National League teams continued the league’s history of success in 2019, as league teams captured each of the 12 US Youth Soccer National Championships in the 14U-19U age groups last week in Overland Park, Kan.
With those 12 titles, National League teams have now won 77 of a possible 100 National Championship titles since the league’s inception in the 2007-08 season.
Ten of the teams who captured 2019 National titles advanced to Overland Park as National League division winners. Two others finished the National League season one spot below their division’s National Championship qualifiers but earned berths to Nationals by winning their respective US Youth Soccer Regional Championship.
14U Girls | D'Feeters 05 Black (TX-N)
National League Red Division Champion
D’Feeters opened group play with a 3-0 win but needed a second-half game-winner in its last preliminary game to advance as the second team out of Group A. The North Texas side needed kicks from the mark to advance to the final, where it defeated National League Black Division Champ Lou Fusz Geerling 05 (MO), 2-1, to claim the National title.
Top Scorers: Delmy Benitez and Shanti Weddington (2)
14U Boys | Libertyville FC 1974 Elite (IL)
National League White Division Champion
Libertyville picked up four points from two close games — a 1-0 victory and 2-2 draw — to begin its week in Overland Park. Those results were enough to help the Illinois side advance to the semifinals as the Group B runner-up. Libertyville came back from two deficits in its semifinal against National League Red Division Champion Nationals Union 05 Black (MI) to secure a 3-2 win. In the final, Libertyville bounced back from a group play loss to STA 2005 (NJ) by winning the rematch, 3-0, to claim the National title.
Top Scorers: Miguel Garcia, Zachary Hult, August Lombardo and Saul Valadez (2)
15U Girls | SC Waukesha 04 Blue (WI)
National League White Division Champion
SC Waukesha began its week in Overland Park by storming back from an early two-goal deficit in each of its first two games — securing a win and a draw. The Wisconsin side finished group play with a complete performance in a 3-0 victory to win Group B. Another shutout victory in the semifinals allowed SC Waukesha to advance to the final for a rematch of its opening game against FC Revolution Dynamo (PA-E). Similar to their group play matchup, FC Revolution went up early, but SC Waukesha netted a quick equalizer and later pulled away for a 4-1 win to become National Champions.
Top Scorer: Kayla Budish (9)
15U Boys | Real Jersey FC (NJ)
National League White Division Champion
Real Jersey let a strong start to Nationals slip away, as it dropped its opening match despite going up by two goals after eight minutes of play. The New Jersey side bounced back, however, with a 4-0 win against National League Blue Division Champ Nationals Union 04 Black (MI), and it earned a draw in the final group play match to finish second in Group A. Real Jersey secured a 3-2 win in the semifinals before shutting out National League Black Division winner PA Dominion 04 (PA-E) in the final to capture the National title.
Top Scorer: Milton Jones (5)
16U Girls | Lou Fusz 03 Blue (MO)
National League White Division Champion
Lou Fusz began its week in Overland Park with a 3-0 win before securing a pair of 1-1 draws to finish with five points — enough to advance as the runner-up in Group A via tiebreakers. A semifinal matchup with National League Red Division champ LVSA 03 National League (NV) saw Lou Fusz let a two-goal lead slip away in the final minute before the Missouri side scored twice in overtime to win, 4-3. In the championship match, National League Black Division winner Legends IE (CA-S) grabbed an early lead, but Lou Fusz fought back to score the game’s final two goals and secure the 2-1 victory.
Top Scorer: Chloe Netzel (8)
16U Boys | LVSA 03 Silver (NV)
National League Blue Division – 2nd Place; Far West Regional Champion
LVSA sandwiched a draw between two wins in group play to finish first in Group B and advance to the semifinals. Playing National League side Syracuse Development Academy (NY-W) with a spot in the final on the line, LVSA needed kicks from the mark to eventually prevail, 3-2 (PK), and move on to the championship game. The 16U Boys final featured a rematch of the 2018 title match against National League White Division winner Beadling 2003 South Red (PA-W). LVSA, which shut out Beadling to begin group play in Overland Park, earned a 2-0 victory in the final to repeat as National Champions.
