COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Crew Soccer Academy opens its inaugural season in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy league this weekend in North Carolina, with games against Greensboro SC and Capital Area Soccer League at both the Under-18 and Under-16 levels.
The U-18s will take on Greensboro Saturday at 2 p.m. and CASL, of Raleigh, N.C., Sunday at 11 a.m., while the U-16s will face the same two clubs, Saturday at 4 p.m. and Sunday at 11 a.m. CASL is currently the 11th-ranked club in the country by Soccer America magazine.
The CSA U-18s are coached by Ohio Dominican head coach Eric Nichols and their roster features Bloom Carroll standout Nick Blevins, the Gatorade Ohio Player of the Year. The U-16s are coached by former Crew midfielder Billy Thompson. Between them, the two teams feature six high school All-Americans, nine All-Region selections, 14 All-Ohio selections and the Divisions I, II and III state players of the year.
"The Crew Soccer Academy teams' first games in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy league mark a significant milestone in the evolution of the club," said Crew General Manager Mark McCullers. "The CSA teams are the apex of our player-development system and it is extremely gratifying to see the quality of the program as we enter this next phase."
Following a comprehensive review of elite player development in the United States and around the world, U.S. Soccer created the U.S. Soccer Development Academy to improve the everyday environment for the elite youth player. Using the U-17 National Team Residency program as a model of training and focus, clubs chosen to participate in the Academy program only compete in Academy programming, thus increasing the amount of time that can be spent training and improving the quality of matches. National Team and National Staff coaches will scout the Academy matches and trainings to ensure that players are seen in their natural playing environment.
"I'm very excited about the establishment of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy Program," said U.S. National Team Head Coach Bob Bradley. "It is very important for U.S. Soccer to work with our top clubs to ensure that our best young players are constantly being challenged in an environment that best promotes player development. With a tremendous amount of reach, this program will help focus training sessions and matches on the areas that are critical to elevating our young players' ability to compete at the elite levels of the sport."
A total of 64 of the top youth soccer clubs in the U.S. were selected by U.S. Soccer to participate in the program based on a number of criteria and they are divided into eight conferences of eight Academies. Each team plays 30 matches during the eight-month season. The winner of each conference will participate in the Academy Finals at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif.
The Crew is a member of the Great Lakes Conference, along with Carmel (Ind.) United, CASA (Cleveland), Empire United (Rochester, N.Y.), Internationals (Cleveland), Michigan Wolves (Farmington Hills), Ohio Elite Soccer Academy (Cincinnati) and Vardar (Rochester Hill, Mich.). Both of this weekend's opponents, Greensboro and CASL, are members of the Atlantic Conference.
Founded by American sports pioneer Lamar Hunt, the Columbus Crew is Ohio's Major League Soccer club, anchoring a diverse sports and entertainment enterprise. One of the league's Charter Members and the U.S. Open Cup champion in 2002, it will open its 13th season overall and 10th in first-of-its-kind Columbus Crew Stadium on Saturday, March 29, when it plays host to Eastern Conference-rival Toronto FC.
CSA Under-18 Roster and Schedule
No. Name Pos. |
|---|
13 Kris Arnold M |
24 Chad Barson D |
1 Antonio Beltran GK |
19 Nick Blevins M |
10 Matt Bonifini M |
Colby Catlett |
3 Lucas Eichhorn M |
20 Andrew Gilbert D |
4 Mike Green D |
5 Joey Haught M |
21 Stefan Latham F |
22 Andy Lubahn F |
6 Sean Moritz M |
23 Kit North D |
7 Joey Perkins M |
2 Charlie Pettys D |
0 Byron Regester GK |
9 Sean Ryan D |
30 Daren Scarberry GK |
12 David Schade D |
11 Thomas Schmitt F |
