime Performer honorees for week–9 also include another Pac–12 player in Arizona platoon-starter goalkeeper Lainey Burdett (Las Vegas), the CS360 National Freshman of the Week.

The CS360 Primetime Performers (which began in 2009) highlight players who perform at a high level – both consistently and in timely fashion – during games that carry potential significance to postseason qualification and positioning (i.e. based on quality of opponents and other situational factors, beyond raw stats. The week–9 Primetime Performers include several from teams that were locked in key midseason showdowns against top contenders for their respective 2015 conference regular-season titles (which, in many cases, also carry the bonus of serving as the conference tournament host team).

Raybe and her team headed to Seattle last week desperate for a win, particularly on the road versus one of the nation’s top teams. The sophomore delivered with an early goal and later played a key role in the sequence that produced the winning penalty kick in double overtime, for that 2–1 win over the Huskies (cs360 #15). The result was ASU’s first win over Washington since 2011 (first in Seattle since ’05) and marked only the second time this season that the Huskies have allowed multiple goals. Most importantly, the win at Washington helped ASU’s climb back to .500, which is require as a minimum for receiving an NCAA at-large bid (the Sun Devils now are 5–7-1). ASU also sliced its RPI from triple-digits to 86, with the obvious hope that more quality Pac-12 results could drop that RPI even further into NCAA-bid range (usually at least the 45-50 range). Regardless, a loss (and maybe even a tie) at Washington could have pit an end to ASU’s postseason strategy.

Raybe opened the scoring in the 12th minute, after taking a pass from Madison Kmetko and guiding her shot over the ’keeper into the far-right corner (she also had scored in the previous game, a 1–1 result vs. UCLA). With another 1–1 final looming, Raybe forced the action after splitting two defenders and poking a feed from Whitney Kanavel before being impeded by the onrushing ‘keeper Megan Kufeld (drawing a “last defender” red card and PK). Kanavel then cashed in the penalty try versus backup Sarah Shimer to complete the dramatic road win (105’). BURDETT held back Washington State during a big 1–0 road victory, saving all nine shots on goal (a season-high nine saves) while her busy game also included defensing 25 total shots and six corner kicks. Burdett helped the Wildcats remain in the top half of the highly competitive and talented Pac–12 Conference.

An early enrollee who began her college soccer career at Arizona during the 2015 spring semester, Burdett has split time this season with second-year player (redshirt freshman) Rachel Estopare, going 5–2–1 in her eight starts. The 15 week–9 Primetime Performers include three goalkeepers, three back-line defenders, a pair of holding/defensive midfielders, three other midfielders and four forwards. Burdett is the only freshman among the group, along with nine seniors (one of them a fifth-year player), three juniors and a pair of sophomores.

Two of the week–9 honorees hail from California hometowns and two others are from New York, with the other 11 hailing from 11 different home states: Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, Nevada, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin. Two players among the week–9 Primetime Performers – Duke junior defender Christina Gibbons and Western Michigan sophomore forward Emma Kahn – were named to the CS360 Primetime Honor Roll earlier in the 2015 season. Seven on this list have teammates who were Primetime Performer honorees earlier this season: players from Arizona, Arizona State, California, Duke, Hofstra, Mississippi and Wisconsin.

Selection for the CS360 weekly awards is based on any/all of the following “primetime” criteria (i.e. not solely based on raw stats):

• Performed at a high level in a game that could be key to the team’s postseason qualification, typically in a game involving a top-50 team from the CS360 Composite National Rankings (or in a game involving a conference favorite/leader from a league not represented in the CS360 top-50).
• In general, preference is given based on the quality of the opponent, contribution to team success and other situational factors involved in the player’s accomplishments.
• Exhibited strong leadership and/or involved in clutch performances, such as gamewinning goals, noteworthy comebacks, late scores, momentum-shifting play, all-around performance/consistency, filling role/gameplan, team spirit, etc.
• Overcame adversity or extreme circumstances (for the team and/or individual).
• Bonus consideration is given for key performances away from team’s home field and/or against a traditional rival.