Top Scorer: Alan Lopez (3)
17U Girls | Cleveland FC 02 (OH-N)
National League Black Division Champion
Cleveland capped a season in which it dropped points in just one game between the National League and National Championships by lifting the 17U Girls National Championship trophy. Cleveland won each of its Group A games by multiple goals to finish with nine points in group play. The Ohio North side earned a 3-1 win in the semifinals against National League White Division winner North Shore United 2002 Blue (WI). In the final, Cleveland repeated its group play result against National League Blue Division champ Pipeline 02 Pre-Academy Spirit (MD), as the Ohio North side won, 6-2, to take the title.
Top Scorer: Haley Anspach (8)
17U Boys | Solar 02 Castro (TX-N)
National League White Division Champion
After a close win and draw to start group play, Solar secured a 3-0 win on the third day of play to earn a semifinal berth as the top team in Group A. In its semifinal match, Solar conceded a late goal that led to overtime, and the North Texas side then fell behind in the second extra period. However, Solar scored two late goals to secure the 4-3 overtime victory. In the final, Solar knocked off National League Red Division winner Arlington SA 2002 Red (VA), 1-0, to end the Virginia side’s attempt at a title defense — giving Solar the 2019 National Championship.
Top Scorer: Johnathan Sauceda (4)
18U Girls | Premier Navy 2001 (MD)
National League Black Division Champion
After picking up just one point from its first two games in Overland Park, Premier Navy earned a 1-0 win in its final group play game to finish second in Group B and advance to the semifinals. The Maryland side secured a 2-0 shutout win against National League Blue Division champion Celtic FC Premier JR (UT) in the semifinals. In the final, Premier Navy scored two early goals before holding on late to claim the National Championship with a 2-1 victory.
Top Scorer: Madison Carr (4)
18U Boys | PPA KSA 01 Pro-Profile (GA)
National League Blue Division Champion
PPA KSA began its week in Overland Park with a 2-2 draw, and followed that with a win and a second tie to finish Group A action with five points — enough to advance to the semifinals as the group runner-up. KSA fell behind against National League side Sparta 01 Premier JK (UT) early in the semifinal, but the Georgia side stormed back to win, 4-1. In the championship match, KSA pulled away from National League Red Division winner Solar 01 Stricker (TX-N) to claim a decisive win that gave the Georgia side the National Championship.
Top Scorer: Jerry Desdunes (10)
19U Girls | Celtic FC 00 Premier (UT)
National League Red Division – 3rd Place; Far West Regional Champion
Aside from a scoreless draw in its second game, Celtic FC used a potent offensive attack to capture the 19U Girls National title. The Utah side won Group A by earning two wins and a draw during the preliminary round. In the semifinals, Celtic conceded two late goals to National League Blue Division runner-up MapleBrook Fury (MN) — leading to overtime. The teams eventually required kicks from the mark to decide the winner, and Celtic won the shootout to advance. In the final, Celtic produced an offensive outburst to claim a decisive win for the National Championship.
Top Scorer: Kathryn Schirmer (6)
19U Boys | Lehigh Valley United 2000 Black (PA-E)
National League Blue Division Champion
LVU began its run to the McGuire Cup title by defeating two teams in group play from clubs that have claimed the historic trophy in recent years, including National League Red Division runner-up and two-time defending National Champion Baltimore Celtic SC 00 (MD). By winning Group A, LVU met National League Red Division champ LMSC Rats (PA-E) in the semifinals, where it won the matchup of Eastern PA sides, 3-1. In a rematch against Baltimore Celtic in the final, LVU netted the game’s lone goal in overtime to win, 1-0, and secure the club’s second McGuire Cup championship.
Top Scorers: Luke Brautigam, Carter Houlihan and Luke McMahon (2)