8 Derek Sebert F |
25 Ben Speas F |
26 Travis Wall M |
14 John Wargo M |
15 Matt Wiet D |
Head Coach: Eric Nichols
Assistant Coach: Everett Palache
GAME #
DATE
TIME
OPPONENT
SCORE
LOCATION
323609
SA FEB 9
2:00 PM
GREENSBORO SOCCER CLUB
BRYAN PARK STADIUM #1
323633
SU FEB 10
11:00 AM
CASL
DURHAM BULLS SOCCER STAD
323660
SA FEB 23
1:00 PM
RICHMOND STRIKERS
STRIKER PARK
323700
SU FEB 24
12 NOON
RICHMOND KICKERS
HENSLEY COMPLEX
323714
SA MAR 1
4:00 PM
OHIO ELITE SOCCER ACADEMY
TOWN&COUNTRY SPORTS CMPLX
323775
SA MAR 8
3:00 PM
VARDAR
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
323807
SU MAR 9
12 NOON
MICHIGAN WOLVES
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
323867
SA MAR 29
3:00 PM
CARMEL UNITED SOCCER CLUB
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
323922
SU MAR 30
12 NOON
EMPIRE UNITED
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
323960
SA APR 5
3:00 PM
VARDAR
UNIVERSITY OF DETROIT
324000
SU APR 6
12 NOON
MICHIGAN WOLVES
LIVONIASTEVENSON
324086
SA APR 19
3:00 PM
INTERNATIONALS
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
324246
SU APR 20
12 NOON
CASA
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
324350
SU APR 27
2:00 PM
EMPIRE UNITED
PAETEC
324550
SA MAY 10
3:00 PM
NORTH MECK
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
324588
SU MAY 11
12 NOON
SOUTH CHARLOTTE SA
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
324102
SA MAY 31
6:00 PM
INTERNATIONALS
COPLEY FIELDS
324118
SU JUN 1
87:99 PM
CASA
LOST NATIONS SPORTS PARK
324132
SA JUN 7
3:00 PM
BRIDGE FA
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
324184
SU JUN 8
12 NOON
VIRGINIA RUSH SOCCER CLUB
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
324242
SA JUN 14
1:00 PM
CARMEL UNITED SOCCER CLUB
SHELBORNE SOCCER COMPLEX ,p>
324432
SA JUN 21
3:00 PM
OHIO ELITE SOCCER ACADEMY
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
CSA Under-16 Roster and Schedule
No. Name Pos. |
|---|
4 Sukhoon "Robbie" Ahn M |
1 Alex Bechtol D |
20 Griffin Bryant M |
5 Ross Friedman M |
24 Victor Garza M |
27 Luke Helmuth D |
2 Jordan Hendricks M |
0 Paul Hendricks GK |
3 Austin Hill F |
7 Omar Kabba M |
8 O'Neil Kalunga M |
9 Giakumis Kodogiannis D |
22 Andy Lubahn M |
0 Justin Luthy GK |
10 Juan Martinez D |
30 Andrian McAdams GK |
13 William Phiri F |
6 Tyler Ranalli M |
14 Carlos Salcedo M |
15 Zach Schaffelburg M |
19 Brandon Silva F |
26 Vaughn Spurrier F |
16 Wil Trapp M |
Head Coach: Billy Thompson
Assistant Coach: Roberto DaSilva
GAME #
DATE
TIME
OPPONENT
SCORE
LOCATION
323608
SA FEB 9
4:00 PM
GREENSBORO SOCCER CLUB
BRYAN PARK STADIUM #1
323632
SU FEB 10
11:00 AM
CASL
CENTEX HOMES TRAINING GR.
323659
SA FEB 23
11:00 AM
RICHMOND STRIKERS
STRIKER PARK
323699
SU FEB 24
10:00 AM
RICHMOND KICKERS
HENSLEY COMPLEX
323713
SA MAR 1
6:00 PM
OHIO ELITE SOCCER ACADEMY
TOWN&COUNTRY SPORTS CMPLX
323774
SA MAR 8
1:00 PM
VARDAR
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
323806
SU MAR 9
10:00 AM
MICHIGAN WOLVES
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
323866
SA MAR 29
1:00 PM
CARMEL UNITED SOCCER CLUB
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
323921
SU MAR 30
10:00 AM
EMPIRE UNITED
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
323959
SA APR 5
1:00 PM
VARDAR
UNIVERSITY OF DETROIT
323999
SU APR 6
10:00 AM
MICHIGAN WOLVES
LIVONIASTEVENSON
324085
SA APR 19
1:00 PM
INTERNATIONALS
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
324245
SU APR 20
10:00 AM
CASA
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
324349
SU APR 27
12 NOON
EMPIRE UNITED
PAETEC
324549
SA MAY 10
1:00 PM
NORTH MECK
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
324587
SU MAY 11
10:00 AM
SOUTH CHARLOTTE SA
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
324101
SA MAY 31
4:00 PM
INTERNATIONALS
COPLEY FIELDS
324117
SU JUN 1
87:99 PM
CASA
LOST NATIONS SPORTS PARK
324131
SA JUN 7
1:00 PM
BRIDGE FA
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
324183
SU JUN 8
10:00 AM
VIRGINIA RUSH SOCCER CLUB
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
324241
SA JUN 14
11:00 AM
CARMEL UNITED SOCCER CLUB
SHELBORNE SOCCER COMPLEX
324431
SA JUN 21
1:00 PM
OHIO ELITE SOCCER ACADEMY
OBETZ TRAINING FACILITY
