Thursday, March 18, 2010

PEMBROKE PINES, FLORIDA – West Pines United FC capped off their most-successful USL Super Y-League (SYL) season to date this week with the selection of four girls and two boys to the SYL ODP Select Teams for the 2009-10 season. West Pines also sent four teams to the SYL North American Finals, championed the U13 boys tournament and finished 11th in the SYL First 11 Club Rankings.

The club will be hosting SYL tryouts this weekend in Pembroke Pines, Florida. For more information on the tryouts, please visit www.westpinesunited.org.

“We are very excited entering our third season in the Super Y-League,” West Pines United President Todd Goodman said. “Last year’s campaign saw four of our teams reach the SYL North American Finals with our U13 boys capturing the championship. Also, six of our players were chosen to their respective age group’s SYL ODP Select Teams at the SYL National ODP Camps. We look forward to continuing to work in alliance with our neighboring clubs to offer the elite-level players an opportunity to showcase their talents in this prestigious league.”

West Pines United was the second-best SYL club during the recent SYL ODP National Camps held in Tampa, Florida. They finished with six nominations. Northern Virginia FC had five girls and four boys named to the SYL ODP Select Teams for a total of nine.

West Pines’ did hold the distinction of having the most (5) players named to the ‘95/’96 SYL ODP Select Teams: Kiana Clarke, Alyssa Robinson and Melanie Monteagudo on the girls’ side, and Darren Rios and Romario Bernard for the boys.

For Rios and Bernard, joining the SYL ODP Select Team concludes an impressive SYL season. Both were instrumental in their team capturing the U13 Boys Championship at the North American Finals. Bernard was also chosen to the All-Tournament Team at the conclusion of the tournament.

On the girls’ side of that age group, Monteagudo, who was the leading goal-scorer in both the U13 Girl’s Southeast Division and at the SYL North American Finals, was also named to the All-Tournament Team. She was the youngest player selected to the girls ‘95/’96 SYL ODP Select Team.

The sixth West Pines player named to the SYL ODP Select Teams was midfielder Gabriella Sosa, who played with the club’s U15 girls at the North American Finals. That team went 5-3-2 during the regular season. The team’s best match of the North American Finals was a 2-1 loss to the Richmond Kickers on Sunday, November 22. The Kickers advanced to the semifinals of the tournament before falling, 3-1 to the Cleveland Internationals.